Dec132004
Despairhut
Filed Under Stand-Up Comedy
Read an interview with Eugene Mirman in the recent issue of Stay Free. In it, he describes how horrible comedy clubs are, referring to the system of going from opener to headliner “pointless and depressing.” Like many comics he prefers rock clubs, because even though there isn’t a system, they give “just as good if not better exposure.” And I imagine, the audiences are much more interesting as well.
I’ve never been a big comedy club fan myself. The idea of a singular culture product dedicated purely to generating laughs seems to be dying out in our culture. Comedy clubs, like sitcoms, seem a little archaic to me. I think much of it has to do with the presentation of it.
When you go to a comedy club, there an attitude of “enforced fun” that surrounds it. And desperation. With names like Rascals, Looney Bin, Zanies, Yuk Yuk, etc. etc., you don’t need screaming “c’mon, that was funny!” It may seem like a small point to harp on names, but atmosphere and presentation is everything to comedy. I think this banana peel ambiance just creates walls up in audiences, where they go, “Oh it’s funny. Prove it.”
Good comics overcome this obviously. But you look at the way TV promotes comedy in our culture and you’d wouldn’t think anything was funny. The announcer puts on his wacky voice and attempts to sell you on jokes like a laughtrack. There’s the idea that people in this country are so stupid that they have to be told something is funny with indicators like laugh tracks, wacky voices and other symbols. But laughter is a automatic response, it’s not something you can force out with a false atmosphere.
I hope comedy clubs will take cues from alternative spaces like the UCB and create more relaxed environments where the pressure to laugh is purely from the words the comedians are saying and not the CrAzY atmosphere. Don’t tell me it’s funny. Show me.
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