As long as you choose your talent carefully, setting up a stand-up comedy event can be your ticket to success.
In this guide, Lorne Armstrong, Director of Event Academy , outlines some of the steps you need to take to create a successful evening of fun and laughter.
We are going to cover the following:
Location selection
Preparation
ticket sales
Selection of talents
Shaping the event
Promotion of the event
The comedy circuit is fertile ground for a successful event and can provide an unforgettable experience for all involved. To ensure that the experience is purely positive, consider the following.
1. Location selection
Venue selection is vital to the success of any event. A suitable location should:
Fit within your budget
Can be reached by public transport as well as by car
Have sufficient capacity for the expected visitors
Provide an artist foyer and a side or back entrance for talent
Provide space for refreshments, a stage and bathrooms
Comedy is all about the atmosphere, so careful selection is key. You want a venue that is small enough to be intimate, but not so small that people have to stand. Go too big, and it can feel empty and lack that vibe.
You also need a room with good acoustics. A marquee is a cheap space, but is not acoustically brilliant. They don't bounce sound back into the room or isolate it from outside noise. They can get cold in the evening which can be a distraction. Brick walls with no windows or risk of blackout are best.
Browse sites such as The Comedy Club and Tag Venue to find a suitable venue online.
Get more about Sell Tickets Online
2. Preparation
A stand-up comedy event is not very equipment intensive. You need some sort of stage, microphone, PA system and seating for the audience. Some comedians may need space for special acts, props or staging, but the average requirement is modest. Lighting can be as simple as a single spotlight.
When you browse through comedy venues, you will find that the majority already have PA systems, appropriate lighting and seating.
The performance space should have a stage in the center and seats facing the stage. The room should be free of distractions during the show, well insulated to prevent outside noise and kept relatively dark. The bar, if you have one, should dim the lights during performances and the staff should know how to keep noise to a minimum.
A successful stand-up comedy event is all about the comedian. As long as you put them center stage and keep distractions to a minimum, you should be fine.
Tip: This guide to hosting a show can help.
3. Ticket sales
If you're running an event with tickets, you need to think about pricing, availability, and distribution. Selling your tickets through an online site is the most convenient way to organize ticket sales for your event. With the platform of allevents you can quickly create a stand-up comedy event with cards that can be purchased online. Other online platforms offer similar features.
As for pricing, the popular recommendation is to charge the same for local movie tickets for all but the most famous comedians.
Tip : Here's a list of ticketing sites to consider.
4. Selection of talents
The selection of talents makes or breaks your event. Your comedians need to be appropriate for the audience and compatible with each other for a good and balanced event. Comedians that would work well for a corporate event may not be a good fit for a family-friendly event .
Follow the track, watch some videos, go to a few shows to snap a photo of their lineups. You learn who works well with whom and from there you put together your own line-up. You can connect with talent at The Comedy Club or The Comedy Store or watch them there.
Prices vary depending on how famous the comedians are. You can hire new comedians for as little as €60 per night. Great performers can cost anything from €1,200 to €23,000 per night.
A presenter is optional, but provides a link between performances, which can work very well. They can tie the entire event together, warming up the crowd, and filling unforeseen gaps between performances. Selecting a presenter is about finding an experienced individual who has worked in the circuit. They should have good energy, be sympathetic and have experience dealing with silences, nagging and the hassle that can happen during a comedy night.
If your budget allows, it would be a big advantage to hire an experienced presenter. They tie it all together and can add as much entertainment as the comedians.
5. Shaping the event
A comedy show usually lasts from 90 minutes to two hours, depending on how many acts you have lined up. A general list would look something like this:
Warm up, presenter: 10 minutes
First performance: 15-20 minutes
Presenter: 2-5 minutes
Second performance: 20-25 minutes
Presenter: 5-7 minutes
Main act: 30-40 minutes
Allow for some entry and pause music to keep energy high and help set the mood.
6. Promotion of the event
Now that your event is organized, it's time to promote it. You can use the usual social channels like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to post digital flyers and videos of your headliner. If you hire a well-known comedian, they should also promote the event through their mailing list and social media channels.
It's also a good idea to list your event online. Websites like The List and Chortle let you add an event for free.
In addition, you should do as much offline marketing as possible. Think about handing out flyers after similar events and putting up posters in local pubs (and on the venue itself). All of this should generate enough interest to sell out your event.
