Crowd work is not comedy, amirite?

This is the reason

by Anonymous 1 day ago

And yet people laugh.

by CriticalBattle 1 day ago

Also , crowd work does take practice and preparation. You're basically working a flow chart to get to to one of the jokes you've already prepared.

by Exotic_Function_944 1 day ago

Takes very little effort, you just ask questions and respond to answers with smart ass remarks. Its not just a smart ass remark - its a smart ass remark that makes the audience laugh. That is the difference.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

com·e·dy/ˈkämədē/noun professional entertainment consisting of jokes and satirical sketches, intended to make an audience laugh. Nope it's comedy

by Anonymous 1 day ago

I think crowd work is hack. But…if people are laughing…that's what we dance for.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

So you decide what people are allowed to find funny? People pay money to see crowd work and then laugh when they find it funny, sounds like comedy to me.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

FARTSSSS

by PsychologicalPay 1 day ago

Yeah, one could argue that crowd work is for comedians who aren't clever enough to come up with real material. Jimmy Carr comes to mind

by Anonymous 1 day ago

This is like say freestyle is not rapping

by Icy-Train-715 1 day ago

Crowd work is comedy but it faces the same issue as every other style has. It takes skill. Anyone can do it, but few do it well

by RespondEntire 1 day ago

It doesn't take little effort. If you think you're good at being funny with your friends, try doing it from a stage with a paying audience of strangers and report back. It's not my favourite type of comedy, but it is a comedic skill that goes far beyond making your pals laugh.

by Kelleyosinski 1 day ago

Crowd work takes talent and a quick wit, sure. But the talent of being a dick. All they are doing is making fun of people. Their name, job, relationship status, clothes. They make fun of everyone, so it's not exclusionary. But it is rather boring when you're at a show and not just watching the 30 second clips where a punchline is thrown. The fishing can be a lot sometimes and it works best in small comedy clubs.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

Crowd work shouldn't be your entire act, but I do still think the mark of a veteran comic is being able to roll with the punches of a live crowd. If you have a drunk disruptive person, or somebody jeering, I think it takes real skill to take the piss out of them while still keeping the audience entertained. I take no issue with you thinking that its overdone. Short clips on short form video websites might give you the impression that is the entirety of some comics' repertoire, but I assure you -- there's usually a lot more to a set. Most comics just don't want to give away their "tight ten" (their best jokes) for free.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

If you want to see a comedian's actual material, you have to pay for a ticket, not watch it on TikTok

by francescakris 1 day ago

Its definitely not as good as the routine

by ellen39 1 day ago

Comedy is very specific, I don't know many people who are fans of comedy in general but everybody I know has a show or two or comedian that they personally find VERY funny I don't like crowd work but it's no more mystifying to me than dozens of other comedic styles

by pfannerstillkry 1 day ago

I can't get into crowd work personally, but like, it's still comedy. It's just not my style of comedy.

by Longjumping_Suit2253 1 day ago

If it makes you or me laugh then its comedy. Regardless of the methods used to make you laugh. For me I love Stavros " stavi baby" his crowd work clips are hilarious. I also am a genuine comedy fan who watches many stand-up specials, they ate great also

by Anonymous 1 day ago

Is "crowd work" enough of a generally recognized term that it's worth weighing in on like everyone will know what's being discussed? Seems like it could still refer to a lot of things. Pickpockets do crowd work too. So do politicians.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

It consists of a person (presumably a comedian) standing on a stage and making up jokes on the spot to get a laugh. It's literally in the definition of comedy.

by VersionHungry 1 day ago

What is comedy? Something that makes you laugh. If it makes people laugh and that was the intent, it's comedy.

by loisfay 1 day ago

I never understand why people want to hold up "stand up comedy" to be a sacrosanct artform. How dare asking a girl in the front row if she's dating the guy she's next to sully the fine craft of complaining about your wife or identifying as an attack helicopter or asking what's the deal with airplane food? There's great comedians and hacks in every genre. It doesn't make one form "not comedy".

by Anonymous 1 day ago

This isn't an unpopular opinion, it's just an incorrect statement. It's making people laugh, which means it's comedy. And good crowd-work takes real skill. Comedians like Steve Hofstetter are masters of it.

by Anonymous 1 day ago

Good crowd work is seriously impressive. I usually seek out comedians that can make me laugh with crowd work. cause they're usually going to have an act I actually find funny and enjoyable. It's become the cover I judge a book by and it bloody works.

by NoSource5666 1 day ago

If you want to see traditional stand up, go pay for an actual show

by Anonymous 1 day ago

I agree - what's your name? Where are you from? What do you do? Boring! I paid for an act, not for you to fish for weak puns and dull observations.

by smithamdanyka 1 day ago

lol you paid for a seat to watch stage time

by elishakuhic 1 day ago

i like how you provided two examples of audience members heckling instead of crowd work

by elishakuhic 1 day ago

Most of it is staged and trash these days. The odd time it happens organically it's fine but I see so many ( rogansphere cough cough David Lucas cough cough ) comics who don't have material rely on audience plants

by EggplantFriendly 1 day ago