I've written a couple of thousand one-liners and think there's a few funny ones in there but to be on the safe side I want to be prepared for what happens when your jokes fall flat on stage. Are you heckled by drunk morons, booed off the stage or does the compare flash you off?
What should I expect?
Quote: Tim Azure @ 26th February 2014, 7:28 PM GMTYou'll probably find out before joke 999...
BTW isn't a thousand one liners too many? Shouldn't you include some longer jokes? Even some talking to the audience?
I was planning to cherrypick the 20-30 best for an open mic night. I'm not insane.
Quote: Tim Azure @ 26th February 2014, 10:06 PM GMTBut that's too few even for a 10 minute piece?
We're all mad here...
Most open spots are 5-7 minutes long, so at 4 jokes per minute, 20-30 one liners is about right.
Quote: The Drifter @ 26th February 2014, 4:37 PM GMTI've written a couple of thousand one-liners and think there's a few funny ones in there but to be on the safe side I want to be prepared for what happens when your jokes fall flat on stage. Are you heckled by drunk morons, booed off the stage or does the compare flash you off?
What should I expect?
Depends on the gig.
You'll only ever get flashed off by a compere at a gong show, not at a regular gig unless you are massively overrunning or have turned the audience so much that there's the danger of rioting.
As for heckling, that might happen, although it's much rarer than you probably think, the most likely reaction for a joke which falls flat is an awkward silence and if a whole series of jokes fall flat, then indifference from the audience who may get bored and start chatting amongst themselves, although this is not usually a problem with shorter, 5-10 minute, sets.
The big problem with one liners is that they are very obviously "jokes", you say the punchline and have to wait for a response which makes you very vulnerable, you are waiting for the audience to judge each individual joke. If a joke doesn't get a laugh you can move on quickly but you have to judge the pause in case it's just because the audience haven't worked it out yet rather than not finding it funny.
When I do a 10 minute new material spot I usually get through 40-50 one liners and that's rattling them off without too many distractions.
One of the golden rules of public speaking is that it's almost impossible to talk too slowly, the adrenaline and nerves will always make you speed up, so slow down, let the laughs roll (providing they come).
Go to a few open mics and pick a friendly one. When I was doing it, the compere would remind the audience at the start of the show that a lot of newbies were coming up and hint that they should keep their mouths shut and be nice. That seemed to happen at most open mics.
Gong shows are different, although most of them aren't even too harsh.
Quote: The Drifter @ 26th February 2014, 4:37 PM GMTI've written a couple of thousand one-liners and think there's a few funny ones in there but to be on the safe side I want to be prepared for what happens when your jokes fall flat on stage. Are you heckled by drunk morons, booed off the stage or does the compare flash you off?
What should I expect?
The lights go out and hidden hands grab you before dragging you struggling from the stage, no one hearing your pathetic pleas.
Then before you know it you're tied to a stake infront of a firing squad of clowns who custard pie you death.
Actually not much, maybe you get heckled a little, ignore it. Mostly it's just quiet you go off to try again.
Chances are until you learn timing and audience engagement you'll have a fair number of bad gigs.
Enduring them and continuing is what makes you a standup.
