An Open Mic Conversation with Dawn Brodey and Stevie Ray About Stand Up Comedy

I’ve had an interest in stand up comedy ever since my dad showed me my first stand up special. I’ve had so many questions, but no one to ask. Until now. I sat down with two stand up comedians, Dawn Brodey and Stevie Ray, for a wide ranging conversation, covering topics from corporate comedy to gender politics.

How did you get into comedy?

Stevie Ray: “All the time growing up, people would tell my parents, that kid’s gonna be a lawyer, or that
kid’s gonna be a comedian because I never gave up on an argument.”

Dawn Brodey: “I was a theater major in college, and always had a knack for comedy. Then I started doing
improv, which sort of told me I can also recognize jokes in the moment and create humorous scenes
without a script. And that was really how I started.”

Do you have a personal comedic style, and what is it like?

Stevie Ray: “You have to have that. Yeah. If you don’t have that, you don’t have an act. You have to know
who you are and what you are. My style is the observational comedian. I’m not an attack comedian, like,
uh, like some who, like, go after people, the insult comic, that kind of thing. I’m much more about just
what’s going on in the world.”

Dawn Brodey: “I think my style of stand-up is considered smart. I tend to draw connections between
history and the present, like, taking, um, a kind of a huge, kind of heady concept and making it really
digestible.”

Where do you draw inspiration from, and how do you turn that into usable material?

Stevie Ray: “The biggest misconception about comedy is how it’s created, very few comedians will ever
go on stage and have a bit of work the first time. What you do is, you observe the world around you, and
you get opinions. And what comedians focus on is what confuses them, pisses them off, bothers them.
Nobody ever writes something funny.”

Dawn Brodey: “Sometimes I sit down to write a joke really deliberately, like, today is joke writing day.
More often, I meet with other comics. And we’ll do what’s called Punch Up Brunch, because the term for
helping another comic get a better punchline, or tighten up their set, is called a punch up.”

What are some challenges you have faced as a comic?

Stevie Ray: “You run into personalities that are very dysfunctional. Maybe another guy you were on the
road with was a total misogynistic pig, so the whole time in the car, his mouth is going off, and you’re
like, dude, shut up. So you kind of have to live with it.”

Dawn Brodey: “ In stand up, it is noticeable how few women there are. It is common for me to be the only
woman in a lineup. When I had a baby, I was still going to open mics, and I would bring my six month
old with me. There’s a photo of me on stage, holding her, and telling jokes. I posted it on some forum I’m
on with women comics in L.A. And I said, Do you think this baby is a good prop, or should I ditch it?
And women, other women comics, were like, get this (expletive) off our feed. It’s not about moms here.
So, it can be kind of a weird, complicated thing.”

Commentary on Comedy

I conducted a survey to understand how people view comedy, and a how familiar with it they are.

Acme: The Heart of Minneapolis Comedy

Most people don’t think of Minnesota when they think of hubs for comedy, but they should. The local scene is vibrant, and has produced a number of big names. Actor, comic, and screenwriter Nick
Swardson is from Minnesota. He started out performing stand up in Minneapolis, and eventually went on to star in blockbuster films such as Blades of Glory, Hotel Transylvania 2, and numerous other projects.
Another product of the local scene; Al Franken. Franken performed in the Twin Cities before moving onto writing and performing for Saturday Night Live, and eventually becoming a United States Senator. The
comedy scene in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area is rich with talent, and even richer with opportunity. At the center of it all is Acme Comedy Company. It is one of the most prominent clubs in the midwest,
and attracts stars from all across the country. Founded in 1991, Acme quickly became a local hub for experienced and new comics alike. Louis
Lee, its founder, picked an especially important time to establish Acme. The 1980s were a golden age of sorts for stand up comedy. It was very mainstream and as a result, many comedians became wildly popular during this decade. By the end of the 80s the market was oversaturated, and comedy was at a turning point. Audiences grew tired of the same comics, material, and style. Many comedy clubs closed down as a result. Acme was different. It was a social center for the Minnesota Comedy community, and became wildly successful. Today, it is just as important to the community. New comedians are popping up everyday at Acme it seems.

Three years ago local comic Aidan Thibault popped onto the scene. Taking inspiration from Jim Gaffigan and Nate Bargatze, he started out in Duluth before moving to the city to pursue comedy. Thibault is a winner of Acme’s annual amateur comedy competition, and now regularly performs there. He began as a fan, but as he watched stand up more it only seemed more achievable. His initial inspiration came from someone else’s bad performance. “It was a rough show,” Thibault states, “I felt like I could do better.” Thibault also expresses the higher standard that Acme has for both comics and audience members stating, “It’s not some random bar where there happens to be an open mic. People come to see comedy.” Comedian Andy Duong shares this admiration for Acme. “The audiences are always great. There’s something about this place…. it’s hard to pinpoint,” Duong says. The state as a whole has Duong’s admiration because he believes “Minnesota is just a good comedy city. It might be because it’s cold. We all have this shared trauma of being in the world that makes people have a sense of humor.”Ryland Overing, a manager at Acme, started there to be in a comedic environment.

His passion for sketch comedy led him to seek out like-minded creatives. “My eyes were probably opened during my third week working here. Minnesotans are very in tune with comedy, and I think Minneapolis has a legacy comedy scene here,” Overing says. Minnesota has made many great contributions to stand up comedy over the years, and Acme is at the heart of it. Its warm and cozy atmosphere almost makes it hard to imagine all the stars who have graced its stage, but its legacy makes it impossible to forget. Comedy clubs are truly special, and it’s amazing to be in the same community as a legendary establishment like Acme. So, while most people don’t immediately think of Minnesota as a stand up state, it’s places like Acme that prove it is.

Stand Up History

Throughout their lifetimes many people have come into contact with stand up comedy in some capacity, though few know its origins. It first came to be in the 19th century, often taking the form of humorous lectures. Authors like Mark Twain toured the country giving talks, utilizing satirical writing skills that proved to be quite popular at the time. As the art form gained popularity, it transformed. In the 20th century stand up often came in the form of a vaudeville style performance or minstrel show. Sadly, minstrel shows depicting white comedians in black face became incredibly popular, and much of early comedy was exclusionary towards people of color. This didn’t mean people of color didn’t participate in stand up within their own communities, quite the opposite. Some historians believe that Charlie Case, a black comedian from New York, invented modern stand up comedy. He was one of the first vaudeville performers to not use props or wear costumes. His set looked like that of a comedian now, delivering a monologue style performance. Some also credit him with creating the term “punchline.”

Most people have seen stand up comedy in some form, and its changing delivery system is only making it more accessible. Traditionally, stand up comedy was viewed in person. Bars and theaters very commonly host stand up comics, but commutes and cover charges make in person viewing less than ideal for some. This is why the shift to online entertainment came at a perfect time. Platforms like YouTube allow for free viewing of stand up shows from all over the world. Long form and short form videos allow for the ability to share content with others in a way that was never before possible. This is an amazing opportunity for fans and comedians alike, but it also poses challenges. An integral part of the stand up experience is atmosphere. Atmosphere is created by in person viewership, and online access has the potential to inhibit the audience’s desire to physically be in the room. Luckily the industry has yet to experience these potential adverse effects.