Should You Have a Stage Name?

Is Your Real Name Funny Enough?

Getting a stage name is a choice most people in the entertainment industry have to think about. As we all know, a stage name is a name an actor, musician, artist, or comedian gets and uses on stage for his or her performances. There are many different reasons why people get stage names, and some of them are even serious, like the people whose parents had a little too much hash back in the 70's when they were trying to come up with original-sounding names for their kids.

Still, in the comedy industry, having an amusing and unusual name is actually an advantage.

Some of the more serious reasons for taking a stage name include having the same or a similar sounding name to a famous personality. There's nothing worse than trying to get bookings for your comedy act when your name sounds like that of a famous star, for example. Yeah, I guess it WOULD generate a bit of extra publicity, but is it actually worth the extra aggravation when the crowd that turns out for your performance comes to your show expecting a different kind of "performance?" No way!

Then there are those guys whose names are pronounced like the sound made by a cat getting its tail mangled in the dryer. Yes, people might get a laugh out of your name, but will that really contribute to the rest of your act? You can't just go introducing yourself every 60 seconds to keep the audience laughing. And keep in mind that comedians get part of their publicity by word of mouth. Word of mouth becomes very difficult when the people who found you funny have to make 10 attempts to get your name right when they're telling their friends to see your show.

Another reason for getting a stage name is if, by a cruel twist of fate, your parents had a sense of humor even more warped than yours. If that's the case, they might have decided to give you a name that sounds like an obscenity. If this is the case, it's a fifty-fifty if you want to take a stage name or not, depending on whether your humor runs to the weird. Just keep in mind that you'll have a hard time getting bookings for gigs at places that run to "clean" humor if the owners think your real name is a stage name that you took on to advertise off-color humor.

Then there are the guys whose parents chose dorky names. Getting a stage name is a prerequisite for you if you feel you fall into this category. Heck, getting a legal name change sounds like an option to me, depending on how dweeby your parent's name of choice.

In any case, if you do decide to get a stage name, make sure that it's one that not only appeals to you, but that it's one that is catchy, easy to pronounce, and easy to remember. You want your stage name to be something that people can recall at the drop of a hat, and will be able to tell others about without having to wrack their brains. This kicks up the odds that people will remember you. Of course, this won't help your career at all if your act sucks anyway, in which case you can at least move to another city and assume your real name again when you get laughed out of town for bombing.

On the opposite note of bombing, if we assume that your act is a success, getting a stage name also helps not just in the recognition game. Because your name will sound "cool" (it better be, you're the one who picked it this time, not your folks, bubba!) it's actually legal to have your stage name changed into your real legal name. You can now have the name you've always wanted! Unless of course your own warped sense of humor made you pick a stage name that's dweeby, obscene, or unpronounceable, in which case your application for an official name change may be rejected outright or will, at the very least, be delayed for several decades by people debating on whether something like Iamthepurplepeopleeater is a valid and legal name for another human being.

Performing With an Open Mike

Outmotormouthing The Competition: Open Mike Comedy Performances

One of the best risks to take in trying to get your break in the comedy industry is to go to open mike performances. These are free events, and different rules will usually apply depending on the place where the open mike performance is being held.

First off, just what is an open mike performance? And if your reply is that it's the opposite of a closed mike performance, you just earned yourself a swift kick in the butt. Seriously, it's an event held in a club or hosted by a comedy group that allows aspiring comedians (and bored people in the audience) the opportunity to go on stage and perform stand up comedy for a set period of time, usually lasting 5 to 15 minutes.

Some open mike events are very informal, and these are the ones you'll want to go to first if you're not confident yet or inexperienced at stand up comedy. The more informal events are held at comedy clubs where, on those nights, anyone from the audience can just jump up on stage and start jamming. What is the advantage to this? You can bomb, and nobody will really care much - though your confidence will definitely take a massive hit if you do. Unless you bomb worse than your grandmother after prunes, in which case the audience may decide to shower you with (hopefully non physical) abuse.

On the other hand, informal open mike comedy at clubs means you don't have to arrange anything like you would with a formal gig, and gives you plenty of practice with a non-demanding crowd that (hopefully) won't be throwing cutlery at you. You can refine your technique in this fashion, and improve over time as you lose your stage shyness and become comfortable performing in front of a crowd. Just pray that on the nights you do this, you don't get a crowd with the attitude of a school of hungry piranhas.

The disadvantage to open mike comedy at clubs is that the odds of getting noticed are moderately slim. It makes good practice, but rarely will you expect to run into agents and talent scouts who can help you break into the big time at these places. Yes, we've all heard the stories of people discovered by talent scouts while performing at a club. But those are few and far in between, and we have to assume that any talent agents going to the clubs you'll be performing at will be busier getting a date than actually listening to you.

More formal open mike comedy events take the form of a contest of sorts. Some people actually enter these events for kicks. However if you're seriously considering a career in the comedy industry, don't enter these contests unless you're confident onstage. These events are usually hosted by one organization or another, and the audience WILL include invited talent scouts and managers who will be there in a working capacity, looking for raw meat - oops, I mean fresh talent - to bring into their coteries. You definitely want to make a good impression at these events.

These contests will usually have dozens of comedians all out there to win recognition, and if you want to get into the industry fast, this is where you pull out all the stops and use your best material. Depending on your personal attitude, you can either go into this for the sheer fun of the experience, or think of it as a war against the other comedians, with witticism as your weapon. Doing well at these events, whether you win or not, may earn you the attention of a talent scout and get you the break you've been looking for. Unless the managers and agents in the crowd brought along their dates from the clubs where you performed open mike before, in which case they'll STILL be trying to get a date.

Finding an open mike event is easy enough. Surf the net, and check your local papers for news announcement of open mike comedy events. If you've also got a bar which you frequent you can even talk to the owners and get them into the scheme, having them host an open mike contest where you can strut your stuff.