Learn From It

Hello from sunny Los Angeles! I decided to take the plunge and come to LA for two and a half weeks to do comedy. I was able to book some shows in LA and San Diego and then wanted to spend my free time making social media content and hitting some of the important LA mics. So I have been doing that and it feels good to have the time and space to focus on my comedy and on being creative.

Yesterday I went to the Laugh Factory’s mic. The way it works is you get there very early and stand outside and wait. The mic lasts an hour and each comic gets 2 minutes. Wherever you are in line is where you are in the line-up. They go through the list until the hour is up and then the mic is over. If they liked your set you get a callback and get invited back the next week to perform. I got there early and was able to get up on the mic. I was very nervous. Performing on such an iconic stage can do that to you. When I got up I shook the host’s hand and took the stage. My first joke landed and the nerves subsided. I was getting laughs from a room full of comics - not a small feat.

At the end of the show I hear the names chosen for callbacks - two names and mine isn’t one of them. I was sad. I thought I did well. I heard some comics outside talking shit. Saying oh they were in the first 5 and the bookers only watched the first 5 - we didn’t stand a chance. I didn’t want to put these comics down - they worked hard and had good sets and got picked. So I took a moment to think through the sets that did well and analyze why. Both sets had one topic the whole two minutes. Both were confident performers who paused for laughs and were comfortable on stage. I said to myself what can I learn from this? My set I tried to do my best of, hopping around to a few topics so I could hit those good punches. That may not have been what the bookers wanted. They may want to see that you can focus on one topic for at least two minutes.

So I plan to go back next week and try again and use what I learned from this week to hopefully get a callback. Instead of getting mad or being bitter I am choosing to use this as a learning experience. Comedy is not a competition - there is space for all of us not just to perform but to grow and learn.