How to Write a Joke for Stand Up Comedy

[ad_1] Writing jokes is a business in the world of stand up comedy. The jokes a comedian writes will be most effective if they match his or her character. Developing a comedic personality on stage takes years but in the meantime it is necessary to get a start on that route to funny. Following a simple joke formula is the first step to writing for the comedy stage. The formula "set up - punchline" is the most reliable comedic equation. It is a wonder that many comedians get so far off base when writing their first jokes. Usually this waywardness occurs because a new comedian usually imitates someone he or she has seen on stage at a concert or on television. What results from imitation is usually a very long and rambling set up and a punchline which is just as long and just as wordy. An effective exercise for an aspiring comedian who is writing jokes for the first time is to write down all of these rambling words, thoughts and phrases and immediately begin the editing process. One of the hardest exercises is reducing these ideas to two sentences - one sentence for the set up and one sentence for the punchline. The most rewarding part of this type of tight editing is that if your resulting joke is funny, your laughs will come more quickly. A series of one-liner jokes will give you confidence. The laughter will affirm your instincts and give you the confidence to relax and start to write in a style that is comfortable to you. Often times a new comedian will get ideas about how to perform by watching Cable TV. Unfortunately, these comics are not the best role models for their peers. Foul language and obscene subject matter are more often tolerated when a comedian gets his or her own HBO special as opposed to when they walk into a club for the first time. A new comedian whose jokes are filled with profanity will cause a club owner to wonder if the comic knows how to write a decent joke at all. A new comedian's stage presence is generally not strong and a trail of x-rated jokes will only highlight their desperate attempt to be funny. The basic element of a clean joke is to create a surprise ending. Write a one sentence set up and write the joke or "pay-off" in a direction the audience would never expect it to go. The standard "set-up, punchline" formula for joke writing will get a new comedian on stage in order to begin the journey of discovering what it is that makes people laugh. [ad_2] Source by Sally Edwards https://1home.streamstorecloud.com/how-to-write-a-joke-for-stand-up-comedy/?feed_id=38226&_unique_id=64d3efa212746

The Rule of Three in Comedy

[ad_1] Have you seen a comedian, or comedy troupe, repeat a bit over, and over, and over, until the blatant unfunniness was painful to watch? In recent years, that's become almost the norm, especially on shows like "Saturday Night Live." If the comedy writers had known about the Rule of Three, and better yet had followed it, they could have avoided the problem and actually had the funny skit that they had intended. In short, the Rule of Three is: don't repeat a bit of comedy more than three times. When done right, the first time can be funny, the second time funnier, and the third time can build up to a crescendo of comedy. A fourth time, however, and it's the comedy equivalent of beating a dead horse -- the horse doesn't react, and neither does the audience -- at least not in a good way. Think of the great comedians of the past -- whether you think of individuals like Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Red Skelton, W. C. Fields and Jimmy Durante, or comedy teams like the Three Stooges, the Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello or Laurel and Hardy -- can you think of them "beating a horse" in that way? No; it was something that they learned the hard way, performing in front of live audiences and adjusting their humor based on the audience's reactions. This doesn't mean that a comedian, humorist, speaker or clown can't repeat a mannerism more than three times -- obvious examples are Jack Benny's slow, elongated, "Well!" or Baron Munchausen's "Was you there, Charlie?" which they repeated hundreds of times during their careers -- but rarely more than 3 times in a given performance, if that many. Variety is the spice of life, but the old saying that "brevity is the soul of wit" still rings true. It doesn't matter if it's performing in front of children or adults, in front of a Rotary Club or national television, the Rule of Three still holds true. It should also be mentioned that the Rule of Three isn't limited to verbal humor. If you're doing slapstick comedy -- anything from throwing or receiving a pie in the face, or a kick in the posterior like Charlie Chaplin, or even the Three Stooges' patented eye-poke routine -- the Rule of Three still applies. How long would a Three Stooges short film be funny if Moe began poking Curly in the eye, then Larry, then Curly again, then Larry again... on and on for fifteen minutes? In summary, everyone needs to apply the Rule of Three to keep their humor short, funny, and memorable! [ad_2] Source by Tom Raymond https://1home.streamstorecloud.com/the-rule-of-three-in-comedy/?feed_id=38177&_unique_id=64cfddc46c43c

Writing Stand Up Comedy - Point of View

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When writing stand up comedy, consider the point of view you use in your stand up act. Comedy writers who use different characters are completely into the character point of view and comedians who use observations use the narrator point of view. However, most comics tend to use a variety of all three points of view.

The following exercise can improve your success at writing stand up comedy because you will learn to utilize the three points of view through four different stages. In stage one, you will be you as yourself in an argument. In stage two, you will become the other person using the you as other character point of view in the argument. In stage three, you will argue back and forth between the other character and you. In stage four, you will use all three points of view for writing stand up comedy. In particular, you will use yourself as the narrator to set the scene and make remarks throughout while the you and other characters point of views are arguing back and forth.

As a setup for this exercise, here are some guidelines to follow:

• You must create an argument between you and another adult.

• The other adult needs to be someone you can personify because you will only be this other adult in stage two.

• You must argue standing face to face.

• Multiple problems need to be included so that the argument will last for three to four minutes.

To help ensure the success of this exercise and writing stand up comedy, base this argument on a real argument that you have had. You do not need to reenact the exact argument, rather use it as a beginning point to get you started. Have fun and let the argument become whatever you want it to. You can even use this as an opportunity to say all those things that you wish you had said before.

Just as a caution, try not to use a recent argument or one that is close to your heart. This exercise is meant as a tool for learning and writing stand up comedy, not to analyze your life.

Using these guidelines, choose your argument. Now that you have chosen your argument and understand the different roles, you can get started with the exercise. One more thing; you may want to have a pencil and paper handy for notes. Successfully writing stand up comedy depends on many factors and choosing an effective point of view is a crucial consideration.

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Source by John Halas

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The Rule of Three in Comedy

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Have you seen a comedian, or comedy troupe, repeat a bit over, and over, and over, until the blatant unfunniness was painful to watch? In recent years, that's become almost the norm, especially on shows like "Saturday Night Live." If the comedy writers had known about the Rule of Three, and better yet had followed it, they could have avoided the problem and actually had the funny skit that they had intended.

In short, the Rule of Three is: don't repeat a bit of comedy more than three times. When done right, the first time can be funny, the second time funnier, and the third time can build up to a crescendo of comedy. A fourth time, however, and it's the comedy equivalent of beating a dead horse -- the horse doesn't react, and neither does the audience -- at least not in a good way.

Think of the great comedians of the past -- whether you think of individuals like Jack Benny, Bob Hope, Red Skelton, W. C. Fields and Jimmy Durante, or comedy teams like the Three Stooges, the Marx Brothers, Abbott and Costello or Laurel and Hardy -- can you think of them "beating a horse" in that way? No; it was something that they learned the hard way, performing in front of live audiences and adjusting their humor based on the audience's reactions.

This doesn't mean that a comedian, humorist, speaker or clown can't repeat a mannerism more than three times -- obvious examples are Jack Benny's slow, elongated, "Well!" or Baron Munchausen's "Was you there, Charlie?" which they repeated hundreds of times during their careers -- but rarely more than 3 times in a given performance, if that many.

Variety is the spice of life, but the old saying that "brevity is the soul of wit" still rings true. It doesn't matter if it's performing in front of children or adults, in front of a Rotary Club or national television, the Rule of Three still holds true.

It should also be mentioned that the Rule of Three isn't limited to verbal humor. If you're doing slapstick comedy -- anything from throwing or receiving a pie in the face, or a kick in the posterior like Charlie Chaplin, or even the Three Stooges' patented eye-poke routine -- the Rule of Three still applies. How long would a Three Stooges short film be funny if Moe began poking Curly in the eye, then Larry, then Curly again, then Larry again... on and on for fifteen minutes?

In summary, everyone needs to apply the Rule of Three to keep their humor short, funny, and memorable!

[ad_2] Source by Tom Raymond https://4awesome.streamstorecloud.com/the-rule-of-three-in-comedy/?feed_id=37412&_unique_id=648b3c8bcd57b