Jul
31
First performance in Adelaide
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Learning to expose myself in front of strangers
Under the tutelage of Robert Grayson, I’m in Adelaide to do some stand-up comedy this coming weekend at the Rhino Room.
Performing stand-up comedy adds a dimension of terror to the modest comfort of actually writing comedy, which is what I’m accustomed to.
It helps that I barely know anyone in Adelaide. It helps minimize the fear I have that if I make a fool of myself, I save my family and friends from the discomfort of having to express hollow words of encouragement afterwards.
Since I commited myself to doing this, I’ve been amazed at how much new material has come to me once I knew the date and time of the gig.
So it must be true: the comedy gods come to your aid when you’re committed to a performance.
It’s as though the comedy gods have a policy that they only come to your aid once you’ve jumped off the cliff. (It sounds like a familiar HR policy for businesses I’ve worked for.)
I’ve found this to be true of other activities: once I’m absolutely committed to completing a task, I get more ideas and more energy to get the job done.
It’s a good way to live.