Step By Step to Stand-Up Comedy Chapter Seven

Rehearsing

Most people believe that all they have to do to be a comedian is memorize a bunch of jokes, then get on stage and tell them. But it’s not that simple. Have you ever told a joke that got a huge laugh in one situation and a roar of silence in another? A perfect example of the truism, jokes aren’t always funny. And that’s precisely why doing stand-up comedy involves much more than just telling jokes..

Rehearsing
-Comedians interpret jokes in ways that make people laugh
-The performance state mimics the rehearsal state

The Creator and the Critic

The Problem: Rehearsing the Creator and Critic together

The Solution: Separating the Creator and Critic

Why Rehearse?
-A joke is a response to some experience
-The mind remembers in pictures, sounds, and feelings
-Sensory experiences activate human behavior
-Words do not activate human behaviors
-Memorizing the words is the worst type of rehearsal
-Memorizing experiences is the best type of rehearsal
-Within every joke is an experience
-Acting out the POVs
-Whatever state you’re in, the audience is in
-When you remember and communicate your material as a sensory experience–
the audience will enter your movie

SAMPLE

As a teacher, I find that students have many more performing problems that need to be solved than writing problems. Joke writing problems can usually be eliminated with practice, time and effort, but performing problems may keep a student stuck at the same level until they are solved.Almost all performing problems are a result of improper rehearsal.

The Problem: Rehearsing the Creator and Critic Together

When people try to be creative and critical at the same time, the Creator and the Critic conflict and the effectiveness of both is canceled out. This problem is a result of ineffective rehearsal practices. For example, while practicing his material a comic may allow the Critic to interject a constant stream of negative comments through internal self-talk.

If you’re creative and self-critical at the same time when you rehearse, you’re rehearsing the Critic into your show. This is a very important concept. Remember that the performance state mimics the rehearsal state. So if you rehearse the Critic into your show, how can you expect to be free of it when you perform? You can’t. The Critic will consume your attention on stage just as thoroughly as it does during rehearsal.