Today I had my introduction to 'What is it to be a Stand up comic?' We started the Lecture with a warm up to relax us and not to take ourselves too seriously so we could get into the comedy easier and quicker, something I'd like to find a way to work into my routine. First we looked at Jeremy Lion who, the audience find comedy from his edge as a child's entertainer and that he is quite opposite to the stereotypical child's entertainer; he drinks alcohol in each of his shows and occasionally swears. When he does swear, it's effectively funny because it doesn't happen often which brings comedy as it's unexpected by the audience, especially because of the idea of Jeremy being a child's entertainer. So is 'being a Stand up comic' about being unexpected?
Another comedian who plays on the unexpected is Andy Kaufman who did all types of unexpected things such as wrestling women, singing the mighty mouse theme and turning up to booked venues as other aliases. He really questions 'What is it to be a Stand up comic?' as it would seem the majority of people laughed because it was Andy Kaufman on stage, not because he was particularly funny. For example, after being diagnosed with cancer and revealing it to an audience hours later, they laughed at him. I feel it's fair to say part of 'being a Stand up comic' is about reputation.
Then we explored a comedian I really enjoy, Frankie Boyle. His humour is dark and so we discussed how we, as humans, naturally enjoy things that are generally condemned and that we're not supposed too which is why I find him so funny. Therefore, is 'being a Stand up comic' about being dark?
As I begin this unit I'm starting to see that a 'Stand up comic' is an umbrella term; a term that can be applied in a number of different ways and can refer to a variation of different things.
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