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Getting
Started
Have
you ever joked around with your friends or co-workers and thought,
"Wow, I am pretty funny, maybe I can take this show on the road?"
Zach Sherwin, a member of the sketch comedy group The Late Night
Players, did. The difference is he actually followed through on
the thought.
Like
many popular stand-up comics and comedy groups today, The Late Night
Players started pretty accidentally. Sherwin says that he "had this
group of friends in college and we used to crack each other up all
the time". They began writing sketches and honing their art, and
by their third show they had about 500 people rolling on the floor
with laughter. Sherwin claims that "this was by no means a pro-quality
comedy show, but the energy and chemistry of the group members was
just through the roof. It was such a great event that it confirmed
our hunches that we might want to make a go of this comedy business
after we graduated". The Late Night Players then hit the road…
Building
a Base
Booking
gigs and trying to make a few dollars as a young comedian is not
easy. Many comedy clubs have open-mic nights, so new comedians can
actually get on stage, but they will often be performing for no,
or negative, money. Working for free is common for those young comics
trying to build a reputation. The Late Night Players started doing
shows in local comedy theaters and art galleries, and then moved
onto the college circuit.
Now the
group tours colleges almost exclusively and is getting paid better
than when they started. Sherwin says that "the college circuit is
not the most prestigious thing in the universe and obviously not
a way to get rich, but for up-and-coming comics, it's where you
start". He notes that comics like Dave Chappelle, Ray Romano, Al
Franken, and Janeane Garofalo all got their start on the college
circuit. The Late Night Players are currently burning up colleges
across the country and are building the grassroots base they will
need to make it to the big time.
The
Big Time
The
next step for the Late Night Players would be to break into the
late-night talk-show market, after they are done honing their act
on the college circuit. From there, it is common for the most popular
comics to come out with TV shows and comedy albums, which is not
easy. Dave Chappelle pitched 11 TV pilots before landing "Chappelle's
Show" on Comedy Central, which became an instant classic.
Today
some of the hottest comics out there include Ron White, Kevin James,
and Lewis Black. Ron White is described as a "good ol' boy" and
is currently climbing the Billboard charts with his comedy CD, "Drunk
In Public". White made his mark at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival
in 2001 and 2002. He then appeared on "Late Night With David Letterman"
before joining the Blue Collar Comedy Tour with Jeff Foxworthy,
Bill Engvall, and Larry the Cable Guy. The Blue Collar Tour has
hit over 60 cities, grossed tens of millions of dollars, and produced
a Comedy Central special and a top-selling DVD. Ron White has come
a long way from his Texas comedy club roots.
The
next step for Ron White would be to star in a sitcom like his fellow
stand-up comedian, Kevin James. James is the star and Executive
Producer of TV's "King of Queens", a show drawn along the lines
of Ray Romano's "Everybody Loves Raymond". James made a quick jump
into to TV after being discovered in 1996 at the Montreal Comedy
Festival. The comedian vows never to stray from his stand-up roots
and can still be seen as a regular on David Letterman.
Another
comedian burning up the charts into '05 is Lewis Black, dubbed "America's
foremost commentator on everything". Black didn't take the traditional
stand-up route, which holds that life is the best education for
a comic. He graduated from the renowned Yale School of Drama, has
acted in various movies, and has written over 40 plays. Black has
helped Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show" achieve immense popularity
as a weekly commentator. He also can be seen on tour with fellow
Comedy Central stand-up Dave Attell. These are some of the few comics
who became successful after laying it all on the line.
Keeping
It Fresh
Sherwin
notes that "almost every event or social interaction can be mined
for humor value", something he learned from watching Larry David
of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Seinfeld". The Late Night Players
have written many sketches from Sherwin's comedy ideas notebook,
a little pad he carries around to write down funny things that happen
throughout the day. He also claims that the notebook is fun to read
on the toilet. The Late Night Players use a lot of improvisation
to keep their show fresh, customizing their act to each college
or event they play. The group does not "feel constrained to stay
within the bounds of stand-up, or anything for that matter", which
keeps the show wild and unpredictable.
So
if you think you are funny, it may be time to lay it all on the
line and chase down your dream. Sherwin notes that comedy "is very
hard and can be really anxiety-producing, but when success happens,
it is so, so sweet, it's kind of unbelievable". So if you want to
be a comedian, stop joking around the water cooler, start writing
a TV pilot, gas up the tour bus…and dream on!
www.latenightplayers.com
-By Dan Malachowski, Salary.com
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