i-am-comic-louis-ckSince the new stand-up comedy documentary I Am Comic (directed by Jordan Brady) deals with the occupational hazards of the art form, it was inevitable that the topic of hecklers would be a part of the film. In the YouTube video clip provided below, comedian Louis C. K. provides his comments on hecklers.

I have to say that I agree with what Louis C. K. has to say about hecklers in his I Am Comic segment. But I want to add some additional information about hecklers below that may be of benefit to those who are considering taking a shot at stand-up comedy.

Here is the video clip of popular comedian Louis C. K. commenting on hecklers (as interviewed by comedian Ritch Shydner — host of I Am Comic):

Here’s what I know about hecklers in a nutshell:

As a general rule, if the audience is laughing, they aren’t heckling. During my 13 year run as an actively performing headline comedian, I didn’t have to deal with hecklers very much at all. Why?

Because if I was performing for a real audience (not 7 drunk people in a bar) and that audience was paying attention, 99% of the time I had them laughing so hard there wasn’t time (or the desire) for anyone to heckle me.

But there are always exceptions to any rule. I vividly remember a time when I was headlining at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA. for a comedy audience of about 400 people and had to deal with two separate tables of hecklers for 22 minutes.

Both tables of people who had obviously been “over served” eventually got up and left after a progressively severe spanking, while the rest of the audience had no idea that I wasn’t doing my “act” and were thoroughly entertained. I was just being myself (who was pissed at having to deal with moronic hecklers who were keeping me from performing my act).

From his comments in the video excerpt from I Am Comic, it appears that comedian Louis C. K. takes the same approach with hecklers. He also mentions disdain about audience members talking during his act, which was my TOP pet peeve above having to deal with hecklers.

I would also bet that a number of comedians will be providing comments about hecklers in the I Am Comic documentary.

But let me provide another perspective that you don’t usually hear from comedians, most of whom seem to quickly assume the role of “victim” when it comes to hecklers.

If a comedian has made the decision to be an “edgy” comedian, they will get heckled more than a non-edgy comedian. Why?

Because there is a fine line between being funny and being rude and/or crude on stage. Once a comedian crosses that line, they are certainly subject to negative audience feedback and hecklers — more so than non-edgy comedians.

Unfortunately, among comedians it become all about the comedian and “freedom of speech”, no matter how unfunny what they have to say may be with little, if any regard for the audiences that ultimately embrace them and make them comedy stars. Again, another fine line that must be balanced.

The same can be said of comedians who savagely attack individual audience members, but can’t seem to understand why the audience turns on them and they get heckled.

I think it’s because comedians forget that they develop a thick skin when it comes to things that they poke fun at — a thick skin that audiences collectively don’t have.

Don’t get me wrong — heckling can occur during what initially appears to be the best of shows, with what appears to be the best of audiences. It should come as no surprise that alcohol consumption tends to be a contributing factor.

Louis C. K. is a comedian who is known for his “edgy” stand-up comedy act, which I have not seen. So I simply cannot comment on whether his act itself could contribute to hecklers or not.

But I do know this — I agree with Louis C. K.’s comments about hecklers and I hope to get to meet him if he attends the world premiere of I Am Comic at the Slamdance Film Festival in Utah later this month.

Cheers,
Steve Roye
The Professor of Funny for Money

About the Author/Founder of The Stand-up Comedy Professional

Steve Roye is the author of the Killer Stand-up Comedy System and author of the content made available in the Comedy Pro Membership Program available on this site.

Over the past decade, Steve has established himself as a leading, globally recognized expert in the field of stand-up comedy material development, delivery and entertainment business strategies for comedy entertainers as well as speaking professionals.

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