The Art of StandUp Comedy

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The Art of Stand-Up Comedy

• Lou Celli

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Overview

• What is Stand Up Comedy?
• A Brief History
• How To Come Up with a Joke
• How To Write a Joke/Joke Format
• Deconstructing a Joke Exercise

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What is Stand Up Comedy?

• A stand-up comedian or stand-up comic is someone
  that performs comedy in an informal way, talking
  to the audience with the absence of a fourth
  wall.
• It is usually done by one comedian and a
  microphone and can be done in comedy clubs,
  colleges or theaters
  
• The comic usually recites a fast paced stories,
  jokes (bits) and one-liners, typically called a
  monologue, routine or act.
  
• A comedian needs to have diverse skills as it is
  often necessary for the stand-up comic
  him/herself to assume the role of writer, editor,
  performer, promoter, producer, and technician all
  at the same time

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A Brief History of Comedy
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How To Come Up with a Joke

• Write down things that worry you, make you angry,
  frighten you or your negative personality traits
  
  
• Carry around a notebook and/or tape recorder for
  capturing ideas when they arise
  
• Be aware of your surroundings- the best ideas
  come from real life happenings

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How To Write a Joke/Joke Format

• A Joke is broken down into five parts

1. TOPIC 2. PREMISE 3.ATTITUDE 4. ACT-OUT
5. MIX
THE SETUP (SERIOUS)
THE FUNNY (FUNNY)
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How To Write a Joke/Joke Format
THE SETUP (SERIOUS)
TOPIC - what the joke is about. Audience will
not laugh if theyre not clear what youre
talking about. PREMISE - your opinion or point
of view. Its usually more insightful than
funny. ATTITUDE - is the way you tell a joke.
It gives the joke energy and direction.
ACT-OUT when the comic performs something inst
ead of just talking about it and acts out the
people/things previously mentioned in the set-up
MIX - when a comic connects two elements that
the audience would not have associated on their
own. Its more of a surprise
THE FUNNY (FUNNY)
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EXERCISE Deconstructing a Joke
Brian Regan
http//www.bgproductions.com/videoclips/brianregan
.mov
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EXERCISE Deconstructing a Joke
Im in the middle of moving and Im feeling kind
of weird. I called UPS you know and asked them
to pick up some boxes. Theyre a good service
but you have to have information ready for them
before you even call them I had no idea. I
called them up and said Hey I have 10 boxes.
Can you come pick them up? We need to know the
weight and the girth. Well I dont know what
the weight is and I dont know what girth means.

TOPIC PREMISE ATTITUDE ACT-OUT MIX

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EXERCISE Deconstructing a Joke
Im in the middle of moving and Im feeling kind
of weird. I called UPS you know and asked them
to pick up some boxes. Theyre a good service
but you have to have information ready for them
before you even call them I had no idea. I
called them up and said Hey I have 10 boxes.
Can you come pick them up? We need to know the
weight and the girth. Well I dont know what
the weight is and I dont know what girth means.

TOPIC He is using UPS to move his boxes
PREMISE UPS is a good service but needs you to
have information ready when you call
ATTITUDE He is mocking the UPS man on the phone
ACT-OUT He is performing both sides of the ph
one call MIX He doesnt even know what girth
means