My Full Stand-up Comedy Set on Hyphens, Mount Orgasmus, Gangster Penguin & More

This was my stand-up comedy set from Gotham Comedy Club on July 2nd, 2014. I told jokes about my mom (she’s really not just a good sport, but the BEST sport), online dating site OkCupid, my girlfriend (also the best sport), hyphenated last names, using ‘slap’ instead of ‘bang’, getting fat, and the expression “at the end of the day”.

Still haven’t gone perfect yet. Almost there. I’d say this is as close to an ‘A-‘ as I’ve ever been. I flubbed the OkCupid joke by rushing through and not setting it up properly then fumbling through punchline. And I would’ve expected a little better reaction from the ‘At the end of the day’ bit, simply because I’d prepared the audience for it with the previous jokes. All in all, I received positive feedback with some calling it my best set yet. I feel like I’m progressing with every month. Considering I was going to quit after not advancing in the NY’s Funniest Professional Contest, I think I’ll keep at it for at least another year.

One other note would be my habit of looking down between jokes. I don’t know how to knock that off. For some reason, it’s like an involuntary reset or internal transition that becomes external. It’s a tip-off to the audience, which I guess could be good in some ways, but I don’t see many comics doing that and I’ve read / heard that it’s no bueno. Truth be told, I get lost mentally when I look out into the audience sometimes. I’ve created set lists that I believe to be memorable with keywords that resonate, but maybe pics are the way to go?

Thanks to Andy Engel, Michael Codispoti, Ryan Reiss, and everyone who came out to support me.

Three more notes, because why not:

1) I was accepted to perform in the Last Comix Standing competition at Foxwoods in Connecticut, but the full-time job and lack of transportation forced me to bow out. Leaving full-time job to drive 2+ hours on a weekday would be rough as would trying to fit it into weekend schedule. I’ll probably regret it, but life would suck without regrets, right?… Right?

2) I submitted a couple of show ideas to the NBC Comedy Playground. Of course, I waited until the last day to submit and had about 4-5 hours to complete, scan, and sign the application, write, film, and upload 3 videos. I did all of that except… SIGN the application. I almost vomited once I realized I’d forgotten to sign it. That would be one fun shuttle ride to the PATH.

3) I purchased Comic Insights: The Art of Stand-up Comedy by Franklyn Ajaye based on a recommendation from Al Madrigal on a replay of his Monday Morning podcast live stream that I wasn’t supposed to tweet out because Cogo thinks I’m a mind reader. Sweet. Anyway, so far so good with the book.

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