If you are going to read this review, I ask you to read it to the end. I called Vines on Clark two days before to ask if the open mic at that business was happening this Friday. The mic is bi-monthly, so it was possible it did not take place till the following Friday. The person at Vines was adamant that it was happening this Friday. Great. I’m there. So I arrived quite early, around 7:05pm. To support the business that supported the mic, I ordered a drink and dinner. Talking to the staff, he said the host comes anywhere between 7:15 and 7:30, when signup is supposed to take place. While waiting, I met a couple who were there for the mic, and I learned another table of four were also in attendance to enjoy the mic. By 7:50pm, no one had shown up. Not even other comedians. I was concerned maybe we were all wrong, and the mic was the following Friday. The bartender called the gentleman who runs the mic and asked where he was. As it turned out, the mic was canceled and he forgot to inform the business to tell people arriving that the room was canceled. That local comedians had not shown up tells me somehow they learned the mic was canceled, but for an out-of-state visitor who may not know the host of the mic personally, I only have the website listing all the mics in the Chicago area and the business itself to inform me if the mic was happening or not that week. I ended up not doing any mic, as I learned too late that the room was not happening. But the host forgot to tell the business. I run my own mic in Los Angeles. When I know the room is not happening, I post it on social media, as well as tell the business it’s not happening. If I show up to the business where my mic takes place and they tell me they’ve rented out the place for a special event, I go online and post right away not to come to my mic that week. It’s only courteous. I would implore anyone who takes on the responsibility of running a mic to keep the lines of communication open. But, wow, to “forget” your mic is not happening that week, I can’t understand that. Maybe this is a great mic. Certainly, at least six civilians showed up to see the mic, so I imagine this room has a following. I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone running a mic with such a good reputation to not tarnish it by letting something happen that may sour people from wanting to come back, whether they are there to perform or see the mic. I write this post dispassionately. I am not upset with the host. Quite the contrary. I want to support the room. . .any room. . .that has such a following to continue to keep up the good work. It’s all about communication, though. As soon as you know your room is not happening, yes, post it on social media for the locals to see, but, my goodness, let the business you have your mic at also know it is not happening, so if people call, they can be told not to come that week. I do know the mic takes place on the second and fourth Friday. If there are five Fridays in a month, I don’t know if the following month it switches to the first and third week, or if it’s always the second and fourth Friday. Signup is first come first choice, and talent gets five minutes of stage time. Parking is on the street, and the room is for standup only. The room the mic takes place in may be heard by people not there for the mic in other parts of the restaurant, so I don’t know if there are language restrictions in that a family or children can be sitting nearby. Lastly, to the person who does run the mic, thank you for taking time out of your life to do this, so local talent and visiting talent have a place to perform.
If you are going to read this review, I ask you to read it to the end.
ReplyDeleteI called Vines on Clark two days before to ask if the open mic at that business was happening this Friday. The mic is bi-monthly, so it was possible it did not take place till the following Friday. The person at Vines was adamant that it was happening this Friday. Great. I’m there.
So I arrived quite early, around 7:05pm. To support the business that supported the mic, I ordered a drink and dinner. Talking to the staff, he said the host comes anywhere between 7:15 and 7:30, when signup is supposed to take place. While waiting, I met a couple who were there for the mic, and I learned another table of four were also in attendance to enjoy the mic.
By 7:50pm, no one had shown up. Not even other comedians. I was concerned maybe we were all wrong, and the mic was the following Friday. The bartender called the gentleman who runs the mic and asked where he was. As it turned out, the mic was canceled and he forgot to inform the business to tell people arriving that the room was canceled. That local comedians had not shown up tells me somehow they learned the mic was canceled, but for an out-of-state visitor who may not know the host of the mic personally, I only have the website listing all the mics in the Chicago area and the business itself to inform me if the mic was happening or not that week.
I ended up not doing any mic, as I learned too late that the room was not happening. But the host forgot to tell the business.
I run my own mic in Los Angeles. When I know the room is not happening, I post it on social media, as well as tell the business it’s not happening. If I show up to the business where my mic takes place and they tell me they’ve rented out the place for a special event, I go online and post right away not to come to my mic that week. It’s only courteous.
I would implore anyone who takes on the responsibility of running a mic to keep the lines of communication open. But, wow, to “forget” your mic is not happening that week, I can’t understand that.
Maybe this is a great mic. Certainly, at least six civilians showed up to see the mic, so I imagine this room has a following. I wholeheartedly recommend to anyone running a mic with such a good reputation to not tarnish it by letting something happen that may sour people from wanting to come back, whether they are there to perform or see the mic.
I write this post dispassionately. I am not upset with the host. Quite the contrary. I want to support the room. . .any room. . .that has such a following to continue to keep up the good work. It’s all about communication, though. As soon as you know your room is not happening, yes, post it on social media for the locals to see, but, my goodness, let the business you have your mic at also know it is not happening, so if people call, they can be told not to come that week.
I do know the mic takes place on the second and fourth Friday. If there are five Fridays in a month, I don’t know if the following month it switches to the first and third week, or if it’s always the second and fourth Friday. Signup is first come first choice, and talent gets five minutes of stage time. Parking is on the street, and the room is for standup only. The room the mic takes place in may be heard by people not there for the mic in other parts of the restaurant, so I don’t know if there are language restrictions in that a family or children can be sitting nearby.
Lastly, to the person who does run the mic, thank you for taking time out of your life to do this, so local talent and visiting talent have a place to perform.