So, you have decided that you want to get up and do your first open mic at your local place of laughs and beers? Nice. There is nothing like throwing yourself into the deep end. I’m sure that almost everyone has told you that you are “so funny” or that “you should do stand-up.” Well there are some basic steps to make sure you succeed on your first comedy show.
The best way to build a set is to follow a process. This is the best process to prepare to take the stage and nail your first show.
- Write Some Jokes
- Adopt A Style
- Practice Timing
- Pace Your Jokes
- Breath
- Relax
- Have Fun
If you are like me, you have been thinking about funny things your entire life but probably never thought to write them down. Now, you’re staring at a blank screen and wondering if how you let all that solid gold go floating away in the wind. As long as you understand the formula for comedy you will be fine. Comedy = Tragedy + Time
Before I get into the ways you can structure your five-minute set. I want to give you some general tips that are going to make your comedy life a lot easier. Now You’re ready for that five minutes of gold and glory! What are we going to write about? Oh that’s right, you set doesn’t start after you step on the stage. It requires preparation before you ever touch the mic.
Comedy Is Based On Tragedy Plus Time.
Use Your Time To Turn Your Tragedy Into Comedy.
James D. Creviston
Write Some Jokes
Before you can get on stage you have to have jokes. Don’t try to wing it. Not only will you most likely bomb, you will show how inexperienced you are. When you leave stage people should be saying “wow how long have you been doing stand up?” instead of “Wow you haven’t done stand up before have you?
While this is something I’ve written about before, but it begs repeating. Write every day. A joke, a funny thought, a story, something, anything really, but write. The joke can be a clunker or just bad, but you are doing something essential, which is exercising that comedic mental muscle. By doing this, you will get to the point where you will be able to schedule writing times that are convenient and sit and write comedy.
Additionally, When you write it becomes easier and the more you write the easier it is to write more and the cycle continues until you write so much material you can just sell what you don’t use. Or you can post it on a blog, Twitter, on a meme, or use it to liven up a part.
Adopt A Style
Depending on the type of comedian you are will dictate how you are going to attack this set. However, there are typically three formats that work, and you can mix and match as you need. Not everyone can do every style. Watch comedians you like and determine their style. Often they mix and match but you can still learn a basic style to get started.
The Storyteller
If you are the type of comic that likes to tell a story that can take the audience on a journey, five minutes might seem like a handicap. But it doesn’t have to be. One great story with a killer punchline, along with a few nice tags to keep them smiling, can be more than enough to win over any audience. Some f the best comedians are storytellers.
The focus for your writing needs to be the flow and the misdirection. A verbal misdirection is just as powerful in a comedian’s arsenal as it shocks the audience with your punchline. It’s not what the expected, it’s better. With a good story, the audience follows you along the route but should not get ahead of you. If the punchline is obvious, you ill lose the audience and the laugh, this is why good tags along the way are essential.
The Observer
Observational humor should be something that the audience can relate too. Dating, apps, social media, movies, parents, day to day life. This doesn’t mean that you can’t throw them a curveball just as long as you can tie it back and make it relatable. The best jokes are the ones where people no and laugh. Why? Well
Now, 80 percent of comics doing five minutes sets are doing observational humor. There is nothing wrong with it, it’s a great art form, but you will need to do some unique things with it so that you are not being seen as rehashing the same ole tired material. However a fresh take on something old is always fun, just remember that almost everything has been talked about.
The One Liner
You have five minutes, and it’s time to show them what you got. Therefore, a one-liner comedian wants as many jokes as possible. It takes the best of the storyteller, and the observer, and boils it down to their essence. While you might think you can hit them with a bunch of really varied jokes, remember this simple thing is hitting the setup-punch combo every time.
However just like observation and storytelling the best sets centers around a particular topic. If it’s dating, you can make five to eight jokes around the different people you have dating. If it’s a set about your crappy job, it could be five to eight jokes about jobs you would rather do. Keep it fresh, keep it light, and keep them coming.
Practice Timing
The flow should be smooth, even if the subject matter is awkward. Enter the story with a relation tag, something that brings the story’s relevance to what you are doing. An example would be, “So good to be here. I almost didn’t get here in time because my Uber driver couldn’t find the club. Still, not as bad as this one time…” and you are off with a great travel story.
Keep it real and relatable. If you are under the age of 21, not married, have no kids, and haven’t had a real job then getting into the “Married life sucks and my boss is an asshole” material is going to make them turn on you. If you haven’t experienced it, don’t do it, it’ll show.
While you might be a jerk, you do not want to appear that you are a jerk. Some people do have a demeanor and a particular personality where they are a jerk when they are performing, but this usually does not work for a first-time comedian. Keep in mind that you have to be confident, but resist the urge to be overconfident and cocky no matter how good you are. Many comedians have lost their careers by becoming a jerk, don’t lose yours before you even get started.
Pace Your Jokes
Another huge mistake that new comedians make is that they memorize a routine and a set of jokes. While this might be a great way to get a lot of laughs, it does not allow you to interact with the audience or to go into more depth on a joke if you are getting a lot of laughs. Instead of memorizing jokes, have a few picked out that you want to go with, and if you end up not getting to them all, that is fine, no one else is going to know.
This does not mean you should practice your set. If your jokes are too well rehearsed it sounds like a talk, not a conversation. Good stand up comedy is a conversation. You tell a joke they laugh, repeat. If you just talk without the laughter it’s called bombing so pace yourself. You are not racing a clock.
The punchline must be what ties the whole thing together and leaves the audience clapping while you say your thanks. If you can relate it into the first thing, you said, all the better, because then the journey is complete, and you brought them back to where you started. It’s a hallmark of a great comedian to have that control over the crowd.
Pro Tip: Don’t forget the tags! Giving them little hits of jokes along the stories journey makes sure you don’t lose anyone. Make sure the punchline of the story is funnier than any of the tags though. If your tag is funnier than the punchline, swap them for maximum laughter.
Breath
Sure breathing is simple. We do it everyday. You are probably doing it right now as you read this. However comedians who get nervous hold their breath. It happens. I have seen it. I have seen them pass out from the lack of air. Instead of holding your breath take a few deep breaths.
In fact watch this video on a calming breathing technique. Don’t do it on stage but before you go on stage.
If you need to though take a few deep breaths on stage before you start your set or in between jokes. Trust me passing out on stage is worse than just telling bad jokes.No one will remember the bad jokes, they will remember you passing out on stage.
Taking a breath between jokes to clear your mind or remember you next joke is not bad. Just try to be in the moment and not in your head. Taking a nice deep breath can help. Again don’t hold your breath or tase up comedy should be fun, not stressful.
Relax
Two things might be going through your head as you think about your upcoming set. The first is the philosophical conundrum that five minutes is both too long and at the same time not long enough. It’s the less interesting sequel to “Schrodinger’s Cat” called “Schrodinger’s Adventures in Time.” They at least got better with the title and marketing for the second one.
You may want to quit, you may want to throw up, you may not be able to feel your tongue. Being too formal is off-putting and instantly causes you to lose audience attention. You want to seem at ease and talk to your audience like you would speak to your family and friends. No one wants to go out and feel like they are in a business meeting when they want to laugh and have a good time. Be relaxed, be calm, be yourself. If you find yourself feeling
PRO TIP: Do NOT worry about crowd size. While you might find it discouraging to get up in front of a small crowd, but to that crowd took time out to see you, there is no reason not to give them your best performance. Remember that each audience member could be doing anything else, so give them your best. If you happen to bomb one night, keep going.
Have Fun
Comedy is supposed to be fun. For you, for the crowd, for everyone there. Yes, there will be stress as a performer but once you get on stage and get your first laugh all of that will melt away. Comedy is all about relieving stress. A laugh is tension from something being released from your body. Who doesn’t want to relieve stress?
You should be doing comedy only if you enjoy it. If it is not fun for you why are you doing it? If it ever becomes a drag or a burden it may not be the path for you. Sure writing is hard, rewriting is tougher, as is going to gigs, listening to sets, and fine tuning your bits but the act of being on stage should be fun.
Don’t think too much when you are on stage. You practiced your set, you have a crowd, and they want to hear jokes. Tell them jokes. And while you tell them you should be enjoying them as well. Comedy is a universal language, sure not everyone speaks english but a laugh is the same everywhere. So take a deep breath, relax, and have fun while you tell those jokes.
You Survived, Now What?
You can not become an expert on stand up comedy if you are not doing stand up all of the time. If you want to be a comedian, you will need to commit to the process and get yourself on stage for at least six nights a week. It is better though if you can commit to being on stage all seven nights a week.
This tip goes hand in hand with the first tip, get a notebook or open a dedicated cloud-based document that you can write your comedy thoughts too. Some people like the classic look of a notebook, but in my experience, notebooks get lost, stolen, or accidentally drowned if you leave your car window open during a torrential downpour.
Using something like Google Drive is great because it’s free and you can access the document on any computer or device you are logged into. Super convenient for that midnight idea of monkeys and Band-Aids, even IF in the morning you have no idea what the punchline was.
Never throw anything away. You are going to write some terrible stuff, but the great thing about jokes is even if it doesn’t feel funny now, you might think of an amazing new hook or punchline that will make it impressive in a few months. There might even be some jokes that you can sell to other comics for some side hustle money, you might want to work clean and have some funny filthy ideas, no need for that genius to go into the bin.
The final tip I will leave you with are these, practice, practice, rewrite, repeat. There are a lot of people that think they can only do a set a few times before throwing it out. Nope. Work it and work it until it’s second nature and so slick that you know it’ll do well every time you do it. Keep it to time, because that’ll make your promoter and fellow comics happy, and don’t be afraid to rewrite to squeeze the most out of your set.
Every show and every joke is a lesson. Keep going and you will be more confident, funny, and faster at the craft of comedy. Good luck and good laughs.