Stage Craft for Stand-ups

Rhythm Method; Comic Timing

• 4 week course

• Face-to-face

Homework: At least 15 minutes a day practice. You will be performing, recording and posting the result of your practice daily.

Obviously, there are basics to master. You are in charge and as with all of leadership, you have to lead by example. If you can learn the basics, keep at them and build on them, you will become what is technically known as a time-fucker, able to level mountains and defy gods, infiltrate secret societies – and the occasional unruly audiences? Bitch, please – a cakewalk.   

You may take the course twice.

‘Practice makes habit.’ Minnesotan Piano Teacher

As a warning: Natural is not the goal. Wood is natural; woodenness is a skill issue. All live performance, including comedy is not personal, it’s intimate. It’s about connecting to a group of seated strangers and getting them to feel – anything. Moving the dial is hard. So fuck natural. That’s right, fuck natural. Seriously? What kind of performer has the low bar of ‘natural’? A mediocre one, that’s who. If that’s the case, then Asians are naturally better than everyone else with their high IQ’s, hairless body, ageless skin, can turn anything into food, are great at martial arts and, of course, musical. All five-year-old Asians can dribble basketballs, like full sized basketballs – seated. You know who’s natural? Open-miccers. Open-miccers are peak ‘natural’.  

And while we’re at it: Fuck likeable. You know who has to be likeable? Compere’s and paedophiles. [*This does not mean be unlikeable.] A good performer, never mind great, just a good one is meant to draw an audience into their world. ALL performance is an act. And yet, stand-up is not like acting as every actor 1(and comic) is keen to tell you. There’s no fourth wall in comedy. Or fifth wall 2for that matter, or third or second; there’s just the audience, and you. But not every-day you. You at your funniest, your most ridiculous, your most unreasonable and that sort of thing doesn’t just happen, it has to be built. Getting a group of strangers to laugh together requires some actual skills. It takes time to be an overnight success.

Back to courses