The first open mic

My first open mic was at the Edge Comedy Club. My girlfriend and good friend came too. One of the first things I noticed were the notebooks; practically every comic has a notebook, laptop, or notes on their cellphone. I had a small notebook, which I bought thinking that I was just being prudent. Seeing everyone else with one was a pleasant surprise and comforting, like a tangible connection we all had.

I also noticed the deep concentration that some people seemed to have. There would be people intensely staring at their notebooks, with a 6 foot personal space bubble. I assumed that these were definitely the "pros" who took this seriously. There was also a small group of people laughing and talking before the show started.  I figured that they must treat this as more fun than a career.  It was a little intimidating because it felt like these were the cool kids who'd be making fun of me after the show.

After the open mic started, at best, I was half listening the whole time, repeating the jokes I was going to do in my head. The night before, I picked out 2.5 minutes of jokes. I went over the jokes almost phonetically, so that I wouldn't think about what I was saying. Some people went long, so by the time it was my turn, I only had about 100 seconds to be on stage.  But between the drinks to calm the nerves and the memorization, I couldn't adapt.  So, I just said everything twice as fast.  Being my first time, the crowd was very supportive, but I was focused on getting through a joke monologue. Since I was rapid fire talking, barreling through it, I didn't enjoy being on the stage.

When the show was over, I felt kind of used, if that makes any sense. The social people still hanging around talked to each other, and the loners left. I suppose I was expecting everyone to bond over a shared experience, but that didn't happen. I questioned my girlfriend and friend at length about how it went, expecting them to remember every syllable, and every reaction the audience may have had. Then I asked them the same questions again, over-analyzing everything.

Ultimately, I didn't enjoy being on stage, I felt rushed, that I wasn't that funny, and some paranoia made me feel judged. However, I said that I'd try it at least 2-3 more times. I started thinking about what jokes I would/could do next. In a way, I was looking forward to something that I didn't enjoy. Weird. I think I know why, but that'll be in another post.

After only a couple of open mics, I learned some things that I wish I knew ahead of time, if only to alleviate some of the worries I had. I'll go over those in another post too.