Andrew J. Lederer

after our venue meeting at berlin the other morning, i heard the other performers laughing outside the room as i comedically assessed the venue at the top of my show. it felt good to hear appreciation and approval from other comedians.

at other times, i've seen the expression of other performers waiting to come in and set up at the conclusion of my show, as they seem to wonder, "what the fuck is he doing?" and think to themselves, "this isn't comedy."

but comedy is not just jokes.

for me, comedy is getting to "the funny place".

now, i am an excellent joke writer. i can shit and sweat out jokes in my sleep. (an admittedly messy proposition.)

and joke-writing is a noble discipline. people who devote themselves to it successfully should be commended.

but . . .

to me, it is too limited a thing -- a craft that can be an art but is still too much math and not enough colored, dancing, shape-changing clouds. (you'll note the words "to me". as in most things, there are exceptions.)

as i've said here before, my goal (among others) is to be funny -- even when talking about the most disturbing things. to a great extent this fringe, i've achieved that goal.

sometimes, i have not.

it takes an amazing amount of energy to be funny. you can't rely on words; every time is frightening, 'cause it may not happen.

to some who see comedy as jokesmithery, this will seem a self-justifying cop-out, rationalizing what they see as an essential failure to suit the (what they don't recognize as) mundane definition of comedian. i expect this post will raise a lot of hackles and, probably, some 'til-now veiled hostility will be undraped and aimed in my direction.

but -- okay -- i'll say it: getting laughs is easy. i want something more.

and i am willing to achieve something less to get it.

it's understandable that some out there are probably thinking that's precisely the kind delusional, self-aggrandizing, ineffectual rationale a comic would employ to justify to himself and others a dearth of that most glorious of rewards, the laugh.

okay.