So much info, and I loved all of it. Nom nom nom. Do you have to have a set to be a host? Could you host first, then slowly steal the spotlight with a cobbled together string of almost jokes in blatant disregard of etiquette? Not that I would ever. I wonder if you could go on tour as a host. The traveling comedy host. Yeah.
i love this story about Brent Weinbach who i also love!:
"One of my favorite hosting sets ever was turned in by Brent Weinbach. Brent was just starting to work his way through the club hierarchy but he was already one of the funniest comics I’d ever seen, and incredible weird and unusual. I couldn’t imagine how he was going to handle the cheerleading and housekeeping part of the hosting gig. I don’t even remember who the headliner was. I was there to see Brent, sure that awful, or wonderful, it was gonna be something completely unique. Brent walked onstage in character, “Yo, yo, what is UP, SacramenTO!” He hosted by playing a cheesy, but effective host, and then introduced “Your first comic of the night. This dude is really weird, right? You’re gonna love him. Give it up for Brent Weinbach!” Then he walked to the edge of the stage, mimed shaking his own hand, and came back as his usual self. Did his set, which killed, and then brought “the host” back again, and he did the rest of the night in that cheesy character. It was clever, brilliant, and it got the job done."
In Canada, hosts are more experienced than features, and sometimes more experienced than the headliner as well. Kind of a weird quirk.
Another odd shift from.when I started: the host used to be the only act on the show to so crowdwork. Certainly he or she was the only act REQUIRED to do it.
Now that headliners are doing crowdwork for social media, it's starting to shift and there are hosts who go up and not do crowdwork (either by the headliners request or they don't like it, but having grown up with the other way, it's still disorienting to see it.
Another quirk. Hosts in Canada will sometimes do time between acts at their discretion, though that's fading in popularity.
One thing that's completely disappeared is the host was expected to do a few minutes before the headliner so people could refresh drinks, go to the bathroom, etc.
One of the skills new headliners had to learn was how to follow the host's closer, since some of those hosts were veteran headliners in their own right. It was like a little mini-gunfight. The host got his shot and then the headliner had to decide whether to top it, ride the wave, riff off it or admit defeat and reset the room
this is a must read for any aspiring comic--very meaty 💪☮️💯
So much info, and I loved all of it. Nom nom nom. Do you have to have a set to be a host? Could you host first, then slowly steal the spotlight with a cobbled together string of almost jokes in blatant disregard of etiquette? Not that I would ever. I wonder if you could go on tour as a host. The traveling comedy host. Yeah.
dear keith
i love this story about Brent Weinbach who i also love!:
"One of my favorite hosting sets ever was turned in by Brent Weinbach. Brent was just starting to work his way through the club hierarchy but he was already one of the funniest comics I’d ever seen, and incredible weird and unusual. I couldn’t imagine how he was going to handle the cheerleading and housekeeping part of the hosting gig. I don’t even remember who the headliner was. I was there to see Brent, sure that awful, or wonderful, it was gonna be something completely unique. Brent walked onstage in character, “Yo, yo, what is UP, SacramenTO!” He hosted by playing a cheesy, but effective host, and then introduced “Your first comic of the night. This dude is really weird, right? You’re gonna love him. Give it up for Brent Weinbach!” Then he walked to the edge of the stage, mimed shaking his own hand, and came back as his usual self. Did his set, which killed, and then brought “the host” back again, and he did the rest of the night in that cheesy character. It was clever, brilliant, and it got the job done."
thank you for sharing it!
love
myq
In Canada, hosts are more experienced than features, and sometimes more experienced than the headliner as well. Kind of a weird quirk.
Another odd shift from.when I started: the host used to be the only act on the show to so crowdwork. Certainly he or she was the only act REQUIRED to do it.
Now that headliners are doing crowdwork for social media, it's starting to shift and there are hosts who go up and not do crowdwork (either by the headliners request or they don't like it, but having grown up with the other way, it's still disorienting to see it.
Another quirk. Hosts in Canada will sometimes do time between acts at their discretion, though that's fading in popularity.
One thing that's completely disappeared is the host was expected to do a few minutes before the headliner so people could refresh drinks, go to the bathroom, etc.
One of the skills new headliners had to learn was how to follow the host's closer, since some of those hosts were veteran headliners in their own right. It was like a little mini-gunfight. The host got his shot and then the headliner had to decide whether to top it, ride the wave, riff off it or admit defeat and reset the room
Thanks for this!
The only shows I've done in Canada have been at conventions, or hosting animation festival so I've never really experienced the Canadian comedy scene!