The Stand Up Show Producer’s Handbook

Herding the cats without hurting the cats

What other job reminds you that you have a shift every day? There’s no manager at CVS texting every one of his employees each morning ‘Remember you have work today!’

Taking a slight deviation from the more lofty talk of transparency, let’s get into some specifics!

How you can be a helpful and transparent show producer!

Amy Shanker just happened to post this around the time of my original Transparency newsletter. She’s absolutely right and I have a few thoughts to add. (Of course I have a few thoughts to add 😁)

Get a non-comedian co-producer

That's not always possible for various reasons and there's certainly comedians with a good head for business and marketing, but wouldn't you rather have that time and brain space to work on your set?

Presumably part of your motivation for running a show is the guaranteed stage time… but how valuable is that time if it's sandwiched in between frantic texts from comedians stuck on the train and talking to the bartender who's upset everyone is just ordering water?

Since that’s not always possible, here’s some helpful suggestions and guidelines for producers, whether you tell jokes or not!

Keep it Separated

Set up a unique, separate IG, Linktree and Email account for the show.

Make Booking Easy

(For both you and the people trying to get booked)

Make sure the Booking info is readily available on the show’s website & Linktree - and make sure you’re using that separate email address!!

Set up a template (or two) response that includes the approximate length of a wait list you’re working with. And you can add in a closing statement like “We will reach out when an appropriate opportunity becomes available, follow up/multiple inquiries will not speed up the wait time 😉” I mean, at least 60% of people will follow up anyway, but now you’ve absolved yourself from having to reply to those follow ups! Big time saver!

Even better, set up a Google, Asana or Airtable form. This will ensure people are sending you the info you want and it can easily be configured with an auto-reply with all the follow-up info you should be giving out. Plus it feeds into a backend that’ll help you keep things organized and not lose track of anything.

Here’s an example canned response:

Hi there!

Thanks so much for your interest in being on Hot Crowd! We’re every Wednesday night at 8 pm at Over the Eight on Union St near the Bedford, Metropolitan and Lorimer stops.

Right now, we’re working with about a 4-6 month wait list, so please hang tight! If you are visiting town for a short while or have a time-sensitive request, such as running a Tonight Show set, please shoot us a message using this form [link to other form]!

Unfortunately, not every comedian will be the right fit or experienced enough yet for the show. We encourage you to come check out one of our weeklies to get a feel for it. In particular, we look for overall good vibes and a positive attitude towards women and LGBTQ+ folks. That doesn’t mean you can’t do dark or edgy material - we definitely have a soft spot for that, too!

If there’s a good fit, we’ll get back to you when we have an open date. There’s no need to follow up, we log every request!

You can add in a closing statement like “We will reach out when an appropriate opportunity becomes available, follow up/multiple inquiries will not speed up the wait time 😉”

I mean, at least 60% of people will follow up anyway, but now you’ve absolved yourself from having to reply to those follow ups! Big time saver!

Be up front about pay and length of spot at the time of booking

I think that’s pretty self explanatory

Hi Mike! Are you available for a 9:20 spot on The Blue Show next Friday the 21st? 15 minutes/$30 + a drink ticket. It's at Sal's on Melrose.

Spot Times!

I used to think the easiest way to juggle in demand comedians who have multiple spots a night was to play it all by ear. I was so wrong.

It was bad enough when everyone needed to "go up early" but I had a couple times when everyone needed to come late so we started late and the host still had to vamp for 20 minutes!

Speaking of starting late, if you always start 10-15 minutes late, build that in! Don't tell someone their spot is 9:15 if it's realistically not until 9:30.

And do you have drop ins? Be up front about that so people can plan the kind of cushion time they need. There's nothing worse than trucking all the way to Brooklyn only to have to leave without going up because you have to be somewhere else.

Plus, when you have set spot times and your lineup written down, it's soooo much easier to field requests to go up early or late because you can just make a swap instead of having to deal with a confusing pileup.

Promo expectations - BE REALISTIC!

A lot of folks will just promo all the shows they are on of their own accord, but if you have requirements/expectations, be up front about that instead of it becoming a contentious reaction later. And be reasonable, please.

Day of confirmations

I have often joked, “What other job reminds you that you have a shift every day? There’s no manager at CVS texting every one of his employees each morning ‘Remember you have work today!’”

But day of confirmations can cut a lot of unnecessary stress out, so it’s worth doing

Happy Friday Mike! Just a reminder of your spot tonight at 9:20. We're at Melrose & Genesee, there's usually parking on any of the side streets.

I’m sure there’s things I’m forgetting and certainly lessons I haven’t learned yet! If you have any tips from your experience producing or something wonderful and amazing a show producer has done that you loved - let me know! Email, DM or Discord are all welcome!