Overheard Backstage peers behind the curtain (or brick wall) into the offstage area where comics gossip, bicker, and make each other laugh.
Today’s entry is short but contains an important lesson.
When a light is flashed at the comedian during their act, their time is nearly up. They are supposed to wrap up and get off the stage. “Riding the light” (e.g., ignoring it and doing more than your allotted time) is considered a cardinal comedy club sin.
A veteran Seattle comic was exasperated at the attitude he kept getting from open mic’ers who had been given the light. As he explained to one of them:
The light is not a judgment of quality! It’s not saying that you suck, or that you’re doing badly. It’s simply telling you that your time is up. There are other comics waiting to go on.
In my opinion—and as one of those other comics waiting to go on at the time—the pro was being far more polite than he needed to be. Club owners tend to be a lot less forgiving.
Don’t ride the light!
[...] day, another revealing conversation with a relative newcomer on the topic of getting the light. This was at an open mic without a host, where each comic introduces the next one on the list. I [...]
More on getting the light | Creating a Comic
December 24th, 2009