Quote: David Bussell @ January 26 2012, 9:56 AM GMTand if they're not bumblef**k morons they're WKD date rapists.
Genius.
Female Comedians Page 3
Quote: dellas @ January 26 2012, 10:52 AM GMTDavid OK the majority of advertising executives are male, the stupid adverts are designed to make one feel vulnerable an outsider or whatever,opinions come from this testosterone 'world view'.
'
As women are statistically the household/ generic shoppers the Ads' are targeted towards them.As we 'advance' into the 21st century the adverts are beginning to reflect males as more culpable to this ideology.
This is equality; we are all subjected to the constant barrage of hyperbole.
Quote: dellas @ January 26 2012, 11:45 AM GMT
Bloody hell, a man who understands me!
Given some of your posts, love, I'd settle at finding a cryptographer who understands you.
(no offence*)
*intellectual property of D. Bussell
Huh! no one understands you either so stop knob-chaffing about!
I am a secret fag hag.
In response to the original question I've seen lots of female comedians and the audience has reacted to how funny they are as a comedian not to their gender.
Some female comics I know have said they've felt an initial audience prejudice against them at certain outside-of-London gigs, but that the audience has quickly been won over by their material.
Nice one James.
I am a very funny bitch and I be a curly girly.
I think the ad discussion just shows that when it comes to gender prejudice all humans are subject to it in some degree or other. The point it, it's not justified, it's not right and these things do need to be challenged in some way.
When it comes to live comedy, you see roughly 50-50 men and women at open-mic level in London and the big cities. Open-mic is relatively easy to try out these days as there are more places putting it on and it's easier to find out about them via the interwebs. Stand-up programmes on TV are more popular too - popular with audiences who need a good cheering up, and popular with commissioners who don't have the cash for drama. It has never been a better time for women - for anyone - to think about having a go.
When it comes to progression though, the old adage rings true. You have to perform regularly, hone your craft, shrug off and learn from the fails and take the wins with grace. The hope is you will make yourself into a bookable act for paid work.
However, although there are more female stand-ups on the circuit now who've made that progression, the ratio of women to men does drop off significantly after open-mic level. I've seen many people in newspaper articles and internet forums stick their finger in the air and try to speculate why this might be. Quite a lot of the received opinion seems to be that 'women are not (as)funny (as men)' - usually spouted by the kind of idiot who thinks humour died with the demise of On the Buses. This is clearly not true, though you try presenting these guys with lists of fabulous female comedians and of course they've seen and dismissed them all. Best move on.
Except it seems, we can't - or we can, but we're dragging the leg-clamp of prejudice onto the stage with us. Or not... because the prejudice exists, you are going to get promoters who rightly or wrongly are afraid of it. Should they be? No... but it's like saying that politicians stick to their principals and don't pander to racism/sexism/religious prejudice around vote time. Money talks, and it says, "Play safe."
It's the kind of thing that has me rolling my eyes. I am admittedly a fairly girly kind of person, though I do believe that beyond the physical difference a lot of our perceived gender differences are largely the result of social constructs (feminist Natasha Walters argues this in Living Dolls - jolly good read, but I recommend Caitlin Moran even more, who writes along the same lines in How to Be A Woman and is hilarious). We are capable of writing stuff that relates to universal experience, but why should we not also write from our own unique perspectives as individuals and as women? Make it clear, sharp funny and it *is* universal, practically.
But the idea persists that you've got a single woman on the bill, she's not going to be as good as the rest of the bill. But sometimes the woman is the only open-spot on the bill. Less experienced, less confident. I'm sticking my finger in the air too, here, but I can personally recall times in the past when I've been one of the unpaid spots in the car, to being the only unpaid spot in the car to then thinking, hang on, why I am I the only one that's not being paid?
"Persistence! You've got to push yourself," said the devil over my shoulder, aka my other half, who holds no truck with the 'need for feminism' in this day and age whatsoever. I think he's got a point. Sure, I've tutted at promoters who I have seen advertising spots for male comedians ("we already have one woman on the bill" - yes, an open), I've agreed with everything Josie Long says here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1oXIZVLthw and I've been flabbergasted at the shocking result of tokenism experienced by Lindsay Sharman here: http://sharmanator.wordpress.com/2012/02/20/for-shame-green-party/
But, like Lindsay, I believe this is a meritocracy and the cream will rise... somehow. Perhaps women will get there more quickly if they can exploit their networks more effectively, or just be prepared to travel beyond the big smoke. My advice is, if you think you've got something, don't let any setback grind you down. There are so many channels and means for getting your funny out to the world. Just be innovative, be supportive and be funny.
That second post is ridiculously offensive.
I've never come across women being actively excluded at the open mic level. But on the flip side open mic in my experience can be ridiculously male and agressive. I mean it's one thing to stand infront of a group of pissed strangers and try to make them laugh. Quite another if you've just listened to joke after joke about rape and ugly women.
Quote: sootyj @ February 21 2012, 10:41 AM GMTQuite another if you've just listened to joke after joke about rape and ugly women.
Indeedy... that has happened.
I've worked in numerous jobs and, if women aren't funny, then why when a new girl starts, is there always a bunch of men around her laughing at everything she says?
Ba-Dum-Dum-Tsssh!
Thank you, thank you, I'm here all week...
As long as that's you in the avatar picture.
Wishes, get back in a non Harridan way, if I can!... keep posting.
Quote: Steve Sunshine @ February 26 2012, 3:14 AM GMT
As long as that's you in the avatar picture.