Standup is fun. What is standup?

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Their fans have different humorous genres, but someone does not like clowns, sitcoms do not inspire. Perhaps the ideal way to laugh or even try yourself as a comedian is stand-up. This is a comedy genre that does not require scenery, gathering of a troupe, musicians. All you need is a funny story and an audience.

The origin of the genre

Usually, the origins of stand-up call such a phenomenon as parresia. This is a Greek word that means that a speaker can cut the truth-womb, without taking into account the rank and influence of the people at whom the arrows of his criticism are directed. At the same time, only absolutely free speech, which is not dominated by coercion, financial interest, or any other methods of pressure, could rightly be considered parresia. In other words, this is sometimes quite harsh criticism, generated by the impossibility of the speaker to remain silent.

Starting from the 19th century, music halls became popular in Great Britain, where comedians with all sorts of monologues could perform between performances of singers and dancers. A law passed in the second half of the 20th centuryabolished censorship in theaters, allowed to talk about a lot, but the music halls quickly gave way to radio and television. Stand-up at the same time just moved to other clubs, and this contributed to its popularity.

At the moment, a classic stand-up is a performance in which a comedian in a free manner can make fun of any modern phenomena, while not looking back at the "sacred cows". It was in this form that it began to develop in the United States after 1970 and gained wild popularity.

Famous stand-up comedians

If we consider the United States as the birthplace of the genre, then Mark Twain became the ancestor. A wonderful writer, satirist and humorist, he was engaged not only in literature. His lectures in San Francisco in 1866 were a great success and were distinguished by such sparkling humor that each listener willingly paid a dollar for the right to attend.

Woody Allen, Richard Pryor and Lenny Bruce - these people gave stand-up a new life. George Carlin is still performing, gathering full houses and pouring curses from the stage so that an inexperienced listener becomes embarrassed. But is it possible to consider that stand-up is an exclusively Western genre?

Zadornov, Zhvanetsky, Altov, Evdokimov and a whole galaxy of talented satirists managed to perform during the years of total Soviet censorship. Of course, it is difficult to joke about everything in such a situation, and the texts had to be “combed”. Compared to the American one, it was an extremely mild option.

Epic stand-up humor

What are comedians joking about right now? The most requested topic remainswhich is usually called "on the topic of the day." Judging by the number of topics, we have a lot of anger. Louis C. K., an Irish-American comedian, enjoys making fun of children, sexual minorities, modern youth and old people, doctors, TV presenters, fashion - everything in a row. He does it softer than George Carlin, while no less funny. Stand-up is the most liberal genre, there are no strictly defined topics that you can or cannot joke about.

For example, journalistic ethics impose certain limits on the author. The requirements of tolerance simply do not allow speaking negatively about women, children, Africans, homosexuals. In addition, the journalist is obliged to give out the most objective information, excluding his personal opinion. The stand-up comedian is completely free from any framework. Of course, if the performances cause furious public outrage, the audience will vote with their wallets, and they will simply not go to his performance.

The line between improvisation and preparation

Performances in the stand-up genre involve a certain amount of improvisation, communication with the audience, although it is difficult to build a performance on this alone. Of course, monologues are written, blanks are used in blocks, on which, as if on a backbone, jokes are built up in random order. A good comedian is guided by the reaction of the audience, so even the preparation does not look strained.

An excellent example of improvisation can be seen in the movie The Nutty Professor, and it is no coincidence that Eddie Murphy, who himself performed in the stand-up genre, looksso believable in a scene of spontaneous competition with a brazen and blunt comedian who builds his numbers on rude ridicule of random victims from the audience. Stand-up about the shortcomings of different people is the most fertile topic, extensive and inexhaustible. But humor can be just sharp, but it can also be bilious and even vicious. Viewers prefer the first option.