– Rik Roberts | www.SchoolOfLaughs.com Many aspiring comedians don’t feel welcomed in their own town. The most common complaints are: “I can’t get any spots.” “It’s like a good ol’ boys club.” “They ain’t letting nobody else in.” I hear ya. We’ve covered this topic a little bit in the past. (See: “Cracking the Comedy Clique”)…
Going to your first comedy open mic? Welcome to the jungle, baby! In this episode we offer up 11 song titles that perfectly describe a comedy open mic night. Don’t get me wrong, they aren’t all bad. But man, you do see a common thread unravelling if you attend a dozen or so. CLICK…
In episode 036 “Live Comedy Writing Session – Idea to Premise” I asked Gavin Miller (brand new aspiring comedian and our excellent producer) to bring in a few joke ideas to the School Of Laughs headquarters. He did. We took three joke ideas and selected one for him to write. The premise, in essence,…
Knowing how to approach different people based on their personality type can be a HUGE factor in whether you get your message across. Randy Miller of MOVE ON TODAY 2 specializes in identifying personality traits and how to interact with people based on them. Check out this episode! When it comes to being a comedian,…
A former student of mine, and the executive director of the Nashville Film Institute Ted Crockett contacted me about appearing on a panel at the Nashville Film Institute’s “Film Festival”. I was interested. When he told me the panel was to discuss royalties and rights ownerships for comedians and performers – I was invested. When he…
Like it or not, part Of the job of a comedian is “sales”. You are constantly selling your act, selling your professionalism, selling yourself to bookers, owners, managers, agents and audiences. If you can’t spend some time to develop that skill, you will struggle. It’s plain, and simple. Check out this episode! Whether you represent…
With the talk of presidential candidates in the air here in the United States, I got to thinking about what I want in a leader. Oddly enough, many traits we identified are also traits of great comedians. Candidates are definitely characters. Comedians are as well. But what are the common links that cross over from…
Check out this episode! In episode 36 “Live Comedy Writing Session” our producer (and aspiring comedian) Gavin Miller brought in a few concepts to brainstorm. After he pitched a few ideas we decided to work on one that was inspired by a friend of his. In a nutshell, the friend wanted to give homeless people…
This week, in honor of LaughFest you get two bonus interviews. Last year I was honored to perform in the clean comedy showcase during the festival. It was a blast and I got to work with several great comedians. You’ve already heard the interviews with Andy Hendrickson, Pat McGann, and James P. Connolly. This week I am releasing…
You asked for it – you got it. One frequent request from listeners is to have an episode 100% focussed on writing. So, I challenged Gavin to come in with a handful of ideas he wanted to turn into jokes. Together, we go over his ideas, pick one and spend the episode exploring various angles…