Professionalism

People see the bad behaviour of A-list actors and something in their psyche says, “I want that kind of freedom.” Even A-list actors start losing jobs if they prove too troublesome. As a beginner or even mid-list actor you can’t afford to be anything less than absolutely professional. A single acting position can attract thousands of people with whom you will be competing.

Professionalism begins with contacting the casting director with a polite call or a short correctly spelled email with CV and headshot attached. Make sure the headshot bears some relationship to the show and part for which you are auditioning. I’m directing comedy, I want headshots with people smiling. Actors don’t have to go overboard trying to look funny, I just need to see that I’m working with more than a block of wood. If you send me a letter or email, have someone check them and your CV for spelling and grammar. I don’t require my actors to be highly literate, but I do want to see that they take the audition seriously.

When you are contacted you will need to be prepared to audition on the date and time you are given. It’s all right to ask if another time is available. However, once that is settled, avoid any attempts to change these again. If you subsequently cannot make your time, call and apologise, even if that means you are giving up the role. You need to maintain a good reputation. If you insult or waste the time of the people working on a production, you will automatically reduce your further opportunities in the industry.

Arrive at the audition on time. Come prepared with certain standard information about yourself and following any instructions given by the casting director. Standard information includes your costume sizes, if you have a car, and your availability. Special instructions may include things like come in a red t-shirt, memorise certain lines, be willing to audition at a cafe. Before the audition it is acceptable to ASK if you will be provided with a script. Demanding the entire script is a good way to alienate the people on a production. Original material has to be protected. Such a demand might be met as a favour to an A-list actor, anyone else would require a non-disclosure agreement.

For original comedy you may be asked to do cold readings. I usually start by just chatting with an actor to determine if they are likable (absolutely crucial for effective comedy), show charisma, and are capable of being witty in conversation. A cold reading on top of this will show me if the actor is quick in catching the jokes, capable of improvising, and takes direction well. From long experience no matter how good the actor, if they can’t take direction, they aren’t worth the grief.

Once you have completed the audition, thank the people involved and make sure you have left your contact details. If you haven’t heard from the production in one to two weeks afterward, you can either assume you didn’t get the role or call once to confirm. Understand that so long as you remain polite and civil, your audition may have been successful enough for you to be remembered for future roles, just perhaps not this one. I have called people back on more than one occasion. You can also turn down a role. Do so politely. Anything less will affect your industry reputation.

If your audition was successful, you still aren’t off the hook regarding professionalism. You will need to be easily contacted at all times by phone or email. You will need to respond promptly to all communication. Check your email daily. Confirm the receipt of instructions, rather than relying on the production people to assume. If you have any difficulties, give the production plenty of time and help to work around you. If you can’t make a rehearsal (do this rarely), inform people as soon as possible and NOT the day of. I have allergies to certain colourants and perfumes, so I will inform people and often get asked to come in a day early for a makeup test before filming.

Turn up to ALL rehearsals. Turn up to all rehearsals promptly and stay until the designated completion time. If your lines are not currently being rehearsed, sit quietly. Begin learning your lines immediately, rather than waiting for the director to set deadlines.

Experience

I find all sorts of experience are valid for building fine performance skills, not just big name acting schools. Nevertheless, you still need experience. I have had more than one actor turn up with a nearly empty resume, then ask immediately what sort of money they can expect. If you are a practitioner of any art form, you will have to put in many hours of skill development without pay. This is not about fair or unfair. Most jobs require training without pay, except perhaps the military.

Treat ALL productions equally. Whether you are in an amateur, volunteer, or professional production behave reliably, responsibly, and to the best of your ability. These shows provide you with skill-building, networking, and a reputation (preferably a good one). I have brought on actors through word of mouth by other actors who knew them in an amateur production. I also know of a few actors who started being knocked-back because people they mistreated in their early days were now in positions of power. You are not functioning in a vacuum.

As a director I completely respect amateur experience. It shows you are willing to put in the work and have a genuine passion for acting. Volunteer productions have the added value of professional intent. They may not make money, but they are stretching for excellence. Experience with standup comedy is of great use to me. I have the funny factor for which I’m looking. Comedians will have to prove they can act and, more importantly, that they can work with other people.

Getting Over Yourself

This issue boggles me, but I’ve run up against it so many times, it’s worth noting. Comedy involves many crazy and insane roles. Even the “straight” roles will involve moments when the character will either behave foolishly or be the butt of foolishness. This should be understood.

I frequently have had actors apply who think comedy sounds like fun, but are terrified of allowing themselves to be funny. This isn’t about having the comic equivalent of two left feet. This is about people who have carefully groomed their persona for one type of leading role and live it everyday. Even dramatic roles require more flexibility, but these actors admire and emulate cultural stereotypes. Letting that persona slip feels like an ego death.

To do comedy you must have a greater self-acceptance and resilience in the face of your own humanity. You must be comfortable with your self as a fallible human being. You must be in touch with the core of who you are then play with being other, rather than always living the mask. You also have to be brave enough to make large gestures, take large risks, and live with the odd large disaster. Comedy is mostly about exaggeration.

Sex

You might think I put this in to get your attention. Hey! And it worked. Comedy revolves around sex, violence, and fallibility. I’m less inclined toward the violent end of things, so I use more farcical sex. Sexuality in drama can be controlled and one note. Sexuality in comedy can be chaotic and anarchic.

In audition and in performance you will have to show me that you can walk the line between respectful and open. You will have to be able to convincingly play the male gender, the female gender, trans-gender, and any and all permutations in-between. Panto thrives on the humour of inverted genders. You will have to be able to passionately embrace all genders. You will then have to be able to switch that passion on and off, depending upon whether you are on stage or not. You will have both the confidence and humility to ask your acting partner regularly, “Is that all right? Are you comfortable with that?” Then you will listen to and respect their response.

Sleeze-bags who think they are funny will be weeded out faster than you can say “uh…” Sexual harrassment laws apply equally to theatre as to any other work place. Everyone’s permission for certain behaviours must be clear. I’ve already had to deal once with some minor dressing room harrassment. Fortunately, it took only a word to the wise to sort out.

Conclusion

The screen and stage industries in Australia are small. Even elsewhere the number of performers far outstrips the number of available roles. This imbalance has upon occasion been abused. Yes, you have to be hyper-polite to make it. Learning equanimity, patience, humility, and forgiveness along with timing, gesture, and motivation will get you a long way. Your reputation is worth absolute gold, jealously guard it. I do not believe the competition means you have to compromise your integrity, because that too will form part of your reputation. It’s mostly a matter of treating everyone you meet with respect.

When you go in to audition, learn how to keep your ego in balance. You need that ego to give you the self-confidence to do a grand and guffaw-worthy performannce. Also understand that yours is not the only sensitive ego, many artists go into creating a collaborative work such as a play or film. Your graciousness and civility will make you a prime candidate for involvement.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

In the meantime I’m having some difficulty with this site because I am receiving a dozen spam messages a day. I have done my best to be fair and discover who is making a legitimate comment and who is just trying to get free advertising. I don’t even  mind the free advertising so much if it is at least genuinely relevant.

For the moment, except when I get messages that are clearly in response to an article and not just a generic comment, I am deleting everything.  It’s just too hard trying to sort things and ends up eating into time I could use for posting more articles. Even this much may go in a week or two if I continue being bombarded with junk.

I am so sorry that a few idiots are spoiling things for everyone. Do keep having fun. We shall rise above this nonsense.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

You will be told-

• observe market trends: what is currently selling?
• know your market: what gender, age group, financial bracket are your audience?
• have a marketing plan: how are you going to sell your story?
  (bigger subject than I can cover in this article)

What these points frequently say to me about some editors and producers is-

• lazy
• lazy
• lazy

Your skills are supposed to be in the field of storytelling. You are supposed to be observing other’s stories, developing your own vision, and practising the many details that go into creating a fully realised, thematically consistent, and emotionally engaging tale. That is no small thing. Most authors do not see publication until they are in their 30s or 40s. Anyone who thinks they can pop a book out, because they can read and have an idea, is fooling themselves. It’s like thinking you can win an Olympic marathon because you know how to put one foot in front of another. Good art makes things look effortless, but the amount of training and practise needed to achieve that effortlessness needs to be respected.

Sadly, many editors and producers are trying to turn storytellers into market experts, rather than providing that skill themselves. The old saw is indeed true: the problem with the art of filmmaking is that it’s a business, and the problem with the business of filmmaking is that it’s an art. The same is true of publishing, computer game development, selling paintings through galleries, etc, etc.  In order to make a living out of our art we need to attend to the business side of things. However, if the business side chooses not to respect the art side, then what makes something worthy of people’s hard earned money is sucked out of the process.

Observing Market Trends

You may have already heard this story, but when J.K. Rowling tried selling Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, she was rejected by every major publishing house in Britain. Nothing else quite like it was on the market and publishers were unable to envision it’s success based on what already existed. Rowling had to take her book to a small publisher in order for that book to see the light of day.

At the time the first Harry Potter book came out, I was a judge for a young adult literary award in Australia. Four years later I was still a judge for that award and started seeing a large number of Harry Potter read alikes. I cannot remember the name of a single one of those books. None of them won our award. None of them have been in reprints to my knowledge. For many of the authors this will be the only book they sell due to tepid returns. Certainly, enough money can be made copying successes that it’s a nice easy call, but you can only ride that wave for so long before people will begin to ignore your product. Only J.K. Rowling can be J.K. Rowling.

I have similar stories for the computer game trade. Game development has a turn around of about eighteen months. Some game will hit it big, then everyone will rush out to do games of a similar nature. However, by the time they get the game out the door, the craze for that sort of game has already passed. You can only repeat the glory of that original game success if you have someone creating it who has a genuine passion and personal vision concerning the subject matter and can bring something new and/or insightful to the field.

To find the people who can deliver the big wins editors and producers have to have the wherewithal and courage to develop a sense of what has real depth, skill, and excitement. They have to be leaders rather than followers. They have to train their instincts. They then have to have the will to fully support their human discoveries. This requires a lot more respect for creators than is usually given.

Know Your Market

Frequently knowing your market means knowing into which stereotypical boxes the gatekeepers are stuffing stories such as yours, whether or not this has any real relationship to how the market will respond.  Harry Potter is seen as having universal appeal to boys and girls. Once Pippi Longstockings was also seen in the same way, but would now be marketed as a girl’s book. To Kill a Mockingbird was originally read by adults. Now it is seen as a children’s book because the lead characters are children.

Marketing divides these stories into categories, they then sell the stories to particular marketing segments. When the segment responds to their advertising push, it is seen as confirmation that this is how things should be. Sadly, this encourages sexism, racism, and many other “isms”. Recently, author Justine Larbalestier’s  publisher put a photograph of a girl of European descent on a story about a girl of African descent, ostensibly in order to make the book palatable to a broader (white) audience. This caused enough furor that the publisher apologetically replaced the cover.

I’ve been in the frustrating position of attempting to sell imaginative up-beat stories for Gen-Y adults and being told that adults prefer darker stuff and my material is clearly for children. So how did The Simpsons, Family Guy, The Mighty Boosh, etc get made? Especially when for so long animation was seen as for kids? I find the gatekeepers may not be in touch with the audiences they are purportedly representing or current trends, despite worshipping at the foot of these things.

What to do?

Editors and producers will tell you they are looking for original material. What they are really saying is that they don’t want to be bored, but at the same time they still want what they understand, and if it’s too original, that won’t readily happen. I would suggest when you start off, put their dilemma out of your mind.

Some people are good at following trends. If that is the case for you, go ahead and do it, just don’t expect to make a big name for yourself that way.  Otherwise, spend a lot of time experimenting with your own style. Go ahead and be influenced, but by a diversity of sources until your own blend and your own flavour comes to the fore. Focus on what you love, what gets you passionate, because you will be miles ahead in getting people to respond to your material, than someone who has a passing interest just for money and audience.

Once you have established your vision do an extra layer of preparation. This layer has LITTLE to do with your actual inspiration. It’s about marketing to the marketers. Find a way to pitch your story, so that it sounds like something else that has had recent success. If your story has a balloon in it, pitch is as if it’s the next Pixar’s Up. The only point of comparison may be that balloon, but that might be sufficient if your story is aimed at families.

I have to admit that I like family movies and television shows. I like multi-generational audiences bonding with one another over a funny story. I have found producers feel uncomfortable with aiming things that broadly. So, you may find yourself having to pitch family entertainment as children’s, downplaying the bits that engage the parents. I still have no idea how The Simpsons got its start.

It may well be worth your while to pitch your story to friends and discover if they see your work as slotting into certain market segments, and even if it grates to be pigeonholed, go ahead and use their understanding as the basis of your final pitch. The only problem is that this might result in misguided advertising. Henson’s Labyrinth did not do well in the cinemas because it was marketed to children when it was meant for adolescents. Later it did fine in video sales through word of mouth. But Hollywood couldn’t see how puppets might be of interest past childhood.

The most honest approach is if you can convince the gatekeepers that you know what you are doing, you are an expert in your field and can be trusted to produce material that will appeal to a lucrative market. This is why starting as a standup for people who want to get into comic film and television is so useful. You have proved to the world that you are funny. You are a known quantity that can be trusted. However, even though this field has fewer gatekeepers, you have to be brave enough and passionate enough about standup in its own right to keep at it. Eventually  other opportunities will appear, but you may wisely wish to keep one foot in front of the microphone.

Don’t worry about the gatekeepers. Do what you want to do regardless. Keep the faith, trust your vision, and seek to give the world your best. Something interesting is bound to happen.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

I have been concerned for some time that many of the comedy venues rely heavily on dark humour. Worse the audiences come specifically looking for a chance to snarl at the world through someone else’s put-downs. If they don’t get a burst of schadenfreude, the comedian faces stony silence.

Now this isn’t always the case. During comedy festival time many of the more light-hearted comedians come out with shows that do not rely on drugs, damaging violence, and a cynical outlook on life. Instead they focus on innocence, joy, the foibles of humanity, and the absurdity of life. Comedians such as Adam Hills, David O’Doherty, Josie Long, Lano and Woodley, etc who fall in this category attract sell-out audiences.

Where are these people between festivals? It seems many of them move onto television, film, and radio. So why haven’t the comedians and the organisers of comedy nights picked up on what seems to be an enjoyable and profitable career path? They may have caught themselves in a loop whereby they have attracted an audience who goes for dark humour and therefore think that’s what audiences want. Some do. I know some want more relaxing humour, but so far I haven’t found venues that specialise in it.

If such a venue continues to elude me, I may attempt to start one. Call it something like “Joyful Encounters”. Email me if you are in Melbourne and are interested in such a room.

My exercise for people this week is more of a challenge. If you found yourself accepting a gig at a hospital for children who are terminally ill, what sort of show would you write for them? WRITE IT and give it a try. You might surprise yourself.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

Recently Justin has done something of a Tim Minchin. Wanting to distinguish himself from Jemaine Clement of Flight of the Conchords, he has opted to update his seventies tossled-hair and mutton chops look for something perhaps more memorable. He now appears like a 1980s David Bowie with glasses. If he starts strutting around and saying, “You remind me of the babe,” we are in big trouble.:)

I was stationed at the back of the room in order to sell the CD this tour is launching, as well as an older CD, t-shirts, and ties. He is wise to have such items for sale. I have found these are the sorts of things that give an audience a chance to extend their pleasure of the event and support the artist.

I’ve professionally published on the Web since it’s inception. I have observed in particular a number of comic strip artists finding their feet in making a living online. Accepting advertising hasn’t been terrifically successful. Sponsors have been unwilling to offer much support and their ads clutter a site and make it less interesting to view. Direct sponsorship by readers achieved through a number of means can work, depending upon the popularity of the strip. Though, even the most successful reader-supported artist is eking a living. What seems to work best is a combination of techniques that heavily includes merchandising of the strips with books, t-shirts, mugs, soft toys, etc. I have heard the same is true for musicians.

I have heard some musicians say that the bulk of their money does not come from sales through the music companies, but through touring and merchandising. Comedian Ross Noble’s reputation comes largely through word of mouth and sales of his DVD.

I know that some artists find this a bitter pill to swallow. They feel cheapend by “commercialising” themselves. Lord Byron achieved artistic freedom and “purity” solely because he was already a wealthy man when he began writing. You can be free and still allow others the opportunity to support your work. How good is a monk in a monastery when he never tests his goodness against the rigours of every day life? Artists can still choose to speak their minds and speak their truth while accepting money. Over time we will see if they have the courage of their convictions.

To me the real test is how much care is put into the products, how much service is offered to the customers, and the ethics of your sales methods. One of Justin’s things is retro ties. So for his show he put together a collection of good quality secondhand ties that were then adorned with the words “The Bedroom Philospher”. Not only were the ties charming, people could enjoy their character and help the environment through their continued use.

I enjoy flirting with customers like most people flirt with babies. There’s no pressure to buy, but it’s a lot of fun hanging out by the sales table, and people are much more likely to go, “Oh what the heck”. We did pretty well on the night. One comment that came up was that people said they could just buy their favourite songs online. Which is true, but it’s not quite as financially supportive as buying a CD, though more environmental. Justin and I spoke about his putting together a DVD of his live show. His songs are fun in and of themselves, but I have to say that his Spike Milliganish patter while performing the songs really brings them to life. It might also serve to give him that Ross Noble boost in word of mouth. Eventually, the net may scuttle this income stream as well, but for the moment it’s a good strategy.

I would suggest to all comedians wanting to make a living of their art to consider how they can merchandise their act. This will require thinking even more deeply about what you are doing as a business. You will need to do some long term planning, learn how to manage stock, bookkeeping, and accounting. If you are lucky, you may find someone who can do this for you, but most of us will have to start out by doing it for ourselves. However, I will say that it needn’t be onerous. I’ve done it, and once you get into the swing of things, even flaky artists can manage.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

Some people, I have noticed, genuinely do not get when they are causing others to feel hurt or uncomfortable. Their intentions may be  jovial, but the results are they are either tuned out or disliked. So, this article is going to spell out those areas where a comedian should walk lightly.

The base line with all humour is that YOU are fair game for your own jokes, others less so, except perhaps if you perform equal opportunity ribbing.

Where this is most notably used is in relation to race. You can make fun of your own race, but not someone else’s. Woody Allen is famous for his Jewish humour. Lenny Henry will gently mock certain aspects of the African Jamaican community living in London. Not acceptable was the young blond blue-eyed South African comedian I saw telling jokes about the indigenous African peoples. He wasn’t booed off the stage, but he did receive a shocked silence and is unlikely to have people looking foward to his next performance.

Jokes about physical aesthetics should mostly relate to yourself. If you are bald, tell bald jokes. If you are blond, tell dumb blond jokes. Everyone gets to laugh then, and one segement of your audience doesn’t feel picked upon, but rather lifted up by being part of the joke. We enjoy laughing at our own absurdity and humanity within certain contexts. However, we all have feelings and no one should be made to feel less about themselves over superficialities. The one area where audiences don’t mind jokes about physical aesthetics is when they are aimed specifically at individuals in power or in the media. I would be careful about this, since it still speaks of more general judgements.

The issue of weight goes deeper than just aesthetics. We are looking at issues to do with health, parenting, self-esteem, cultural and advertising messages. Our society currently has been pushing outlooks on gratification and body image that are damaging a huge portion of our population. This all needs to be looked at, certain aspects need to be mocked so that people gain awareness of the issues.  However, you must remember that the people who have paid to come see you, many of them are victims of their families and cultures. Yes, they need to take responsibility for themselves. Alienating them is not going to resolve the problem.

I recall one gig where I had the pleasure of sitting next to a lovely young woman who was telling me about how much she enjoyed the comedian we were about to see. He was a skinny bloke and part way through his routine he quoted a statistic that stated half of all Australians are overweight and about a third are obese (and probably three quarters believe they are overweight). I sucked in my breath and started thinking real hard at him, “Look at your audience, look at your audience.” He obviously was not a telepath because he proceeded to tell some demeaning jokes concerning fat kids. I felt the joy sucked out of the woman next to me and the whole audience go cold. The comedian continued to get some polite laughter, but the audience was clearly waiting for him to finish at that point.

Speaking of alienating half an audience, probably the worst examples of this are male comedians who start telling pointedly sexist jokes. Gone is the era when comedy clubs were almost entirely a boy’s club. People often take dates to enjoy a bit of laughter together at a live show.  Insult the female date and you have also alienated the fellow who hoped to impress his companion by bringing her along. You’ve now insulted almost 100% of the audience. Also, young women are claiming the field of comedy as much their own as rock music, so they are frequently turning up  in groups. I have watched more than one show fall to pieces when a comedian starts making snide remarks about “women” and is then affronted when he gets an angry vocal response from that half of the audience. Certainly, plenty of good jokes can be found in the politics of gender. It works best when you tell jokes on YOUR OWN GENDER, or you make equal opportunity jokes on both genders.

Religion is a particularly sticky area, because some people will react out of all proportion to the slightest joke told at their religion’s expense, even when it is the comedian’s own religion. Personally, I would say that religion is fair game for comedy, because it is an institution that wields power and sometimes wields it unfairly. The best ways to approach this are to a) mostly make jokes about your own religion; b) make fun of particular individuals in a religion who are abusing their position, thereby not assuming that everyone in that religion is equally abusive; and c) make fun of specific harmful practices and not simply cultural differences. Part of this will include accepting people’s right to belief and to believe differently than you do.

Crucial to making a variety of humour work is context. This is why telling jokes on yourself is always a safe bet. You come on stage looking confident and happy to be there, then poke a little fun at yourself, that shows you are a strong enough person to take some ribbing. Your taking such a ribbing helps bolster other people’s ability to withstand some of the judgements and put-downs they face in every day life. When Bugs Bunny does something that is potentially harmful to Elmer Fudd, he is doing this within a cartoon world where harm is superficial and temporary, and never aimed at persons so much as their actions. The context keeps the cartoons playful rather than cruel.

Also, with context you can break all the above recommendations if you are portraying a character who is meant to be laughably awful. In essence the comedian is making fun of people who would tell such inappropriate jokes. Sir Les Patterson and Homer Simpson fall within this category. Your audience will just have to be completely clear on your intent.

The final danger zone has to do with your relationship to the audience. Do not insult or turn on your own audience. I have seen comedians, who when their routine dies, start to antagonise the audience for not finding them funnier. People can understand that we all have an off night. Nevertheless, if you insult them, they will never give you a second chance. These are your customers, these are your fans. Treat them with respect and you will find their loyalty will make up for a few lost laughs.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

Through Sesame Street they brough literacy, numeracy, and a message of inter-racial harmony to the children of the world. This is no small feat when in our information age an education means the difference between being a have or
have not.

Through Fraggle Rock these two then sent messages concerning the attitudes, beliefs, and social skills that lead to world peace. This was done through truthful demonstrations of events and their consequences. Jim and Jerry were always careful to avoid pedantically hammering propaganda into children’s heads.

All of their work spoke of the values of joy, laughter, friendship, kindness, respect, and most importantly love. Never do they deny we all have to face grief and suffering, downs as well as ups. They simply pointed out that by focussing
on these values life will be easier, more enjoyable, and a little better for everyone.

With happy anticipation I flew from Adelaide to Melbourne in order to see the live Austalian touring production of Avenue Q. Avenue Q is NOT a Jim Henson Company production, but it was put together by puppeteers who worked for the Henson Company. This show was a hit on Broadway winning Tonys for Best Musical and Best Book.

The characters were engaging. I was particularly fond of Trekkie Monster. The song and dance numbers were catchy and well choreographed. I was interested to see they didn’t worry about people seeing the puppeteers or their mouths moving. The puppets were brightly coloured, the puppeteers in grey, which was sufficient to make the puppeteers invisible to the audience’s attention. This is the tack I take with my soft toys Mbulu and Kiki for my standup routine.

Some of the puppets had two people manipulating them. This is no easy feat, requiring the puppeteers to know each other, the puppet, and the character of the puppet well enough to bring it smoothly to life. The performers of Avenue Q showed superior skill in this.

I was pleased to see they brought in Australian and New Zealand cast. David James, recently seen in Hollowmen on ABC and playing Harry Secombe in the theatrical production of Ying Tong, was particularly delightful as the character of wannabe comedian Brian. New Zealand musical performer Cherine Peck also did an exceptional job of playing “Gary Coleman”.

The story follows a simple and traditional trajectory: we learn how characters’s lives aren’t working, something changes, then they are all better off. The problem is, I didn’t believe the ending.

The creators seemed to be struggling with some very big issues. On the one hand are the messages sent to the US public by its political, religious, and media institutions. On the otherhand we have what people are genuinely experiencing of their lives.

I do not feel the creators had sufficiently separated flawed messages from experience, nor in the process found any profound insights. The results were the audience came away from Avenue Q feeling the songs were fun and funny, but the show was dissatisfying. And trust me, I did ask others how they felt.

The show began with a song about how everyone’s life sucks on Avenue Q. We then have a song about how we need to accept that everyone’s a little bit racist. Men do not take equal responsibility for their relationships and at no point during the show change this position. Women sing about how we hate the people we love.

The change in the show comes when one character decides he can get his girlfriend back, not by apologising and not by demonstrating his relationship to her is a priority, but by giving her the school she dreamed of founding. He
sings that you help yourself by helping others. But he starts his mission by taking money from a friend who has been forced to live on the street. He does spawn community involvement, but other than Trekkie, none of the characters
really engages with the core issue behind the school, and money alone is seen as the answer.

This is a deeply cynical show. With the final song the theme seems to be: life sucks, you can’t really change anything (except perhaps if you have money), we all have to learn how to cheerfully cope. I found Avenue Q not only disappointing but disturbing.

The whole rags to riches mythos of the US is a hollow dream. The creators of Avenue Q understand this, but don’t understand why, nor offer any alternatives. We simply see the contrast between what people feel they should be and what they are. Without knocking down this mythos and others—all we are going to see is sadness. The wrong measuring stick is being used on the characters of Avenue Q.

Jim Henson and Jerry Juhl understood our true wealth comes from the life affirming relationships we forge with friends, family, community, and the people of the world. Yes, money is important, but it is only one small piece of life’s processes. The characters of Avenue Q barely connect with one another. Sex, money, and alcohol are used as substitutes. Life purpose is seen as something that descends from without, rather than something you choose while loving and living with others.

Because Ghandi believed in a free India, others who also believed joined him in peaceful protest and created a change. India is now a nation free of sovereign rule. Because Martin Luther King Jr believed people of all races could live as respected equals within the US, others who also believed joined him in peaceful protest and created change. All members of US society now have greater access to civil rights. None of these people merely “coped”. They took positive, compassionate action. They sought change through love…AND SUCCEEDED!

On the same day as I saw Avenue Q I saw a single word graffitied on the pavement outside the National Gallery of Victoria. The peach coloured letters were formed in a lovely cursive hand. The word they spelled: Optimism. Cynicism breeds apathy. A bit of optimism can change the world.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

Our current culture has made an idol of violence. Conflict seems to inevitably lead to it, even though that is seldom our experience in every day life. Violence makes films, novels, computer games, etc thrilling and bankable roller-coaster rides. Stories involving violence will inevitably include suffering.  It is the threat of suffering that creates tension and drama in these cases.

“(Storytelling) represents and recreates (a people’s) shared cosmology or model for the manner in which the universe works.”

Norma J. Livo and Sandra A. Rietz, Storytelling: Process & Practice [Littleton, Colorado: Libraries Unlimited, Inc, 1986] p. 14

I’m not saying, don’t tell stories using violence. We need to be able to hold a mirror up to society and to the contents of our own hearts, which often includes violence. I am saying that we need to be aware other stories can be told, particularly for those of us writing comedy.

We have the opportunity to expand the spectrum of how people experience their lives. Otherwise, we as a culture will have a difficult time rising above our own violence to something better—a world of peaceful interactions. You’ve got to believe something better is possible before you are going to take the steps to make it a reality. Our stories, and most especially our humorous ones, makes this possible. Humorous stories have to contain at least an element of hope and/or humanity, or they become solely tragedies.

Stories are about change. The greater the change, the greater the challenges getting there, the greater the effort to achieve the change, the more meaningful the story will seem to its audience. Mind you, even small changes can be
interesting, thought-provoking, and heart-warming.

• Changes
• Challenges
• Mental, physical, and emotional efforts

Conflict will still have a place in these stories, and possibly even violence, but these will not be what makes the stories significant, rather what becomes of the people/characters on their particular journeys.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine

The sketch is about a fictional charity called the “Make a Realistic Wish Foundation” . The mock ad for this charity portrays dying children making extravagant wishes, then being given more “realistic” but measly gifts. If you actually watch the sketch, rather than reacting to the reporting made by commercial channels, you will note that the children are dealt with sensitively. It’s the adults who are made to seem small-minded and insensitive, and intentionally so. The Chaser is sending up the cynical use of children to influence public debate and to make people feel good while making the least charitable effort possible. Certainly worthwhile topics of discussion.

The sketch ends with the line, “Why go to any trouble when they’re only going to die anyway?” This evidently upset the very real Make a Wish Foundation. The foundation was afraid that the people seeing this sketch might think twice
about using the charity, because it would seem like signing something that says “Now my child will pass away.” That’s reading an awful lot into the potential response to a short comedy sketch. However, commercial news channels picked it up, and soon the ABC was receiving complaints from people who had never seen the show in order to understand what was actually portrayed or to be genuinely offended.

The results of this controversy are that The Chaser has been pulled from broadcast for two weeks and Amanda Duthie has been demoted and removed from her role as ABC’s head of television comedy.

This raises a number of questions. Why wasn’t a public apology enough? Nothing in this sketch contravened any sort of broadcasting code of which I know. Why was Amanda Duthie demoted, rather than The Chaser reprimanded? Was this a convenient moment to deal with a difficult ABC staff member? Why did our Prime Minister Kevin Rudd bother to weigh-in with a comment when he hadn’t seen the sketch? Why was it even of concern to him?

Personally, I believe a number of charities, including the Make a Wish Foundation, should have a critical look-in. How much are they really benefitting children? If you think about it, how comfortable are we with the ethics behind their activity? Does sending a child to Disneyland really “make it all better”? Perhaps our money would be better spent on a charity to develop clown counsellors: people trained to provide a safe and trustworthy ear to listen, shoulder to cry on, and a bit of a laugh on a week by week basis to ill children who need consistent friendship.

I also feel it is vital we continue to give our comedians the right to create satire, rather than our public and private media falling over in a heap the instant anything becomes controversial (and of course who created the
controversy). A functioning free society must have its jesters who will speak truth to power and also speak truth to the masses. Sometimes our jesters will get it wrong, but then at least we have a point of discussion and that’s important too.

Peace and kindness,

Katherine