I'm on stage tomorrow night. Doing stand up comedy. By myself. Trying to remeber my five to seven minutes worth of routine. To a room of... 30+, maybe? The eff word is repeating itself in my head over and over right at the moment. Anyone got any advice for stage anxiety?
When I was in drama as a wee lad, we had auditions in front of people, so it was nerve-wracking. I'm not sure if this works for you, but I would always hype myself up in a positive manner and not really think about people there and just dive head in.
- Make sure you know your routine and have material saved for when you draw a blank. - Avoid standing still on stage. Move your body and use gestures if it helps - Think of the people you are most comfortable and confident around. Picture that you are performing for them. - What @Llave said
See that works in drama, but with stand up you are always and need to be aware of your audience. I'll notice if they don't laugh, for example. I'm hoping seeing everyone else going to perform, who are nervous will make me feel normal and not worry as much. But that's a hope. But yeah, I need to focus more on my routine than anything else. I can't take any material on stage without getting marked down. Honestly, it's just the odd thing I forget, and the fact I keep changing jokes mid performance, which is always a problem to keep my brain on track. Can write on my hand though, which I may just do... Good advice though, thank you guys
Preparation is key. And I wouldn't see changing jokes on the fly as a bad thing (unless your changing it too much so the punch line doesn't work anymore), being able to adapt and 'riff' with the audience is a sign of a talented comedian. And usually the nerves will melt away as soon as you get onstage!
