Stand Up If You Dare

Helene Sandy Writes For JUICE
About Her First Foray Into Stand-Up

So you can make your friends laugh, but does it make you a stand up? Well to be blunt, no. there is a world of difference between being able to make your drunk friends laugh at a story they know some of the back ground to and who have the patience to listen as you ramble your way to the funny bit and the ability to make a room full of strangers laugh.

This is what I’ve learnt as I have taken my first steps into to the world of stand up.

I did my first set in Sydney in a dirty little pub in 2007. I don’t remember much about it other then I didn’t die on stage and people laughed and not just out of nervous politeness.

What will always stick with me from that night was the cocky little shit who had bragged that he didn’t need to write or rehearse because he was naturally funny and stuff would just come to him on stage. What I witnessed when he was on stage was a slow painful death, and an audience who had been totally alienated from the start. The worst thing was this guy didn’t even give it up as a bad job and finish up. For 15 painfully slow minutes he continued to try and eek one laugh out of an audience who wanted nothing more from him but silence and maybe a public beating.

I didn’t get back on stage till November last year. A friend told me about a stand up course that was being run in Stoke. The aim was to do 6 weeks of this course and learn all about stand up, finishing with a gig at a working mens club in Kidsgrove.

I applied and was offered a place. I was excited and looking forward to meeting like minded people who wanted to learn about being funny and there being a gig at the end of it.

What I met were 3 other women (and I’m please to say not a period/I hate men joke between us) and 9 government-hating, “we are so radical and political” people who met on a roundabout they were trying to save in Leek. They did not succeed in saving said roundabout.

Every week we went though writing, improvisation, working on stage presence, holding and using the mic, how to engage with the audience, how to get your set together. Every week members of this group would disrupt the class claiming that ‘everything would be alright on the night’ and “well we’re naturally funny”. I couldn’t believe the arrogance of this group of people.

The night of the show came round really very quickly. The comic who was running the course had managed to sort out the running order. He told us that there was no way he could have anyone follow one person so they would be going on last, not the best way to end a show, but no one was experienced enough to win the audience back after this person had rambled though 12 minutes of ill thought-out material that didn’t flow, make any sense or was FUNNY.

I’m really proud of what I managed to do that night. I crafted a good 7 minutes of material that I look back on and don’t cringe when I watch it.

I remember being introduced, taking the mic and all the nerves that I felt throughout the night drain away. I had to slow myself down on several occasions but the laughter that came from the 300 people that were in the room that night at my first joke was better then anything I have ever experience before. We were warned by the comic doing the course that you will forever be chasing that first gig buzz.

Was it alright on the night for the roundabout people? Well I think we all know the answer to this one. No, it wasn’t. For this simple reason they did not have any material, they talked in a way that didn’t engage their audience and they went on far too long.

Then came JUICE. I love JUICE Comedy. I’ve been to big arena tours where the comic has had to be on a big screen. Great, that cost me £35 quid, I could have waited for the DVD. Stand up needs to be in a small space where you can see your audience and they can see you with out the need for big screens

Sitting in the audience that night at JUICE the nervous feelings came back again and I questioned why I did this to myself. It became clear when I got that first laugh why I did it. This was a much better set then Kidsgrove but had worked on it. I looked at what was funny, what doesn’t work, can I get to this punchline quicker, is there another way to make this bit funny.

When I came off the stage friends were coming over to congratulate me, this is always nice. What was nicer was people I didn’t know coming over and telling me that they had enjoyed it. What was even nicer was the comics from that night coming over and telling me that they had enjoyed my set.

So gig number four, Glee Club Birmingham.

I had managed to get through to Stand Up If You Dare for Comic Relief. The week before the show we got to meet Jasper Carrott, do a bit of our set and get feedback from him. Randomly the 2 people that I had done the Kidsgove show with had also got through so it was nice having people backstage that I new and also sharing a lift. This meant we were also able to have a bitch about the other comics on the way home.

13 people performed that night. Before going on stage we had a bit of a pep talk from Jasper. It was mainly go out and enjoy yourself. Thankfully I had received a text from Mr Halden telling me that the audience was there to listen to me, I’m not there to fill time and that no comic I admired was ever afraid of silence. Jasper ended up nicking that last bit for his pep talk.

There were some amazingly funny people there that night. There were some average people there who had done mostly original material and nicked one or two jokes famous stand ups. Then there were the people who weren’t funny, they were just using the night to express their hatred of the immigrants and the gays in the thinly disguised joke, or the people who just weren’t funny. Shouting that, “Jasper liked this so you should” doesn’t tend to get the audience on side.

I wasn’t overly happy with my set. I had forgotten an important segue point. I was told that I covered it up well, but I didn’t feel that the set had gone as well as it had done at JUICE. Also for the first time I had been given a time limit. We were told that it was very simple and that the lights that were above our head would go red when we got to 5 minutes and would then flash when you got to 6 minutes. This is a really fool proof system. You just need to make sure that you are looking at the right set of lights and not the set of lights that are always on red.

So from these first gigs the main thing I have learnt is that it’s not the length it’s the quality (something I say to the boys all the time). Don’t be precious about your material. If it doesn’t work find a way to make it work, if that doesn’t work get rid of it.

The funniest bit of material you will ever think of will come to you at 4am. ALWAYS keep paper and pens by your bed, you will not remember it in the morning.

Tuesday 12th March 2013

This week the J-blog gets to break some very exciting news to you, our Dear Reader! We’ve been working with some lovely people to bring a series of Edinburgh Preview Shows to the heart of Stafford! Every year comedians try to craft a full-length, solo show out of their stand-up act, aiming to wow critics at the world’s biggest arts festival. This year JUICE has managed to snare some of the best up-and-coming comics on the circuit, and they’ll be bringing their solos shows to super-cool bistro Number 15 on Greengate Street, in the build-up to the Edinburgh Festival!

Over three months and three dates, JUICE & Number 15 will be bringing you SIX of the best new solo shows on their way to the Festival!

 

Tuesday 14th May

The first of our Preview Shows will bring Michael J. Dolan’s new show “Nothing Will Ever Be Alright Again” to the stage. Michael’s contemplative, hate-filled comedy has earned him accolades and praise. His 2012 show “Dress To Depress” garnered numerous 4 Star Reviews at last year’s Edinburgh Festival, and was singled-out by Sarah Millican who said “One of my fave shows is Michael J. Dolan. Grumpiness has never been smart and funny.”

Also on the May show with Michael will be Tony Jameson’s “Football Manager Ruined My Life”. Tony is an accomplished and talented comic from Newcastle, who regularly performs for major comedy clubs such as The Frog & Bucket, Comedy Central and The Stand. Tony also did a star-turn for JUICE Comedy last year at The Gatehouse Theatre. Tony’s obsession with computer game Football Manager has led him to ruin, and that ruin is at the heart of his hilarious new show.

 

Tuesday 11th June

In June we get to welcome back an old JUICE friend in the form of Phil Ellis! Phil performed for JUICE a number of times in his formative days, and has gone on to have great success on the comedy circuit. As well as being a regular performer for major comedy clubs such as Jongleurs and The Glee Club, Phil has also written and appeared in TV projects for both Dave and BBC Three. Phil’s 2013 solo show is an inventive and interactive journey of self-discovery and giggles, fueled by his madcap energy and maverick charm!

Sharing the spotlight in June (disclaimer: there’s no spotlight) will be the marvelous Katie Mulgrew! Over the years Katie’s brand of comedy has earned her a place as Finalist in the prestigious nationwide Funny Women competition, and has made her a fixture in major comedy clubs such as Highlight and The Frog & Bucket!

 

Tuesday 16th July

In July our Preview Show will feature the highly respected and experienced Dan Nightingale! Dan has been one of the most sought-after warm-up men in the country, working for both the BBC and ITV and acting as the regular warm-up act for The Jonathon Ross Show. Dan has performed for virtually every big comedy club in the country, and last year his show “The 11 And A 1/2 Ill-Conceived Edinburgh Shows Of Dan Nightingale” received wide-spread acclaim and multiple 5 Star Reviews at the Festival. The comedy circuit eagerly awaits his 2013 show!

Sharing the July show with Dan will be JUICE Comedy Award Winner, Kiri Pritchard-McLean! Kiri is one our favourite performers on the circuit, she was on the bill at our first-ever show at The Gatehouse Theatre, took part in Cocktails & Comedy at Number 15 and has made numerous appearances at our New Material Night down at Joxer Brady’s. We can’t wait to see what Kiri’s got in store for us with her solo show!

So that’s our season of Edinburgh Previews in Stafford! Fantastic comedians with exciting solo-shows! They are all on Tuesday nights and the dates to remember are;

14th May

11th June

16th July

Tickets will be priced at just £5 each! That’s £5 for a night consisting of TWO Preview shows! Tickets will be available very soon from Number 15!

Tuesday 5th March 2013

Last night’s New Comedian / New Material Night was a real joy. We have some new faces in the audience, which is always great, it lets us know that all the time we spend promoting JUICE online isn’t wasted! Woohoo! We were especially pleased that most of the new faces were woman. A lot of the time live stand-up is heavily dominated by a male presence, and therefore a male point-of-view, so it’s great that we’re getting a more equally split audience. But the bottom line is that the acts on last night’s bill were fab! We had a great mix of newer comedians, and some top-quality pro’s!

Graham Milton is a newer act who really impressed last night, with a well put together, cohesive set. Star turns came from the excellent Michael J. Dolan, who didn’t utter a single sentence that didn’t result in fall-about laughter from the audience, and Craig Deeley, who graced us with a wealth of well-crafted new material that sits perfectly in his cheeky-Brummie act. It was also great to have another appearance from the talented James Meehan. We’re very lucky to get such brilliant comedians choose our little Stafford outfit to perform at, and anyone who was at last night’s show got to see some brilliant professional comedians for free on a Monday night. If you’ve never been to this monthly gig of ours before, you should really make the effort on Monday 1st April.

If you missed it, the latest JUICE Comedy Show podcast from Rob & Neil is available here to stream. You can also download it from iTunes and take it with you on a long, strange journey. Rob & Neil discuss the current goings on in the world of comedy, review funny TV programmes you may have seen and also chat about local Stafford news and events!

We’d like to take the time to recommend an upcoming show to you, Dear Reader. On Saturday 16th March a smart, funny comedian called Rosie Wilby is making a performance at The MET Studio. Rosie’s back-story is an interesting one. She was a pop-music columnist during the 90’s, went on to write and release her own album to rave reviews, supported the likes of Bob Geldoff and Jamie Cullum on their national tours, before making the segue into stand-up. Her new show sees her revisit the heady days of Britpop, using her old music columns, personal letters and photos to explore the nature of nostalgia. She show sees Rosie mix stand-up with storytelling and punctuate the journey with a smattering of her self-penned songs.

Rosie is a truly funny comic and this show has received rave reviews. Unfortunately it’s been scheduled at The Gatehouse Theatre on the same night as national TV star Al Murray/Pub Landlord. We at JUICE would hate to see a smart, original comedian like Rosie have her show completely overshadowed by this clash. We have no vested interest in Rosie’s show, we just want Stafford to have a thriving comedy scene, one that isn’t totally dominated by people-off-the-telly. So we urge you to go to the Gatehouse Box Office and buy your tickets for this excellent show! JUICE Comedy will be there in force, and we can’t recommend the gig enough!

To whet your whistle, here’s a clip of Rosie’s stand-up from 2011.

JUICE Chat with Rosie Wilby

“My flat burned down days before the album launch. One man started really laughing at this.”

Rosie Wilby was a music columnist during the height of Britpop, and her passion for music led her to release her own critically-acclaimed album in 2000. After performing at Glastonbury and supporting the likes of Bob Geldoff and Jamie Cullum on tour, Rosie segued into a career in stand-up comedy.

JUICE: How did you get your start in stand-up?

Rosie: “I was a singer songwriter and when my band broke up I started talking and telling self deprecating in between the songs as I realised I didn’t want to be yet another seemingly over earnest woman with an acoustic guitar.”

JUICE: Who have been your comedic influences over the years?

Rosie: “When I was growing up, Eddie Izzard and Victoria Wood were staples. When I started to learn about comedy, then I got into the slightly more surreal acts like Simon Munnery, Paul Foot, Tony Law and Stewart Lee.”

JUICE: Who are your favourite comics on the circuit right now?

Rosie: “The ones I’ve named above, plus Zoe Lyons who is just a brilliant master of her craft. Her new solo show is brilliant. Just excellent pure stand up, delivered with huge energy.”

JUICE: You’re new show arrives in Stafford on the 16th March, what can we expect from “How (not) To Make It In Britpop”?

Rosie: “Well, this show is a little different from my pure stand up set and previous solo shows like The Science of Sex as it’s a nostalgic and more gentle trip down memory lane interspersed with acoustic renditions of the songs which people have really loved and have been downloading on iTunes now my ancient album is available digitally for the first time (downloads were barely invented when it was first released!).  I suppose I’m going for the sort of tone of those hybrid shows which cross theatre and comedy, a bit like John Peel’s Shed which was a successful show in Edinburgh the year before last.”

JUICE: The show sees you revisiting a lot of photos, letters and old memories from the 90’s. Did you turn up anything you’d have been happier to forget about?

Rosie: “Well my flat burned down days before the album launch. One man started really laughing at this (more serious) point of the story and when I asked him why it made him laugh, he said ‘sorry Rosie I thought it was going to be a burglary!’… um, cos they’re much funnier aren’t they?”

JUICE: Your career has progressed from being a singer/songwriter to being a stand-up comedy. Do you prefer one to the other, or would you like to be able to split your time between the two of them?

Rosie: “Well I did miss the music and it’s been fun to resurrect a few of the old songs that have stood the test of time for this show. Some of them haven’t dated as well and these have resulted in ironic lyric readings where I mock my younger self’s pretentiousness. Underachievers of the World Unite, anyone?”

JUICE: As well as being on stage at Glastonbury, you’ve performed at some legendary venues like Ronnie Scotts, The Stand and Downstairs At The King’s Head. Where’s your favourite place to play and what do you look for in a performance space?

Rosie: “For music, the natural acoustics of the room are vital. The 12 Bar club is a pokey little venue in central London where the band played a reunion gig last Summer (which you can watch here). It’s one of the oldest buildings in London and is an old forge. Its got so much character its brilliant. Comedy venues are similar I guess. The ones imbued with history have something that a new purpose built chain venue just doesn’t.”

JUICE What’s next for Rosie Wilby?

Rosie: “I’m developing a book and a new show which involves video clips. This may also evolve into a short film.”

Rosie Wilby is performing her show ‘How (not) To Make It In Britpop’ on Saturday 16th March at The MET Studio in the Gatehouse Theatre. Click here to book tickets.

For videos, songs and gig dates visit Rosie’s website.