I know you've all been wondering where I've been. All three of you.
Basically I've been keeping busy! A few auditions, a smattering of performances, and as of tonight one open mic night. Yes I have finally forgone my long held fear of doing stand up. I always found comedians to be some of the most courageous and scariest people in the business.
My dad always encouraged me to do standup, to the point of severe annoyance. Whenever something slightly humorous (more often than not frustrating) he would say "think how much material you're getting from all this!" I'd roll my eyes and take his comments as impossibilities.
But these past few weeks I've been seeing more and more stand up lately. The good and the bad. more often the bad, but that's pretty normal. I remember one of my kids, whom i just scolded for trying to be the comedian during a serious moment, commenting that comedians are all rich. i couldn't help but rasp derisively sensing his sweet innocence truly believing that all comedians were good, and all of them were the ones he saw on tv. Yet, despite my knowledge of how hard it is and how poor most comedians are I began to think. And slowly this curiosity has been growing inside of me.
So much that a voice inside of me today said "Tonight. Tonight you will go to an open mic and perform"
...Whhhaaat?
"Yep. Now go look one up"
So began my search. I ended up pretty quickly on this site
http://www.badslava.com/los-angeles-open-mics.htm which led me to the same conundrum, everyone wants my money and not me! It seems rare that anyone is actually seeking talent anymore. Just a means for money.
Which pisses me off more than anything. So I scrolled down and found a small venue called the Sunset Grill, and there was no fee cover charge or two drink minimum!For anyone seeking a break out venue I must warn you this is not the place. But rather a place to warm your feet and work on your material. The majority of the audience are people who are waiting to perform.
So expect scattered laughter and judgmental looks, which honestly is a good way to start. Everyone is a little busy worried about their own set or too entranced with wondering where their career will ever go.
However, in my opinion this is exactly what I needed as a starting performer (Well at least in stand up). It challenges you to stay awake and relevant. A few times I noticed my audience looking down at their notes, so I tried to draw them back in, making a joke as though it were contrived solely for them. In some ways it worked. I have a ways to go, especially in the confidence department, but in the end I'm glad I did it. I walked away with legs made for the sea but I walked away with a little more experience than I had before. And not once did I spend a dime :)
