Last night was a wonderful show. The place was nearly full and the material finally found a room of people ready to appreciate it again. Aside from being on stage, the most fun was goofing off with DeAnne in the green room in that a particular type of giddy playfulness that nervous energy brings before a show. As soon as I decided to join DeAnne in Australia this year, our schedules are beginning to line up all over the world. It's exciting to think about all the places we're going to experience for the first time together, all because of this strange life decision.
It's also DeAnne's birthday today, which is why I will dedicate today's blog to the most hard working and talented person I know. Whether it's about comedy or girls, there are few people I can talk to at such long length with about the two most important things in my life. I am grateful to have someone like her in my corner. A very very happy birthday D.
What else? Well I am also very grateful to have people like Sylvana whose uniquely creative brain has come up with my new website. It's not completely finished, but man is it on it's way. I feel much better now that I have a good show behind me. It always seems to work out that way.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Thursday, July 21, 2011
First Day of JFL
Ohhh shit. Tonight I'm doing my first set at Just For Laughs in four years. I'm just opening for a friend, but the pressure is still there. I have been working at 30 to 45 minute sets the last month, and finding the switch back down to 8mins isn't as easy as just picking the material. There's a whole different energy and structure with a short set that differs greatly from a longer one. First one is you don't have much time to get to know the audience, or have them get to know you. With a short set I feel like all I have time for is firing out the best jokes I can think of in some semblance of an order.
I spent the last three nights working out the jokes that have been doing the best over the past month, and they have all but tanked. I know these jokes work. I know that they are funny. But three brick walls in a row and I'm feeling a little apprehensive about tonight. I'm trying to remind myself about the fun part of it. Maybe if I just get as excited about the material as I can it will infect the audience. Maybe if I care less they will care more (seems to work that way in relationships). Maybe I'll just relax, hang with my wonderful friend and do a comedy show. I've done those before.
I spent the last three nights working out the jokes that have been doing the best over the past month, and they have all but tanked. I know these jokes work. I know that they are funny. But three brick walls in a row and I'm feeling a little apprehensive about tonight. I'm trying to remind myself about the fun part of it. Maybe if I just get as excited about the material as I can it will infect the audience. Maybe if I care less they will care more (seems to work that way in relationships). Maybe I'll just relax, hang with my wonderful friend and do a comedy show. I've done those before.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Oh Canada...
So I've been back in Canada over a month now. Managed to see some sorely missed people and back to some much needed places of rest.
I've been working steadily while in town thanks to the folks over at Yuk Yuk's. Just finished my first headlining weekend at the downtown club on Richmond St. I got a chance to not only work with some great acts that I admire, but also follow them. To get up and do 45 minutes after Tim Steeves and Ryan Belleville just crushed 10 minutes was a good benchmark to convince myself I haven't been wasting the last eight years of my life. I've started developing the 'Speechless' act, which has one simple rule...don't talk. After talking so much, and often too fast, it's been interesting to slow down and not say a word. I got the idea after watching some acts in Australia demonstrate it with amazing effectiveness. I've been working on my own version of it. I don't throw this around, but when I opened with it in Toronto, it absolutely killed, which set me up for a bit of a disappointment in Montreal, when it wasn't nearly received at the level it was in TO. There's a lot of factors to weigh in there. The layout of the Yuk's club on Richmond is one of the best in Canada, and the numbers for the week were much better than Montreal. One of the bonuses of this past week in Montreal was working with friends Kirsten, DeAnne, and Tim. These are all very funny, intelligent people who helped make the week just by being there.
I'm currently sitting in the Comedy Nest condo in my underwear, listening to Friendly Fires, a band who I discovered thanks to James and Karen (my new pals from South Australia). There are two days left until I get on stage again at Just For Laughs. I've got two days to put together what I think is the funniest eight minutes of material I have, in the hopes that someone will notice. Having worked closely with the festival for so many years, I know the reality of people actually getting picked up for anything is extremely slim, but that doesn't mean I can take the opportunity any less seriously. Of course it's a fine balance between getting focused and just enjoying the performance. I hope to find it before Thursday night.
Only two weeks left in Montreal and then I fly to Edinburgh. All the adjectives I hear people use to explain the Edinburgh Fringe festival are; 'insane', 'overwhelming', 'amazing'. I look on the horizon and begin to get excited about the insanely overwhelmingly amazing month ahead.
I've been working steadily while in town thanks to the folks over at Yuk Yuk's. Just finished my first headlining weekend at the downtown club on Richmond St. I got a chance to not only work with some great acts that I admire, but also follow them. To get up and do 45 minutes after Tim Steeves and Ryan Belleville just crushed 10 minutes was a good benchmark to convince myself I haven't been wasting the last eight years of my life. I've started developing the 'Speechless' act, which has one simple rule...don't talk. After talking so much, and often too fast, it's been interesting to slow down and not say a word. I got the idea after watching some acts in Australia demonstrate it with amazing effectiveness. I've been working on my own version of it. I don't throw this around, but when I opened with it in Toronto, it absolutely killed, which set me up for a bit of a disappointment in Montreal, when it wasn't nearly received at the level it was in TO. There's a lot of factors to weigh in there. The layout of the Yuk's club on Richmond is one of the best in Canada, and the numbers for the week were much better than Montreal. One of the bonuses of this past week in Montreal was working with friends Kirsten, DeAnne, and Tim. These are all very funny, intelligent people who helped make the week just by being there.
I'm currently sitting in the Comedy Nest condo in my underwear, listening to Friendly Fires, a band who I discovered thanks to James and Karen (my new pals from South Australia). There are two days left until I get on stage again at Just For Laughs. I've got two days to put together what I think is the funniest eight minutes of material I have, in the hopes that someone will notice. Having worked closely with the festival for so many years, I know the reality of people actually getting picked up for anything is extremely slim, but that doesn't mean I can take the opportunity any less seriously. Of course it's a fine balance between getting focused and just enjoying the performance. I hope to find it before Thursday night.
Only two weeks left in Montreal and then I fly to Edinburgh. All the adjectives I hear people use to explain the Edinburgh Fringe festival are; 'insane', 'overwhelming', 'amazing'. I look on the horizon and begin to get excited about the insanely overwhelmingly amazing month ahead.
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