Mike Birbiglia on his worst bomb
And which is worse: a hostile or indifferent audience?
First off, are you listening/watching to Birbigs’ Working it Out pod? If you dig this newsletter, you’ll def enjoy that too. Here’s a recent one filled with good advice for newer comics:
That one’s an outlier though. It’s usually him talking to guests all about their process.
Also, I just stumbled upon this piece…
My worst moment: Mike Birbiglia and bombing on stage — not at comedy club but a country club [Chicago Tribune]
In it, Birbigs offers a story he used onstage too:
“I think some comedians might have been able to rise to the challenge. I was not one of them. Maybe I would be today. But I was not at the time. And I go up there, and I’m bombing and I’m not connecting at all. I don’t think I landed a joke.
“And I think to myself, why don’t I cater my material to this specific event? I have a personal experience with cancer, which I talk about in my new show, ‘The Old Man and the Pool.’ I had bladder cancer when I was 20 years old. So I had a joke about that: I went to the doctor and they told me there was something in my bladder, and whenever they tell you that, it’s never anything good like, ‘We found something in your bladder — and it’s season tickets to the Yankees!’ (Laughs) And it did not get any laughter.
“And at that point, I just threw in the towel. I had failed doing my act and I had failed at making it specific to this event. I was supposed to perform for 20 minutes and I probably performed for seven or eight minutes. So I thanked the audience and apologized simultaneously, which I had never done. And then I walked off the stage. I was so upset and I said to my brother, ‘We’re leaving.’ And Joe said, ‘Mike, we can’t — they’re just about to start the raffle and, because everybody left, my odds are amazing.’
The interviewer asked, “What is tougher to deal with — a hostile audience or one that gives no response at all?”
“It’s a great question, because that is a really good distinction. A hostile audience you can write off. An indifferent audience hurts your soul. A hostile audience has decided you will fail before you have failed, whereas an indifferent audience that can’t muster a laugh is giving you a chance to succeed or fail — and you are failing. Indifference is a more earnest response, and as a result the earnestness is more painful.”
More Birbigs gems posted at Funny How:
P.S. Watch BOLO!
Oof this reminds me of teaching (I’m a uni prof). The absolute worst is when they all stare at you with dead fish eyes, especially when you’ve really committed to doing whatever (teaching, telling jokes) with gusto. Are there any tips for how to pivot or engage an indifferent audience? I’ve seen standups and professors both get super awkward and/or mean. Is there an “exit ramp” that lets everyone save their dignity?
Hey, man. I just watched your special. You are really good at your job.
Now, I could have just left it at that, and probably should have. But I want to add this:
In recent months I’ve seen many things you’ve posted that seemed like very healthy, very timely observations about our polarization, the hypocrisies of Americans across the spectrum, and so forth. And many times, I’ve thought: I would like to have a conversation with this fellow, on a podcast. And, generously— you said you were willing to do it. Which is great. I hope it’s great, and not just desperate. But to me it’s great. And I’m trying to find time to prep it, and set it up.
And here I want to add this: I’m not praising this special because of those perceptive observations, the social criticism that lands for me, and so forth. I’m praising it for a reason that’s related, but maybe even a stronger reason.
Again and again, in this special, jokes are well written, well delivered, well timed, well set up, and all the rest of it. And you poke many different groups of people, but it never ever feels to me like that’s the core of your shtick. The skewering is actually pretty gracious, and fun— and it always feels like it’s fun for you to say these things, but it ought to be fun for people to hear them. It reminds me of a Michelle Wolf special I saw once, where she made many jokes at the expense of men, but never made it sound like she didn’t want men in her life. She made it sound like it was fun and funny that we’re all human, and flawed.
As much as I think standup is an important art form, and important for its social criticism— I love that you’re never making it seem that you are trying to do something important. In fact, you skewer various people for being too eager to see themselves as important.
For me, this is what the craft is. Mocking us, but helping us figure out how to enjoy it. The way the audio is recorded, we can hear a lot of audience response that isn’t meant for us to hear it. They’re talking to their friend, or even just out loud to themselves. And it’s obvious they’re having fun.
So, yeah. I bet I could take notes, and have a longish conversation with you about all the things I think you did well in this special.