How Do You Make 11 People Laugh?

It ain't easy!

Even when you have three comics on stage, all of whom have performed many times, for many venues of all shapes and sizes - bringing what they feel is their best material.

A while back, I learned a valuable "rule of thumb" for comedy. Comedy involves three elements that are summed up with the acrostic, MAP. Material / Audience / Performance. When all three of these elements are working together at optimum levels, you have a fantastic comedy show experience. When one or more of the elements is, for whatever reason, not operating at prime - you have a weak experience. Sometimes the "fault" lies with the material. Sometimes with the audience. And sometimes with the performance.

There is no magic way to ensure that every comedy performance will be. How COULD there be when you have at least 3 major forces that must be working in tandem?

What you are left with, then, as a performing comic, is the reality that sometimes you will suck as a performer, sometimes your material will suck and sometimes the audience will suck...

And there's always another show next Tuesday...