I was so looking forward to doing this room. When we stopped in earlier to make sure the mic was happening, we were told to come early, as this room can attract up to 30 comics or more. I figured the energy was going to be bursting, that this room is a hot spot in Seattle. The room has been going on a couple months shy of two years, as of this posting. It is run by a comic named Noah, and, boy, is he aggressive with his comedy, running a few other rooms on different nights in Seattle. The business is a bar, seating about 50, and you are allowed to bring outside food. They even have a patio with a TV outside, if you’re a smoker or just want to sit outside. Inside there are 4 TVs, two of which were on when we arrived; however, all TVs were off when the show started. This room is all comedy, but infrequently, they may get a non-comic performing a different medium. Signup is first come first choice, and the sheet comes out 8pm. My friend and I arrived early, so we took the fifth and seventh spot. Talent gets 4 minutes, the light (a cell light) at 3. After 10pm, though, I am told talent performing that late get 3 minutes. There is a small lot to park in, but mostly it’s street parking. There is no stage. A mic, stand and chair are set up in one corner, visible to everyone in the room. The room goes till the last talent has gone up. The room started at 8:33pm, and while Noah produces the room, he prefers to have guest emcees, rather than host himself, although he did perform a routine like the other talent, going up right after me. Not much after that, a booked comic performs, doing over ten minutes of material, then it’s back to open mic. We had 23 people in attendance when we started, including the guest host, Brad, and bartender, Eric. The room was mostly comics waiting their turn, but during the evening, I knew of at least 10 people who were not performing, as the evening progressed, and I’m sure the numbers were higher. Before bringing up the guest host, Noah made a point when welcoming the audience that talking to the talent while they are on stage is not welcomed (heckling in any way), and if people are going to talk during a set, to keep it a whisper. This was a smart thing to say, as the room did get crowded, with 27 peeps by 8:50pm and 37 peeps by the time the featured act went up at 9:19pm. Attendance stayed high, as we had 34 peeps by 9:55pm. I saw most of the talent who had performed stayed to support the room after their set. It was at 10:09pm when the host announced all remaining talent would get 3 minutes. By the time we left, I counted 28 peeps at 10:20pm. Guys, I think the night we were there was an unusual night for the room. As full as it was, the energy was not that high. Personally, I had a good set, even getting one applause break. A few times the host had to light the talent a second time, as they went over 4 minutes. At one point, an audience member spoke to a comic while they were on stage, having not been present when Noah told the room not to talk to talent during their stage time. In spite of this lackluster night, I still very much recommend this room. I appreciated how talent, even after performing, stayed to the end to support the rest of the room. A pint of beer was only $6.50, so I can see how people would want to make an evening of this room, bringing in their own food if need be, while enjoying reasonably priced drinks. The bartender was very friendly. The room started rough, yes, and it did not help that some of the talent blamed the audience when they believed a joke just told deserved more laughs. (Guys, never blame the audience; they will be put off by you if you do that.) Despite the large attendance, people were good about not talking loudly when the show was in progress. The fact that Noah, who went on after me, runs other rooms, tells me he knows what he’s doing, and I’m certain that the night I performed was just an off night. Even the most popular hot spots can have that once in a while.
I was so looking forward to doing this room. When we stopped in earlier to make sure the mic was happening, we were told to come early, as this room can attract up to 30 comics or more. I figured the energy was going to be bursting, that this room is a hot spot in Seattle.
ReplyDeleteThe room has been going on a couple months shy of two years, as of this posting. It is run by a comic named Noah, and, boy, is he aggressive with his comedy, running a few other rooms on different nights in Seattle. The business is a bar, seating about 50, and you are allowed to bring outside food. They even have a patio with a TV outside, if you’re a smoker or just want to sit outside. Inside there are 4 TVs, two of which were on when we arrived; however, all TVs were off when the show started. This room is all comedy, but infrequently, they may get a non-comic performing a different medium. Signup is first come first choice, and the sheet comes out 8pm. My friend and I arrived early, so we took the fifth and seventh spot. Talent gets 4 minutes, the light (a cell light) at 3. After 10pm, though, I am told talent performing that late get 3 minutes. There is a small lot to park in, but mostly it’s street parking.
There is no stage. A mic, stand and chair are set up in one corner, visible to everyone in the room. The room goes till the last talent has gone up.
The room started at 8:33pm, and while Noah produces the room, he prefers to have guest emcees, rather than host himself, although he did perform a routine like the other talent, going up right after me. Not much after that, a booked comic performs, doing over ten minutes of material, then it’s back to open mic. We had 23 people in attendance when we started, including the guest host, Brad, and bartender, Eric. The room was mostly comics waiting their turn, but during the evening, I knew of at least 10 people who were not performing, as the evening progressed, and I’m sure the numbers were higher. Before bringing up the guest host, Noah made a point when welcoming the audience that talking to the talent while they are on stage is not welcomed (heckling in any way), and if people are going to talk during a set, to keep it a whisper. This was a smart thing to say, as the room did get crowded, with 27 peeps by 8:50pm and 37 peeps by the time the featured act went up at 9:19pm. Attendance stayed high, as we had 34 peeps by 9:55pm. I saw most of the talent who had performed stayed to support the room after their set. It was at 10:09pm when the host announced all remaining talent would get 3 minutes. By the time we left, I counted 28 peeps at 10:20pm.
Guys, I think the night we were there was an unusual night for the room. As full as it was, the energy was not that high. Personally, I had a good set, even getting one applause break. A few times the host had to light the talent a second time, as they went over 4 minutes. At one point, an audience member spoke to a comic while they were on stage, having not been present when Noah told the room not to talk to talent during their stage time.
In spite of this lackluster night, I still very much recommend this room. I appreciated how talent, even after performing, stayed to the end to support the rest of the room. A pint of beer was only $6.50, so I can see how people would want to make an evening of this room, bringing in their own food if need be, while enjoying reasonably priced drinks. The bartender was very friendly. The room started rough, yes, and it did not help that some of the talent blamed the audience when they believed a joke just told deserved more laughs. (Guys, never blame the audience; they will be put off by you if you do that.) Despite the large attendance, people were good about not talking loudly when the show was in progress. The fact that Noah, who went on after me, runs other rooms, tells me he knows what he’s doing, and I’m certain that the night I performed was just an off night. Even the most popular hot spots can have that once in a while.