The Year In Review

Tags: amateur comedians, Christmas, coaching, comedy scene, comedy writing, core values, determination, Saskatoon, Saskatoon comedians, The Stand-Up Diaries, trevor dean, Trevor Dean comedian

As yet another Christmas has come and gone I am looking back at my year in comedy and how the events in my personal life helped shape my material.

Nine months is a long time to go without.  Nine months is also a long time to have something and watch it flourish and grow.  At the start of 2014 I did not have a stage to perform on, and in February I was asked to perform at a Food Bank fundraiser in Regina.  It was nine months since I had been on stage.  Not only did I get laughs, but this was the first set that I had written completely on my own that didn’t need a major overhaul (I’ll explain that in a bit).

From there, I was given the opportunity to perform at the monthly Pass The Hat shows in Regina.  It means a lot to be a part of the Regina comedy scene with so many great comics.  I have the chance to go and do 5 to 7 minutes in front of my peers and a new audience each week.  It’s nice to finally get to that point where I get a consistent reaction from the audience.

Then to go from February we fast forward nine months to November.  That was the month that I became part of The Laugh Shop.  I never thought at the beginning of the year that I could reach what in my mind were extremely lofty heights, but I did at least a couple shows a month and that gave me lots of new material and some momentum for consistency.  My coach said I had the ability to perform there, and that’s why I called the agency.  I would have never thought myself good enough at this point, but my coach knew I could do it.

I have to admit that whenever I have an event that I am a part of, my friends usually come out to support me. Hundreds of people viewed my posts and the event invite on my comedy page www.facebook.com/trevordeancomedian  and the nights I performed as the MC were nearly sellouts on both nights.  I am happy to say that the agency has put me into their rotation of performers and I will be the MC/host at the Regina location of The Laugh Shop in 2015.  The date (Saturday nights only in Regina) and the headliner have not been made available as of yet.  When they are I will certainly pass that information along to all of you.

God willing, I will return to open mics in Saskatoon as early as February of next year.  In August I will be flying down to Los Angeles for a week and perform at the world famous Comedy Store in Hollywood and at Flappers in Burbank.  Yes, that’s right.  I have spots that have been set aside for me when I go.  By early February I should have the details worked out and can then make them available to all of you.

My material is getting better to the point that I get together with my coach to review, and it just needs some minor adjustments, not a full out gutting of the joke.  Not only do I know how to write for my own voice, but I also can tell you why the joke is funny, being able to break each joke down and outline the how and why of the writing process.  It’s because of this that when I have an idea for a joke, sometimes it’s already right there in front of me because the comedy structures and laugh triggers are already in play.  No editing required!

On a personal note I found a great lady to spend time with and get to know.  She has been to just about all of my sets since we started on this journey together, and I’m proud to say that she will be coming with me to Los Angeles next summer for my US dates.  The longer I am with her, the easier it is to come up with material that’s basically an extension of my “character” I am evolving into, where it’s all about the struggles, not getting it quite right compared to the average guy.

It is with a tremendous amount of responsibility and gratitude that I say thank you to those of you who have followed me and attended live shows throughout the year.  May we all remember the real reason for the season is to celebrate Jesus and his birth, knowing that He was brought into the world to be our saviour from our sins, to bring us new life and hope every day with his abounding and ever lasting love and grace.

Be blessed!