This week we talk to Nicole Yates, our standup teacher and host of The Ruby Standup Showcase, all about those first awkward and great moments of becoming a stand up. And how to deal with hecklers. Gross.

 

How long have you been doing stand up and what was the first show you ever did?

 

In April it will be 10 years that I started doing standup! Wow, time really flies! The first open mic I did was at Laughs On Fairmount in Philly. I remember looking up open mics and picking that one because it was run by 2 women, Carolyn Busa and Mary Radzinski. It was in the back room of a really big bar and of course I blacked out onstage (very common for your first time). I ended up going to that mic for a solid 3 years before it changed hands (and then still after that). Mary and Carolyn ran a great, supportive room and I really miss it.

The first show I ever did was at a bar downtown called Tabu. Alejandro Morales ran a show called Camp Tabu in the upstairs room that was a little standup, a little sketch, a little drag, it was fun! He had seen me at LOF and asked me to be on the show. I had been doing that mic for maybe 3 weeks? It was very scary but once I got onstage my nerves settled. I do believe we all got blind drunk afterwards, marking it as a very successful evening!

What’s your favorite way to get rid of hecklers?

Hecklers want to be part of the show. No one else wants them to be part of the show. This creates a problem. Too much attention reinforces their idea that what they are doing is right, so it’s not good to give it to them. play it off as funny the first time. The second time, be funny but kind of mean. The third time, shut it down. Of course, this is a very general way of dealing with hecklers, and frankly, it’s not all that common. Most people who talk to the comics don’t realize that’s not a thing. I actually once did a show where the booker was heckling me and I had to shut him down. Afterwards, he told me he didn’t know that was not a thing to do. I did not strangle him, and for that, I got a gold star.

What is the punchline of one of the first jokes you’ve ever told onstage?

I used to have this bit about how underwear and swimsuit bottoms are basically the same thing and I ended it with “but show up at the playground in your underwear and here come the cops”. It actually got laughs, I swear.