f a Good Producer
it’s the passion of what doing what you enjoy, even when there’s no money coming in.
There is a lot of competition in Melbourne. We
have Steam Up which is a collection of spectacular acts is the Steampunk style. That’s a
big production. Organising costumes and sets
and we are the only group doing that form of
theatre.”
When asked on makes a good producer in
entertainment, his response was simple.
“Having set standards that are not too high.
I’m constantly pushing to get a high quality
image about us. We’ve got a Facebook page
trying to attract as many people as we can.”
James Liotta, an award winning, comedian,
M.C, TV and radio presenter and producer
with almost 25 years’ worth of experience
your ‘forte’ if you like,” he wrote to me. “Have
realistic expectations as to who will book you
and who would like to see your comedy/performance. For me, my ‘stand up’ comedy is
shows and venues that support this genre of
entertainment to the masses. The more work
you do the more work you will get. It’s important for me to be known by the ‘big names’ in
this genre` and for them to know I’m around
and accessible to support them in shows.
You really need to wear different hats. Most
comedy performers these days – unless ‘star’
names, will be producing their own shows and
also performing in them. You will have days
where the ‘performer’ is just not seen. You
will need to think like a producer or director or
publicist. It’s all about having a basic grounding at least on how all the areas of production
work and how to manipulate yourself to come
across professional in each area when dealing with others within it.”
So next time you’re heading out to a gig,
spare a thought for the comic as they nervously make their way onto the stage, grab
hold of the mic, and try to remember their
opening line. All the preparation that they
have done. Not just rehearsing their material
but performing and learning all the crafts of
comedy production such as booking a space,
advertising, creating a name for themselves.
As Michael Connell kept saying to me: If you
can convince people that hiring you will bring
more people to their event you’ll never be out
of work. Amen to that.