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Greg Dean's Stand-up Comedy Workshops - Comedy glossary Category: Games and Entertainment > Standup comedy Date & country: 16/05/2018, USA Words: 96

act out
a quick scene with one or more POVs is enacted during a comedian’s show; also see scene work.

ad-lib
to make up a joke within a scripted show.

alternative reinterpretations
a list of meanings or functions of the connector that are not the same as that of the target assumption, one of which will become a reinterpretation.

assumption
1.) the audience’s expectation that the 1st story will continue along the predicted line of though. 2.) everything one is not experiencing with one’s senses in the present.

beat
take a a pause; to take a break for the purposes of comic timing.

behavioral jokes
jokes constructed with the nonverbal connectors of character, emotions/state of mind, body language/actions, and sound effects.

bit
a section of a stand-up comedy show or routine, also a short routine or a section of a routine.

blue material
jokes using graphic sexual overtones, scatological (toilet) references, and swear words.

bomb
to to perform a comedy show which gets no or few laughs.

booker
a person who hires and/or pays comedians to work in nightclubs.

capper
an antiquated term for the final in a series of jokes on the same subject matter which ends the routine with the biggest laugh.

catch phrase
a common phrase said in a extraordinary manner which becomes the trade make of a particular comedian. For instance Steve Martin’s “Excuse me.” or Billy Crystal’s “You look marvelous.”

callback
a joke that refers back to another joke performed earlier in the show; often presented in a different context.

character
POV the perceptual position achieved when pretending to be someone or something else.

closing line
the final joke of a stand-up comedy show which should get a huge laugh.

comic
someone who makes his or her living being funny by telling jokes.

connector
at the center of a joke, the one thing perceived in at least two ways. One way of perceiving it constitutes the target assumption; the second way of perceiving it reveals thereinterpretation.

comedian
someone who makes his or her living being funny by means of an amusing character.

Critic Spot
a location designated for evaluating one’s show; separate from the Rehearsal Space.

crowd work
verbally bantering with the audience; also see riffing.

emcee
Master or Mistress of Ceremonies; the person who introduces the performers; also see M.C.

feature
the second comedian in the standard three comedian stand-up comedy show line-up; also see middle.

flopping
bombing; not getting laughs.

flop sweat
the overabundance of perspiration one experiences from a panic reaction to bombing.

gag
a joke.

gag file
a joke file.

gig
a show business job.

graphing
a scaling device with dots on paper for evaluating the effectiveness of jokes to determine their proper placement within a routine or show.

hammocking
a technique for placing weaker material or improvisation between two strong comedy bits.

hack
comic who performs orverused and unorginal material.

headliner
the third and last comedian considered the star of a standard stand-up comedy show.

heckler
an audience member who talks and interrupts a show, usually by exchanging insults with the comedian.

improvisation
akin to ad-lib, but usually refers to the spontaneous making up an entire bit or the continual comedic conversing with audience members.

inside joke
a joke referring to information only a select group of people have.

Joke Mine
the second part of the Joke Prospector Writing System begins with a setup and explains the process of using the joke mechanisms of target assumption, connector, andreinterpretation, to write a punch.

Joke Prospector Writing System
a joke writing system consisting of the two part of the Joke Mapand the Joke Mine.

jokey
1. a term used to describe such obvious jokes that one would expect to hear a rim shot following them. 2. a comic’s groupie.

joke
a device for expressing humor that employs a setup which contains a target assumption to misdirect the audience into accepting a bogus 1st story; and a punch which contains areinterpretation which creates a 2nd story that shatters the target assumption.

joke diagram
a visual aid for illustrating the structure of a joke.

joke file
jokes organized and stored on index cards or in a computer.

Joke Map
the first part of the Joke Prospector Writing System starts with a topic, creates apunch-premise, forms a setup-premise, and concludes with writing setups.

kill
to to give an excellent comedy performance.

laughs per minute
a measurement for counting the number of laughs in a show.

line-up
a list of the comics slated to perform.

LPM
laughs per minute.

middle
the second comedian in the standard three comedian stand-up comedy show line-up; also see feature.

mike
abbreviation for microphone.

monologue
a speech for one person; in comedy, a stand-up comedy script for a solo comedian.

Narrator POV
the perceptual position achieved when being an observer or non-participant of an experience.

Neuro-linguistic Programming
a behavioral model and set of explicit skills and techniques founded by John Grinder and Richard Bandler. Defined as the study and mapping of the structure of the mind.

NLP
Neuro-Linguistic Programming

on the road
continually working outside of one’s city of residence.

one-liner
a joke made up of only one or two sentences.

one-nighter
a job which only lasts one night.

opening line
the first joke of a stand-up comedy routine.

open-mike
a policy to allow anyone to get on stage and try to be funny.

opener
the first of three comedians in a standard comedy club line-up.

pause
to stop talking in a show to enhance the timing of a joke.

POV
point of view.

POVs
points of view

premise
the central concept from which a series of jokes or a routine is written.

punch
the second part of a joke that contains a reinterpretation that creates a 2nd story thatshatters the setup’s target assumption.

punch line
(same as punch).

punch-premise
a step in the Joke Map stating a negative opinion about a smaller aspect of thetopic.

regulars
comedians who appears frequently at a particular nightclub.

Rehearsal Space
a location designated for practicing one’s show; separate from the Critic Spot.

reinterpretation
an unexpected meaning or function of the connector that shatters the target assumption.

reveal
within the punch, the pivotal word, phrase, or action that exposes or presents the 2nd story’s reinterpretation.

rip into or ripping
to attack, insult, or verbally tear into an audience member or comic who has heckled or otherwise deserves the abuse.

riffing
verbally bantering with the audience; also know as crowd work.

roll
on a delivering a string of jokes so that the audience continues laughing for an extended period without interruption.

routine
jokes all on the same subject or story that can be repeated on a regular basis.

running gag
multiple callbacks; a recurring joke within the same show.

scene work
a quick scene with one or more POVs is enacted during a comedian’s show; also see act out.

Self POV
the perceptual position achieved when performing as one’s self while participating in an experience.

set
a a stand-up comedy show of any length.

setup
the first part of a joke that contains a target assumption to misdirect the audience into accepting a bogus 1st story.

setup-premise
a step in the Joke Map stating the opposite opinion to that of the punch-premisefrom which setups are written.

segue
a transitional sentence for purposes of leading from one joke or routine to another.

shtick
a Yiddish word meaning a comic scene or piece of business; often implying physical comedy.

showcase
to perform a stand-up comedy show for little or no compensation for the purposes of getting experience or being seen by a potential employer.

showcase club
a comedy club using a line-up of ten or more comics in a row.

shatter
with reference to joke structure, the point at which the audience realized that the target assumption is wrong.

sight gag
a physical joke meant to be watched.

stage time
the duration, in minutes, a comedian spends in front of an audience making them laugh.

tag or tag line
an additional punch immediately following a punch that does not require a newsetup.

take
a a comedic facial reaction. Like the long Jack Benny take to the audience.

target
a shorter term for target assumption.

target assumption
the misdirecting assumption in a joke’s setup which creates the 1st story and is shattered by the reinterpretation.

throw away
to put little emphasis on a point usually considered important. time slot the specific spot a comedian occupies within a showcase club line-up.

time slot
the specific spot a comedian occupies within a showcase club line-up.

timing
the use of tempo, rhythm, pause, etc. to enhance a joke, or tailor it to an individual performing situation.

topic
the single and overall subject of a routine based on a problem.

topical jokes
about current events.

topper
an antiquated term referring to a joke playing off a previous joke; same as tag.

M.C.
Master or Mistress of Ceremonies; the person who introduces the performers; also see emcee.