Want to see a show by a successful national headliner who used to be a struggling local comic? Check the local comedy show calendars during the winter holidays. The comics who originally hailed from somewhere nearby may have moved on to LA, New York, or “the road” — but they still have family in the area, and will often come home to visit during the holidays.
And what could be more fun, for a conquering hero’s holiday homecoming, than to book the prime comedy clubs and venues in their old stomping grounds?1 These are typically some of the best-attended, highest-quality comedy shows of the year, and are a lot of fun for the local comics who get booked in the opener slots.
There’s a catch, though: the seasonal influx of national headliners temporarily swells the local talent pool, so everyone who’s not a national headliner gets temporarily bumped down a rung. In practice this means that the regional headliners get bumped down to feature gigs; features are bumped to host and MC work, and the local host/MCs… well, we go back to the open mics.
Oh yeah, that’s another thing about the holiday season: the open mics also tend to be really, really crowded.
The holidays aren’t all bleak bookings and bump lists, though; yes, stage time and bookings are scarcer than usual, but they also offer a number of great opportunities to meet, watch, and learn from professional comedians. This type of off-stage socializing can be tremendously valuable, even more so than the stage time.2
- Of course, booking this type of “working vacation” is also smart calendar management — and good business. This is one of the reasons they’re a successful headliner! [↩]
- And remember, you can still have a productive open mic experience even when you don’t get to perform. [↩]
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