older-comediansOver the last several years, I have been getting more and more questions from folks who are 40+ years old and wanting to know if stand-up comedy is a viable option for them.

The short answer is this: Not only is a stand-up career viable for older funny people, but they have the absolute biggest market available to entertain—a market that is HUGELY ignored by Hollywood, New York and the comedy club scene.

But before I continue, let me make something perfectly clear…

If TV or movie fame and fortune is your ultimate dream and you want to use stand-up as a vehicle for that, please be aware that you will be taking the “salmon swimming upstream” approach to your stand-up comedy career. It will be even harder for you to crack that nut than for the younger comedians.

I also need to let you know that if you work clean, you have 100 times more opportunities to perform than if you work blue or dirty. That fact remains true for all comedians, regardless of age.

Now, for the fun part…

There are literally dozens of places for older comedians to perform outside the comedy club scene. Let me give you just a taste:

  • VFW
  • American Legion
  • Shriners
  • Moose Lodges
  • Elks Club
  • Lions Club

All of these organizations are filled with the older audiences. As an older comedian, you have the ability to connect with these audiences in a way younger comedians cannot yet even imagine — until they have begun to fear the power of embarrassment associated with unannounced and unexpected flatulence.

There are also literally dozens of senior retirement communities that have club houses in which an older comedian could develop their stand-up comedy act.

Ever want to perform on cruise ships? On a Holland America Alaska cruise, the average age of the passengers is 120. I know–been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Minimum pay for a comedian on that cruise? It was $1500 per week 10 years ago (one performance), plus you get to do all the fun cruise ship stuff!

Let me just get right to the point. You don’t need Hollywood or New York. You don’t need a single TV credit. As an older comedian, all you need is to be funny and have the drive and desire to pursue your stand-up comedy dreams.

Unfortunately, I have found that many seniors are stuck in what I call “comedy club mode” — just like the younger aspiring comedians are. They prefer to attempt to use comedy club route as the foundation for their comedy career and subsequently, they get chewed up and spit out faster than the younger comedians do.

Here’s the bottom line:

Use your maturity and age to your advantage. Tap into the biggest market available for 40+ comedians. There’s a ton of untapped gold in them hills!

I feel fortunate that I let go of the whole “Hollywood” mentality early in my stand-up career.

And because of that…

I made more money part time than many comedy club headliners made full time and got better and bigger gigs.

Your comments are welcome.

Cheers,
Steve Roye
The Professor of Funny for Money

About the Author/Founder of the SCP Blog


Steve Roye is the author of the Killer Stand-up Comedy System and is a globally recognized expert in the field of stand-up comedy material development and presentation strategies -- for entertainers as well as speaking professionals.

Please check out the Featured Articles page for direct links to articles on this blog for pro comedians, comedy entertainers, and speaking professionals.

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