I prepared a set almost exactly the same as the last half of my Northbridge street set from Saturday which got a good reception, so I knew it was good, and yet when I ran it last night it went okay but not great.
I didn’t feel alone though, despite there being about 60 people at the club, there was something off with the mood compared to last week, all of the professionals were struggling to get anything out of them.
I did do something different this time, every time I looked down at stage I reminded myself to look at the audience instead and try to make a connection. That didn’t work, I mean I did it, but there was no connection.
So tonight is my big night and I have to decide am I going to do the same thing as before that didn’t win it for me, or am I going to run my new stuff knowing it worked once and bombed once.
I was flicking through a book called Comedy Secrets, where it had a paragraph or two about why material works one night and not others, and that some studies have shown external factors have a big impact on how the audience will receive material. Still, I feel like as a performer we’re meant to be able to turn the crowd around and make them laugh because out stuff is FUNNY. Not just funny in the COLD or the HOT or on a SATURDAY but FUNNY. And when we know the audience can randomly like or dislike material despite it being funny, it’s hard to know where the line is between saying – I had a shit night – or – the audience had a shit night.
Watch this, I did really good today, this is my new best set.
Notes
I really struggled to write this set because I bombed so hard last time at Laugh Resort, and this time I really wanted to push the limit of what I was joking about and I wasn’t sure how far the audience would tolerate it.
My opening half is something I wrote before I even started doing stand-up but never performed, while the rest was an amalgamation of some ideas from the past few weeks.
I didn’t make any particular mistakes, I moved the mic from hand to hand unnecessarily, and went a minute over my time, and used jokes which I didn’t have punchlines for yet, but that was all part of the plan.
I was surprised at one point where I was talking about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, and Madonna, and someone in the audience groaned. I didn’t realise it was a sensitive topic.
I practiced my heart out for this one, a real show at Laugh Resort, then missed a punchline early on and lost the confidence of the crowd, setting myself up for very few laughs. They were nice enough to let me finish hanging myself…
I think what I learned here is that my facial expressions and the strength of the opener can be determining factors in how well the show is going to go. I don’t think the material was wrong for the crowd – though it’s possible, it’s not a very helpful belief.
It was a very tough night for the first few comedians too, but comedians near the end really won the crowd over, especially when they had interaction with the crowd. But I think it was confidence in themselves and their material that really sold it. I think it’s a mistake to do Laugh Resort without believing in yourself 100%, unlike some of the other venues which are more forgiving.
