By David DeRocco

It takes a certain “something” to step in front of a crowd of strangers and attempt to make them laugh. Maybe that something is narcissism,  a need to satisfy ones excessive love of self. Maybe it’s masochism, a need to derive pleasure from one’s own humiliation. Or maybe it’s just a typical high level of psychotic personality traits, which are diagnosed in a great number of comics according to studies on mental illness.  

Whatever the personal reason for wanting to try it, wannabe stand-up comics now have a regular forum to practice their craft thanks to Showtime Comedy and Entertainment’s Thursday night Amateur Comedy Night. The bi-monthly event is hosted by cheeky ex-Brit David Green, a comedian well-known to comedy fans in the Niagara area. 

 “When Showtime opened up the owners reached out to me to see if I wanted to promote the amateur nights,” said Green, who was known through the area for hosting one-off comedy nights at City Lights, the Celtic Club and the Mahtay Café. “When I moved here there weren’t many amateur nights to perform at. I’d been running three or four a year to help promote comedy and comics in the region. I’ve been hosting (Showtime) since last October.”

The amateur night at Showtime has attracted a steady stream of performers, all at varous stages of development in their comedy career.  The comedy content is as diverse as the individuals who make their way to the stage each week, with politics, relationships and sexual exploits usually dominating their routines. No matter where each performer choses to lead the audience, however, Green says there are no restrictions imposed on the comics.   

“We don’t like to censor people,” said Green. “That’s the whole thing, it’s just you and the audience. You’re going to be judged by what you say, so if people don’t like it they don’t laugh. If you find it funny and can make it relatable to the audience and can make them laugh, that’s the true test.”

Each comic is allotted just five minutes to perform their best material which, depending on crowd reaction and performer confidence, can be an eternity to a nervous rookie. Having lost his comedy virginity in similar fashion at an amateur night, Green says he has a great deal of empathy for people stepping into that spotlight for the first time.

“Years ago I would show up to open mic night at the House of Comedy, and the first couple of times I ran away because I was so scared. Eventually I got the nerve to go and do it. That’s the good thing about Showtime. We have a lot of regulars coming out to the Thursday night amateur shows. It’s very supportive and a light, friendly atmosphere. Everybody wants you to do well, they encourage each other. It’s a good place to try out new stuff. We’ve at least 15 or 20 people do it for their first time since we started, with lots more new people coming out of the woodwork.”   

If you consider yourself funny and want to give it a shot, Green has some simple advice to get you past those initial hesitations.

“I’d say come out, check out a show first, come see what to expect, see how other people do it to get some confidence. We usually have someone up there for their first time every single time. Come chat with some of the amateurs. They’ll all say the same thing, which is just get on stage. The longer you wait the more you’ll talk yourself out of. Just put your time together, get on stage and enjoy yourself.”

You don’t have to be a performer to enjoy a night of comedy, however, and Showtime has a regular schedule of amateur and professional comedy nights that feature some of the best comics in the area. For example, April 8th showtime welcomes Niagara’s own Danny Zzzz, the comedy/hypnotist who’s appeared on countless stages around the world.

“It’s going to be great to be performing for a hometown crowd again,” said Zzzz. “It’s great to see comedy return to the downtown core, and Showtime is a great venue for comics because it’s so intimate.”

For more information, visit:   http://www.showtimecomedy.com/