The rise of comedy clubs helped to make stand-up comedy as we know it today. Because of these intimate venues, comics were able to perfect their acts speak directly to their audiences, and launch careers that would define the genre. Whether you’re attending a Saturday Night Comedy Show Montreal or a show in New York or Los Angeles, it’s clear that the evolution of stand-up comedy and comedy clubs is deeply intertwined. So, how did this special art form come to be, and how did comedy clubs become so important to the world of comedy?
Originating from the Vaudeville era, a US form of variety entertainment between the late 19th and early 20th century, stand-up comedy is the new mode of entertainment. The largest type of Vaudeville show included a gamut of acts: comedians, musicians, dancers, and magicians. During this time comedians were often part of a larger show and would perform a short routine between other acts. However, comedy did not take a solo-focused turn until the 1940s and 1950s, when much of the country was undergoing cultural changes after the World War. When first appearing, comedians came out with routines, but as television became more popular, comedians started performing their routines on late-night shows and became national stars. As such, at this time, comedy clubs began to spring up as venues designed solely with stand-up in mind, allowing comedians the opportunity to hone their material.
At the beginning of the 1950s and 1960s, New York began to rise with venues such as The Improv in New York and Catch a Rising Star, which would become key in the careers of many famous comedy legends in the future. In addition, these clubs offered comics a chance to make their names in comics, test new material, and build the face time with the audience that is essential to becoming a successful stand-up comedian.
For up-and-coming comedians, comedy clubs have been a long-time launch pad for the next big thing, a place to perform in front of live audiences and learn the craft. In the 1970s, open mic nights were important in giving new comics their first taste of the stage. The element of these nights was that comics could work out their jokes and get immediate feedback, further refining their act over time. There can be no better case study for the importance of comedy clubs as the training grounds of comedians than the career of George Carlin. Carlin learned his material early in his career at The Comedy Store in Los Angeles. Going on at comedy clubs, where he pushed the boundaries and experimented with some very bolder, very edgy material, giving him the confidence to develop the sharp political edge that would come to define his later work.
So, for many comedians, these venues also served as an opportunity to network with other comedians in the industry, which is vital for getting a head start on their careers. Collaborating on new material if they needed to, or be a lot and watch each other work and learn. Comedy club intimacy encouraged comics to form relationships with fellow performers, club owners, and agents, leading to television spots, acting roles, and national fame.
But the 1970s and 1980s were the golden age of comedy clubs, because there was an explosion of comedy venues across the United States, and it was in the 1970s and 1980s that comedy clubs exploded. The success of cable television and shows like “The Tonight Show” created such a demand for stand-up comedians that they had to be found. In the meantime, the comedy clubs, The Comedy Store in Los Angeles and Catch a Rising Star deep in New York City, where a steady stream of under-the-radar comics worked on their skill, became cultural institutions. Many of our most famous comedians of all time were born out of the many comedy clubs during this time, including Richard Pryor, Joan Rivers, and Eddie Murphy. And their shows started to be seen on mainstream TV, and these performers became household names. Their club environment was able to expose these comics to a much wider audience and also a loyal fanbase through late-night television appearances.
There was an alternative comedy in the 80s that wasn’t traditional stand-up. But clubs started to have more experimental, more unconventional comedians who didn’t rely on punchlines or traditional storytelling techniques. It added a new aspect to the stand-up scene and new possibilities to the comedy. This was a time when comedy clubs were so popular they were a part of the comedy ecosystem, they helped new voices and new comedic styles pop up.
Comedy clubs are still a part of modern stand-up comedy. These venues adapted as the industry evolved and the trends changed: From the rise of alternative comedy, storytelling and even the rise of improv-based performance. Today, comedy clubs are not just stand up. They are where comics can try different styles, work on their act, and perfect their craft. And, of course, comedy clubs have stayed on the cutting edge of the digital age. Although modern comedians have the tools to do their trade today, such as streaming platforms like Netflix and social media, nothing can replace the irreplaceable kick you get from a live performance. While that wide visibility is available on digital platforms, you can’t replicate the electric atmosphere of a live audience. The ever-so-present, immediate and open interaction that comedians have with their audience in a comedy club to even this day looks like the best source of motivation and inspiration for many comedians, encouraging them to keep perfecting their art when on stage.
A few comedy clubs, for example, Comedyville in Montreal, have taken advantage of the flourishing interest in humour by joining customary stand up with new shows. In a digital world of more and more digital products, the diversity of programming offered by these clubs has kept them relevant by attracting audiences who want the one-of-a-kind, unfiltered experience that only live performance can provide.
Stand-up comedy is the evolution of comedy clubs. These venues were key to the development of comedy itself, serving as testing grounds for the material of young comics before their big break and connecting comics to their audiences from vaudeville through the golden age of comedy in the 70s and 80s and up until the modern era when comedy clubs continue to provide venues for comics to learn their acts and stay in the game. The comedy club is an important part of stand-up comedy: the unique energy of a live show, the intimacy that exists between a performer and the audience, and the ability to try things and grow. New generations of comedians will continue to take to the stage based on comedy clubs for a long time to come. From a Saturday Night Comedy Show Montreal to a smaller venue, these spaces remain at the heart of comedy’s forever-changing future.
Photo: Courtesy Yuk Yuks Ottawa
