Starting Standup Comedy: Third Set
For my third set as a new standup comic, I went back to Speakcheesy. It was a week after my second set fiasco, but I’d contacted the showrunner, who told me that guy wouldn’t be there, so I felt like I had some breathing room to perform and not worry about what might happen outside of my set.
There were some unusual happenings and things I learned from this mic:
There was a guest host because the regular hosts were doing a show in Denver. He’s a really cool guy. He asked if I was a traveling comic after my set. I asked if he’d marry me.
The lights were off. There are thin guidelights that light you might see in a movie theater along the walls, and the logo behind the area where you perform was lit, but you could barely see the comics’ faces.
College kids were back in town for the fall semester, and there was a table or two of college kids. It was the first noticeable crowd of noncomics I’d performed for. I was nervous but didn’t really show it.
I had some props ready for this set. I’d never used props before, so I took some extra time to prepare and make sure I could manage them while also holding a mic.
I did my set from a stool. Totally wrecked my old-man back. Totally worth it.
I improvised a joke I hadn’t written before the show. It was about the lights. Worth a shot, but didn’t add much.
Don’t sit at the tables. The host made a general announcement, which only applied to me, for the comics to stand in the back and leave tables for audience members. Whoops! A lot to learn still. Asses in seat pay the bills, don’t stop the bills from getting paid, or where are you going to get on stage. It’s like the Circle of Life song, but with pizza and beer instead of egrets.
My whole set was about a woman telling me to suck a bag of dicks at my last show. That didn’t happen, but I did four minutes on the questions I had about it. I had a sheet with the questions and a pen to scratch a thing or two out in my shirt pocket and two other props in my bag. The ending punchline was, “But don’t worry, I’ve already told my mother she can’t come to any more of my shows.”
As I mentioned, I improvised a joke about how swanky the open mic is compared to others I’d done. This was my third mic ever, but I mentioned the cash bar in Massachusetts, and how Speakcheesy had wireless mics, and the stool had a back on it. “Shoutout to whoever’s uncle is Jeff Bezos. Maybe have him put in for some lights though.” Got some decent laughs from the comics. Worth exploring.
I had two props. I’ll make a separate post about them, but here’s the pic of the one I actually worked on:
No labia were harmed in the making of this prop.
Also, I don’t know anyone and I haven’t made any connections yet when this mic happened, so I feel super awkward and alone. I wanted to make an effort to talk to a guy from the last mic, but he wasn’t there and everyone else was out smoking and I’m not that cool. LOL
Let me know if this was helpful or not. If so or if not leave a comment and let me know if you’ve ever use props. How did it go? I need to do this set again at the Comedy Fort, but will probably wait for a hosting set. Be sure to subscribe and like all my stuff on YouTube and follow me on Instagram, so I can use more props made of stacks of cash.