Let’s start with the facts about open mic at Woodham’s Lounge. The room had its five-year anniversary just weeks prior to the night I was there. The venue is comedy only. There are no language restrictions, and talent gets six minutes. Performances take place on an elevated stage, and the room seats 49. The business is a bar only, but they do sell bags of chips. There is a pool table in the back. Three muted TVs were on behind the bar. A fourth TV above the stage was turned off. There is a shared parking lot for your car. Pete Munez runs the room. I first met him at an open mic somewhere else years ago in the Bay Area. I arrived 8:20pm. Perched on a chair, and a beer in hand, I surveyed the room. The stage is to the immediate right of the entrance. About 9:10pm Pete came in and set up the mic and stool. There is no mic stand. The evening started 9:20pm. There were 18 people in the room. I’m not sure if that meant we started early (before 9:30) or late (9 or 9:15). My suggestion is to come quarter to 9 just to play it safe. The room was somewhat noisy. The bartender was good about asking patrons at the bar to lower their voices when talent was performing. Several patrons were not there for the open mic nor cared to watch it. Of the people who did go up, one comic made their debut at Woodham’s, and Pete was good about asking the audience to be extra welcoming. I thought that was nice of the host. We all want comedians to have a terrific first experience, so they want to go out and do it again. By 10:25pm the room had increased to 33 people. Throughout the evening patrons were being rowdy; there was even friendly heckling among the comedians who knew each other. It got to be too much of a distraction. At 10:45pm Pete told the audience to be quiet and respect the talent. After 11pm, the audience seemed to stop paying attention. Talent who had already performed sat in the back of the room, talking, maybe stepping outside for a smoke. Patrons at the bar were never won over. And that’s okay. I just wish they would have lowered their voices, just out of respect for those on stage. Overall, I gotta say this room is not a bad room. Pete is a good guy, but between himself and the bartender, even that was not enough to curb the enthusiasm of this audience. I don’t know if when I was there it was a typical week. I’d like to think the patrons are there for some free standup, and the comedians support one another. In you’re in the Bay Area, south of San Francisco, consider doing this room. There are a number of other open mics in the Southern Bay Area to plan a trip around. Do Woodham’s and try to win over the audience. That’s the best way to keep them in check.
Let’s start with the facts about open mic at Woodham’s Lounge.
ReplyDeleteThe room had its five-year anniversary just weeks prior to the night I was there. The venue is comedy only. There are no language restrictions, and talent gets six minutes. Performances take place on an elevated stage, and the room seats 49. The business is a bar only, but they do sell bags of chips. There is a pool table in the back. Three muted TVs were on behind the bar. A fourth TV above the stage was turned off. There is a shared parking lot for your car.
Pete Munez runs the room. I first met him at an open mic somewhere else years ago in the Bay Area. I arrived 8:20pm. Perched on a chair, and a beer in hand, I surveyed the room. The stage is to the immediate right of the entrance. About 9:10pm Pete came in and set up the mic and stool. There is no mic stand. The evening started 9:20pm. There were 18 people in the room. I’m not sure if that meant we started early (before 9:30) or late (9 or 9:15). My suggestion is to come quarter to 9 just to play it safe.
The room was somewhat noisy. The bartender was good about asking patrons at the bar to lower their voices when talent was performing. Several patrons were not there for the open mic nor cared to watch it. Of the people who did go up, one comic made their debut at Woodham’s, and Pete was good about asking the audience to be extra welcoming. I thought that was nice of the host. We all want comedians to have a terrific first experience, so they want to go out and do it again.
By 10:25pm the room had increased to 33 people. Throughout the evening patrons were being rowdy; there was even friendly heckling among the comedians who knew each other. It got to be too much of a distraction. At 10:45pm Pete told the audience to be quiet and respect the talent. After 11pm, the audience seemed to stop paying attention. Talent who had already performed sat in the back of the room, talking, maybe stepping outside for a smoke. Patrons at the bar were never won over. And that’s okay. I just wish they would have lowered their voices, just out of respect for those on stage.
Overall, I gotta say this room is not a bad room. Pete is a good guy, but between himself and the bartender, even that was not enough to curb the enthusiasm of this audience. I don’t know if when I was there it was a typical week. I’d like to think the patrons are there for some free standup, and the comedians support one another. In you’re in the Bay Area, south of San Francisco, consider doing this room. There are a number of other open mics in the Southern Bay Area to plan a trip around. Do Woodham’s and try to win over the audience. That’s the best way to keep them in check.