Taking a Stand-Up Class
When I was a kid, I wanted to be stand-up comedian.
That dreamed was interrupted when I took my first improv class when I was 18 years old. That was almost 40 years ago.
I have done very well in improv. I have gotten to do a lot of great shows, teach all over the country and make lasting friendships. But all this time, my inner child has been asking if he could do stand-up, or at least take another stand-up class or workshop.
After I put up my one-person show, "World’s Greatest Dad(?)," two years ago, I thought there were parts in the show that I wanted to be funnier, and a few months ago I thought, maybe if I approached the material more from stand-up perspective, it could generate more laughs. Some of the material in the show was dark and I needed some help to make it funnier. So, I found this great stand-up teacher out of New York who teaches online, named Stephen Rosenfeld. This was something the adult, practical Jimmy, and my inner child could agree on.
I signed up for both individual coaching and for his group stand-up class that included an online show, and, suddenly, there I was at 57 following my dream, even if it was only a tiny little baby step.
Since I am usually in the teacher role, it was freeing to just be a student for once and not have to drive the bus, but it was also frustrating because I realized I wasn’t as good as I thought I was. I had a lot to learn.
It took me back when I first started to taking improv classes and how it took so many years to go from being funny in real life to being funny on stage. I had to learn a craft and a skill, and I realized that it was my hardest classes and worst shows where I learned the most. And that lesson is still true for me today.
When I love the process, I am hooked, and it makes it easier to get back up on the horse when I fail. And that is a sign you are learning. I have to remember that if I’m really learning something new, things should not come easy — even at my age and with my stage experience. And in this stand-up workshop they did not.
I had taken a piece from my "World’s Greatest Dad(?)" show and reworked, and when I went to put it up for the online performance it tanked. I was humbled and depressed, but I signed up for the next workshop.
Will I ever really become a successful stand-up? I don’t know. And, actually, right now, I don’t care. I just want to keep doing it.
Many of my students who take improv later in life understand that there is an advantage to trying something later in life, because it’s less about where it’s going to take you and more about learning the craft and getting better. And now, I think, so do I.
Jimmy, I saw "Worlds Greatest Dad," and thought it was incredibly funny. In my book, it was standup (or very close to it). You have the craft and the skill. The fact you tanked on one occasion? That's standup for everyone, even the best. Bob Hope even said so. We can all continue to learn. Don't let this "expert," intimidate you. There is so much about standup that really isn't teachable. You are doing great just as you are. Andrea