The Truth About Stand-Up
The Changing Face of Comedy
“And that’s the power of comedy…It’s such an equaliser. Everyone’s on the same level when you’re laughing at the same thing.”
Those in the creative arts industry are used to having to come up with new content or reinvent themselves on a regular basis. However, comedians face specific challenges not faced by other creatives such as musicians, writers, or artists. In this episode, American standup comedian and actress, Judy Gold, talks about some of the more general challenges and changes faced by comics, as well as some that are particularly as a result of the pandemic.
Judy Gold is an American standup comedian, actress, television writer, and producer. She won two Daytime Emmy Awards for her work as a writer and producer on The Rosie O’Donnell Show. She got her start in standup on a dare as a music student at Rutgers University. As a Jewish lesbian mother of two boys, Gold often cracks jokes about her life. Her one-woman show, 25 Questions for a Jewish Mother (co-written with Kate Moira Ryan), is based on a series of interviews with more than 50 Jewish mothers, and includes anecdotes about her own family. Gold has been involved in many projects in various roles, including being featured in the 2007 film Making Trouble, a tribute to female Jewish comedians.
What You’ll Learn from This Episode:
- How the comedian process differs from other art forms
- Specific challenges faced by female comics
- Why a 15-year-old joke can finish a comedian
- How comedy tricks an audience
- The stand-up “dare” that changed Gold’s life
- Why her first stand-up gig was “like an out-of-body experience”
- How music and comedy are similar
- What it was like in the early days of her career
- The importance of meeting an audience where they are
- What makes comedy so powerful
- Why comedy is constantly changing and comedians must adapt