Do you intend to learn standup comedy? You may not need to enroll in formal classes anymore. All you need to do is to further develop your sense of humor and improve your performance or presentation skills. Practice makes perfect. If you aim to do well at it, be ready to encounter many challenges and failures along the way. The audience may not instantly like you, but you should always try to impress and make them laugh.
The hardest part when learning standup comedy and starting out a career at it is beginning into the journey. You need to jumpstart your entry. After some time that you have improved your humor and your comedy skills, you need to conquer your nervousness and learn how to perform in a big crowd. Here are some ideas that could help you learn standup comedy and at the same time jumpstart a lucrative career in it.
Start through open mics
Numerous bars, cafés, and nightclubs mount open microphone nights. Such events are opportunities where new and aspiring standup comedians could initially perform. Anyone could get the rare chance to be on stage instantly during an open mic. If you intend to showcase your talent initially, being called in an open mic could be an opportunity you should not miss.
The experience may be memorable or embarrassing at the same time. What is important is that you should take note of your performance and use it as a gauge so you would know if audience would possibly welcome you. If you receive good and positive feedback from your performance, you could be sure you are set for stardom. If not, you could continue working to improve your craft.
Hit the comedy club
After mastering the open mic, be ready to conquer comedy clubs. You would be ripe for ‘bigger’ standup comedy shows, where you could expect to face a huge crowd. You might consider putting up ‘bringer’ shows, wherein you could bring in a number of your friends as paying customers and audience of your show.
Prepare and deliver your jokes and antics very well. It is important that you make sure you are well prepared before facing an audience. Remember that you would always be judged based on your most recent performance so make every act your best. If you do otherwise, your show could be your very last.
Prevent amateur mistakes
You know how bad standup comedians fare. They are booed and are disliked by the audience. It could be because they have a horrible sense of humor to begin with or just that they are not really cut for the entertainment industry. You could avoid amateur mistakes so you would be able to always make your performance work well.
Do not bad mouth other comedians, like what many standup comedians do. Doing so could be surely funny at times, but they could do more harm than good. There could also be ethics integrated as you learn standup comedy. It is also a usual amateur mistake to blame a bad show to the audience. You perform in the act, not the audience. You are on stage to make them laugh, not to expect and solicit their cooperation.
Although different nations speak in different mother tongues and at times, misunderstandings and misinterpretations may arise, there are instances when the world celebrates together in bliss and laughter. Truly, merrymaking and festivities can turn dark moods around into light and soft exchanges of grins and smiles. At this point, let’s venture into a part of the world where stand-up comedy has reached a level of high regard and acceptance. It’s time to learn about the Japanese Manzai.
Manzai is a variation of stand-up comedy found within the confines of the Land of the Rising Sun. Basically it features a routine wherein a pair of performers trade blows via jokes done in great speed and succession. The pair is composed of a straight man called as tsukkomi and a funny man, which is identified as a boke. The jokes given revolve around double-talk, verbal gags, mutual misunderstandings, and puns.
Over the past years, Manzai has been tagged with the region of Osaka, wherein common comedians carry out their witty and funny lines utilizing the Kansai dialect. An Osaka-based entertainment group of companies named Yoshimoto Kogyo has been attributed as the initial proponent of the term Manzai. The term started to take fame in 1933. The same conglomerate also made the first move to introduce the said form of comedy to Tokyoites.
Now let’s flip some pages of Japanese history and trace the development of Manzai through the years. The roots of this comedy variation can be attributed to a certain festival that was originally done in order to welcome the New Year during the Heian period. The pattern followed by the roles of both the boke and tsukkomi is derived from the old stand-up routine wherein the Manzai performers show up on stage delivering messages from the gods. Opposition is the name of the game as one performer spoils the party of the other.
When the Edo period came into the picture the style shifted with more emphasis on the humorous facet of stand-up. Furthermore, there was an increase in the number of variances pertaining to distinctly created styles. These included the likes of Yamato Manzai, Owari Manzai, and Mikawa Manzai. Upon the arrival of the Meiji Period, Osaka Manzai shifted to a higher gear resulting into a higher popularity rating as compared to what it had during the past period.
By the end of the Taisho period, the foundation of Yoshimoto Kogyo during 1912 paved the way for a fresher form of Manzai. Much of the celebration that defined the older version was removed. The change proved to be a good one as the new style began to spread further into Japan which included Tokyo. The popularity of Manzai was boosted as communication technology saw a lot of innovations moving into areas of varying mediums such as radio, stage, and in the long run television.
Now let’s get into more details about the Manzai participants. The duo in the acts has similarities with the general concepts of funny and straight man in double act comedy. Boke is taken from the verb bokeru which is defined as senility or air headedness thus leading to the boke’s characteristic of frequent forgetfulness and misinterpretation. The term tsukkomi can be identified with a butting in role as it is the task of the tsukkomi to correct errors done by the boke. It is common practice of the tsukkomi to berate the boke by hitting him in a swift motion using a pleated paper fan known as harisen.
Stand-up comedy allows an individual to not only learn how to appreciate the positive side of life. It can also bridge gaps between cultural differences and unite people from all walks of life into a single solitary celebration of fun and merry-making.
This website uses cookies that are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in the privacy policy. By accepting this OR scrolling this page OR continuing to browse, you agree to our Privacy Policy