Just the one gig last week; Comedy Virgins at the Cavendish Arms.
I’ve been feeling a little deflated recently – even though I’ve been trying to improve my act, it just doesn’t feel as easy as it used to, the laughs haven’t been coming as readily as they did in the first few months I was doing stand-up.
But I can always rely on a night at the Cav to give me a confidence boost, and when I got called up to the stage (third act of the night) everything worked well. I did my usual set with a couple of new bits thrown in (including an improvised tag) and the crowd went along with all of it, rewarding me with a place in the clap-off.
I’ve been struggling a little with my opener. A while ago I tried a really simple, punchy one liner that worked brilliantly a few times and scored a big laugh within the first five seconds of my set. I thought I’d stumbled upon some gold-dust with that line, but I’ve learned that it only works half the time. I’ve got a more reliable opener which works pretty much every time, but it’s not quite as punchy and takes closer to 15 seconds to get the laugh. Reluctantly, I’ve abandoned the punchy line because I don’t like being on the back foot when it doesn’t work, but it bugs me that I can’t work out how to make it deliver consistently.
Adding in some new bits meant that I ran out of time too soon, so I tried an abridged version of my closer which worked fairly well and made me realise that there are a few different ways I can deliver that bit depending on how much time I’ve got left. I’m starting to feel like I’ve got a respectable seven minutes of material I can use at the So You Think You’re Funny competition next month.
I didn’t get far in the clap-off, but I don’t mind because there were some strong acts on the bill and it felt good just to get through at all after a run of mediocre feeling spots for me. It was good to see Akin Omobatin trying out some stuff I hadn’t seen before, the omnipresent Amy Xander also got into the clap-off, and I was impressed by Thea Downie, who I hadn’t seen before.
I got some positive feedback in the bar after the show, which is always good for my fragile, needy ego. The competition is a month away and I think I’m in good shape, I’m not going to try out any more new stuff, just keep doing variations of my current set so get the whole seven minutes of stuff burned into my brain.
Gig Count to Date: 39
Keep it up