School Of Laughs

Today is an "after school special" where I talk with a handful of students and tackle the biggest questions on their minds!

• What do you do when you bomb?
• Finding comedians to hang with.
• It's just an experiment every single time.
• Expect there to be silence.
• Beginning comedy with an already stable lifestyle.
• Is it absolutely necessary to go all in with no safety net?
• There's no shortcut around growing through stage time.
• Finding parts in your world that are the least stable to help you create comedy.
• Riches are in the niches.
• Comedian Eddie B. (teaching niche)
• Balance between you and your spouse.
• Occasionally your comedy career has to go way off balance.
• Best way to guarantee stage time is starting your own open mic.
• Professional Speaker Mark Klein.

And a whole lot more!

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter JUDY BARBE and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Eric Thompson has been delighting and entertaining audiences since the early 1980's with his unique style of comedy, magic, and illusions. Eric is an accomplished comedic magician, a veteran of hundreds of venues including comedy clubs, theaters, college campuses and corporate events. Outside his career, Eric has served on several boards for philanthropic, civic, business, and professional organizations over the years in his efforts to make his community and the region surrounding his home and business a better place to live, work, and play.

• The Ohio comedy scene in the 1980's
• Marc Weiner
• Comedian Pat Paulsen
• Lingerie models and comedy show - a good mix?
• The Johnny Carson Channel on SiriusXM
• Comedian Bruce Baum
• Performing for chickens
• Using comedy to impact lives around the world
• Million Miles, Million Smiles

And a whole lot more!

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/Eric-Thompson-Magic

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/rugmansr

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter MAX WINFREY and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Brad Montgomery teaches people how to use happiness to boost productivity, creativity, innovation & profits. He turns typical meetings into transformational events using the power of happiness. Oh, and he's pretty funny. Brad has transformed audiences in all 50 states and on four continents. His clients include Microsoft, Verizon, the FBI, the CIA, and the IRS (where he withheld 30% of his best strategies.) Brad specializes in using humor, interactivity, sound, music and visuals to ignite audiences so that they can use happiness as a tool to improve their lives and their jobs.

• Not the typical comedian childhood
• Starting magic in junior high
• Performing at renaissance fairs
• Doing 140 shows in just 3 months
• Changing the temperature of the room
• The advantage of being a keynote speaker
• Helping people think in different ways
• Using coaches to get better at your craft

And a whole lot more!

Website: https://www.bradmontgomery.com

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/bradlaughs

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/BradMontgomery1

VIEW ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/bradmontgomerylive/

FOLLOW ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/bradmontgomery

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter JOHN P. SMITH and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Ric Walker is a performer, teacher, writer and director. As an actor he has appeared in numerous plays, independent films and television. He has worked as a corporate spokesman for companies such as Eli Lilly, Computer Associates and Oracle. He has improvised with and been a member of comedy troupes The Improvised Shakespeare Company, Comedy Sportz Chicago, The Second City and MCTD (Midwest Comedy Tool & Die). He is a member Emeritus of Second Story (Serendipity Theater Collective). Ric has designed and facilitated workshops on improvisation, public speaking and communications for corporations and organizations such as Coke, Pepsi, Starbucks and Northwestern University Law School. Ric is currently a Professor at Columbia College Chicago in the nation's first BA in Comedy Writing and Performance.

• Teaching comedy at Columbia University
• Each semester culminates in a mini sketch show
• Around 225 students. A popular Major
• Is this how you want to represent yourself?
• Are you saying this because you think it's a truth
• Your job as the performer is to illuminate something for the audience and show them some new way of looking at it
• Every day is an experiment
• It's not about trying to do it perfect the first time
• Give yourself permission to say whatever
• Creating brave spaces
• Is your premise clear?
• Does your premise create a target assumption?
• Is there a simple way that you are changing that story with that punch line?
• Is the language sharp?
• Six filters to test your joke structure
• The ideal student
• It's inexplicable how some people break and some people don't

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter DONNA LEWIS and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Starting his career in San Francisco, Tommy Drake had his first paid gig in 1990 and hasn't looked back! Tommy has performed 400 shows a year over the last 25 years!

• The $100 million gig
• Why killing every night doesn't teach you anything
• Trying something new every show
• Why headliners lose traction
• Preparing for Dry Bar taping (step by step)
• Why exceptional talent can be a curse
• Opening 125 shows on tour for Cher
• Working with Carnival Cruise

And a whole lot more!

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/StuntComedian/

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHqA3GjxiqOLRGX1XrwHtgg

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter BO SHUSTER, RAY PRICE and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Welcome to the 200th episode of the School of Laughs podcast! What an amazing journey this had been. Two hundred? Yes indeed. We made it.

So what have we learned two hundred episodes in? A lot. And in this episode we cover …

• Former School Of Laughs Student Success
• Comedy That Heals, Helps And Makes Whole
• Late Night Tv Comedians
• Dry Bar Comedy
• Insight From Industry Agents And Managers
• College Market
• Cruise Gigs
• Corporate Gigs
• Making And Selling Merch
• Thank You Club 52!!!
• The Lessons I've Learned
• You Have To Sacrifice
• Get Clear With Your Goal And Your "Why"
• New Class Offering For Speakers, CEO's, Content Creators

What is on the horizon for the School of Laughs? In the first week of January 2020 I will be offering a brand new day and a half workshop for speakers and content creators who want to add confidence and comedy to their programs. This will be only for those who have an hour plus speech, training program, keynote or weekly digital offering. Stand-ups will definitely benefit from this as well. But the focus will be on helping you add comedy to specific parts of your presentation. We will meet in Nashville and more details will be coming soon. But I am extremely excited about the new program which I've designed from the ground up just for this interactive workshop.

If that sounds like something you would be interested in, send an email to [email protected] and put "Master Laughter Class" in the subject line.

September 21st, 2019 I will be running the Business of Comedy Class in Nashville from 12:30-3:30 PM. Investment is $99. If that sounds like something you would be interested in, send an email to [email protected] and put Business Class in the subject line. I'll send more information your way.

Rik Roberts

www.RikRoberts.com

www.SchoolOfLaughs.com

Live from the Clean Comedy Challenge in Nashville, TN, Rik sits down with Larry Weaver. Larry is a stand-up comedian as well as a professional speaker and emcee. He is also owner/CEO of Trusted Speakers, an entertainment agency based in North Carolina.

As usual, we cover a lot of ground on this episode. A few highlights include:

• Larry shares his experience of his first showcase being in Boston
• How everything learned in business school he applied to comedy
• The different videos that you need
• Difference between Booker and Agents
• What Larry looks for in potential clients

And a whole lot more!

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/corporate.entertainment/

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/lwentertainment

VIEW ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/lweavernc/

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter Jose Manek and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Grace Klein wanted to be a comedian from the very first time she got her family to laugh when she was a kid. It only took her a couple more decades to bring it to the stage, but once she started, she couldn't stop. She brings her own spin to subjects like being single in your 30's, not understanding church terms or young people, and being stuck in a health crazed-hiking-CrossFitting-kale eating-Fitbit wearing-society that she is too gluten, dairy, and peanut tolerant to fit into.

She started as an improv comedian before transitioning into stand-up. "I had been writing down ideas and jokes for years, pages and pages full of them. And then one day I looked through them all and thought, 'this is stand-up material'. Granted, most of the jokes weren't good, but stand-up comedy was really the only avenue for delivering them."

Grace travels around as much as possible, but currently resides in San Diego, CA, even though she prefers flannel over designer clothes and still doesn't understand why avocado toast costs $5.99 when it's really just guac on bread. She prides herself most on the amount of times she's been told she has "potential" and "how much better she looks with an Instagram crema filter."

• Denver was the first place that she started doing stand-up.
• Stand-up is like a muscle; you have to keep working it.
• Improv is hugely helpful, even just for stage presence.
• Brian Kohatsu is great at staying committed to a character.
• Doing comedy at a 420 speakeasy weed bar.
• Get more stage time and write more material.
• How to forge a connection with an experienced comedian.

And a whole lot more!

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/gracekleincomedy

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCy_p-6jKvd9VxANsiQFz8eg/

VIEW ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/grace_e_klein/

FOLLOW ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/grace_e_klein/

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter DERRICK TENNANT and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.

Having worked as a keynote speaker and professional Master of Ceremonies nearly ten years, Thom Singer has become an advocate for creating strong experiences for conference attendees.

Thom has authored twelve books on the power of business relationships, sales, networking, presentation skills and entrepreneurship. He regularly speaks to corporate, law firm and convention audiences. Thom earned the prestigious Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation in 2014.

THOM SINGER SHOW NOTES

• Director of Marketing for a big law firm.
• Recalling 1983 going and seeing a then not famous Paula Poundstone.
• Was in the top 18 people in the world in the Toastmasters International speech contest.
• Thom's growing topic is called the "paradox of potential."
• Comedy is a great metaphor for business.
• Faster now noticing cues from the audience.
• A lot of meeting planners are scared of comedians.
• After a life of admiring stand up comedians, he recently started performing in open mic nights and comedy shows.

And a whole lot more!

LEARN MORE ABOUT THOM SINGER

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/ThomSingerSpeaker

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/thomsinger

VIEW ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thomsinger/

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter John McCormack (online class & live class) and CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week. SchoolOflaughs.com/Patreon

Max Winfrey - a Stunt Comedian - has toured all over the U.S. and Canada. Max has performed for many Fortune 500 Companies. He has made numerous appearances on national television. Max was also a semi finalist on NBC's America's Got Talent.

He recently appeared at my "second job" the Huckabee Show on TBN. You can can see a link to that video HERE.

I met Max through the Christian Comedy Association. Since then, he and I have become friends. I wanted to share his story with you.

As usual, we cover a lot of ground on this episode. A few highlights include:

• Learning how to juggle at a leadership camp
• Noticing how danger appeals to people
• Being inspired by the Harem Globetrotters
• Setting psychological traps for people on stage
• Enabling people to participate
• Seeing Penn and TellerWAY before they became famous
• Getting an early gig at Kings Dominion Virginia
• How he almost lost his foot
• Why he had to ask a lady not to breath on the torches
• Appearing on America's Got Talent in 2011
• What the greatest prize and biggest gifts really are

And a whole lot more!

FOLLOW ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/StuntComedian/

WATCH ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/user/maxwinfrey

VIEW ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/stuntcomedian/

SPONSOR SPOTLIGHT:

This episode is brought to you by Patreon supporter KAY DODDand CLUB 52.

Club 52 is a one-year program designed to challenge you to get bigger, better and more bookable. You will be prompted to examine your material, performance and business practices via email each week.

Visit www.SchoolOfLaughs.com/Patreon for more info today.