Someone Define “Alternative” Comedy for me

By: Eli Sairs

“My mother-in-law is quite over-bearing,” “my, how white folks misunderstand our culture,” “what if (insert thing someone at a profession does) did that thing in an OTHER situation, like (insert crazy mis-matched situation, rendering former activity outrageous), that’d be like, whoa!”

So it’s great we have an escape from this kinda stuff, in the form of what alota folks call “alternative” comedy. But I wish those alota folks could clearly define for me what that is. Here are the surface differences, as far as I can tell:

A. Performances are often at music venues, or places that aren’t specific to comedy.

B. You get to/have to stand up.

C. The subject matter and style are consciously different than what you’d find at a mainstream comedy venue.

So A and B are mostly based on Comedians of Comedy/Invite Them Up type shows I’ve seen/been to. The third is the main issue I want to explore. Some comics and fans I’ve talked with claim to prefer alternative comedy, some say it’s just an arbitrary label. I can see where they’re coming from. How different is it? “what if (insert Star Wars/Goonies reference) did that in an OTHER situation, like (insert location from a semi-obscure movie/comic)?!” -or- “Here’s Gandalf as a crossing guard: YOU. SHALL NOT. PASS!!!...and now, Gandalf as a teacher flunking a student…). Of course, there are more than just references (which can be enjoyable, even if a bit esoteric). Some alternative comics play around with structure, which I really do respect. Jon Benjamin and Jon Glaser do two-man hybrids of sketch and stand-up, and play around with characters, which comes as a relief if you’ve sat through too many slick, mass-appeal comics and predicted every twist half-way through the premise. I think it was Hampton who I talked to about how discovering the “Invite Them Up” album was a minor revelation for both of us. “There are people who get my sense of humor!”

[hit the jump for more from Eli's take on comedy from the fringes]

Eugene Mirman (brilliant) claimed that he knew from the get-go that only a specific portion of comedy crowds were going to be into him, and he focused on appealing towards this demographic. Sorry to weave personal details into this, but I’ve deliberated fairly hard on this statement. Some comics and crowd members have referred to my “comedy” as “alternative.” When I try to figure out why, I’ve been given vague answers like “it’s quirky” or “off-beat” (which I do appreciate, though others could claim ‘weird to compensate for lack of talent’). At the Improv competition, I had fun, but the crowd wasn’t really feeling a lot of it. I’d never say it went over their heads, cause then I’m an ass, but at the same time, I’ll defend the material. I’ll say it sometimes goes to the side of people’s heads. All comics can relate to this. I realize that all crowds vary, but I have noticed that mainstream (again, a hard word to define in this context) crowds don’t react the way younger crowds (age-ism!), people who I may relate to more personally, react. Should comics like this take after Mirman’s claim, and say screw the people who don’t get it? Why perform at the Improv for 150 people if you only care to make the 20 or so of “your people” laugh? A laugh from someone who I can’t relate to, with a different sense of humor, is much more of an accomplishment. I want to learn how to bridge that divide. Emo Philips is as weird as it gets, and he could appeal to the mainstream. For his time, was there anyone more alternative in approach then Steve Martin? He became a national phenomenon.

A lot of this seems to be putting down the idea of alternative comedy. I would like to say there’s no difference. But when it comes down to it, if given the choice between seeing or performing a show described as alternative, or a packed, rigidly produced comedy club, I would choose the former in a heart-beat. For some reason, I enjoy the thrill of snagging the attention of a conversing and indifferent crowd at College Perk, with no stage or promise anyone’s there to see comedy, more than I like going up at a place that’s comedy-specific, with lights, a great sound system, and an audience waiting attentively for the first joke.I think lots of “alt” comics could kill at the Improv, and similar places. Funny is funny, it’s the comic’s job to communicate why, even if the communication line is harder to find due to an off-center approach. However, if Zach Galifianakis, who’s said he doesn’t like comedy clubs, feels more comfortable at music venues, in front of the people more likely to be open to his style, should he jump through hoops to impress people looking for something obvious and easy to digest? This just leads to asking what drives the comic to do comedy, and what he/she considers to be “success.” It’s becoming increasingly obvious that this post offers no kind of answers; it’s just a question I wanted to frame, and I’d like to hear how others would pose or answer it.

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Aparna in LA. Aparna at NACA. Aparna Writing Bad Blog Titles.

I've been jetsetting the American States United for about a week. Last Wednesday, I was in the City of Angels, California. Yester-Wednesday I was in St. Louis, Missouri (More like misery with that wind chill! Am I right, crickets?!) Not bad for an 8-day stint. Tomorrow morning, I'm headed to Raleigh, North Carolina for the Dirty South Improv Festival.

Anyway, let's recap my travels with gusto and a dash of pepper!

*puts on chef hat, also incidentally blogging hat*

Los Angeleezy

I wish people in LA were only allowed to wear LA Gear. Not because it's a good idea, but because the idea amused me for three seconds. I love this city. I know it has a bad rep because of Hollywood floozies, but I really liked it when I was out there. Maybe because it's sunny there right now and it's frowny here right now. Maybe it's that. Or maybe it's because it's a vibrant and exciting city with infinite avenues for creativity.


LA-parna

The comedy shows I got to do in LA ran the full gamut of the stand up experience. On Wednesday night, merely a few hours after I was greeted by the waving fronds of palms, I got to do some time (sounds edgy) at the Hollywood Improv. The booker was kind enough to squeeze me on relatively last minute, and I got to do five happy minutes of punching the sky. That's a new expression I've coined for a fun set. The Improv is a typical comedy club, and there was a pretty amazing line up including Chris Porter from Last Comic Standing and a surprise appearance by Ty Barnett, also of Last Comic Standing.

I found people and other comedians to be generally friendly everywhere I went, and they came and talked to me after shows especially if they enjoyed a particular joke I did. Other shows I performed at included a place called Karma Coffeehouse, which was very similar to DC's very own deceased Soho Tea & Coffee open mic, including the appearance of memorable characters such as Treeman (a man standing 9-feet-tall dressed up like a tree - he only came to enjoy the comics, not to be one). I also attended an improv show called Cagematch @ UCB, which I would highly recommend. The two groups that performed (Convoy and Tigerpants) were both amazing.

I also did a show called Rocket Video, which was in a video store. No microphone. Just straight up in the back behind the foreign films section. Free beer and soda too! My favorite show that I got to do was called The Tomorrow Show, and it took place in a theater setting. It is hosted by three superfun dudes, including Brendon Small of Home Movies fame, and it starts at 12 midnight every Saturday night/Sunday morning and runs for a good two to three hours. This show is a variety show and includes music, comedy interviews, characters, stand up, and anything one could imagine up. It draws a regular faithful audience every week as well. I almost ended up doing my set in panda make-up. That's just the sort of thing that happens in LA.

NACA Convention in St. Lunatics, Missouri



I'll also briefly recap attending the national NACA convention this past Tuesday. NACA stands for the National Association for Campus Activities, and it's where college bookers go to choose their entertainment for the upcoming school year. Literally, every type of entertainment imaginable. Magicians, singer-songwriters, dancers, mimes, performance artists, public speakers (including Lance Bass), martial artists, clowns, exotic reptiles, improv/sketch groups, and of course, stand up comedians.

I, along with the other comedians on the Stand Up for Diversity College Tour, were part of the closing festivities of the convention. The audience for our showcase was probably a little over 1,000 people even though it was originally slated for 2,500. Still a bit of a formidable number for me to comprehend. The performance space involved two large jumbo screens next to you onstage as well as a digital clock timing you right by your feet. My set was a bit shaky, but wakka wakka NACA, what can you do?

After my set, all of us comedians went to the booth in the big open "marketplace" to schmooze with bookers and college students. It was a flurry of overstimulation, but definitely a memorable experience. It was like having to be one of the spritzer ladies in the mall except replace the perfume with pamphlets and DVDs. It was a good experience in self-promotion, and luckily it didn't involve accidentally spraying someone in the eye.

So that's it. I'll be fielding questions about my travels in person at an undisclosed time and location.
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