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Title: | 'It’s about expecting the unexpected’: Live stand-up comedy from the audiences’ perspective |
Authors: | Myers, L |
Keywords: | Stand-up comedy;Audiences;Liveness;Unpredictability;Proximity;Interaction;Shared experience |
Issue Date: | 2011 |
Publisher: | Participations |
Citation: | Participations: Journal of Audience and Reception Studies, 8(2), 165 - 188, 2011 |
Abstract: | A dearth of research exists that examines live stand-up comedy from the audiences’ perspective. This empirical article redresses this neglect by examining the appeal of live stand-up comedy to audiences and revealing their motivations for going to see live stand-up comedy. These interests are explored through an online survey and a series of semi-structured interviews with live stand-up comedy goers. The online survey uncovers the frequency of attending live stand-up comedy, the types of venues that stand-up comedy is seen in, the types of venues that audiences prefer to experience live stand-up comedy in, and the extent to which individuals attend live stand-up comedy alone or accompanied by others, and if so, who they attend with. The one-to-one semi-structured interviews extend the investigation by analysing the specific reasons why audiences attend live stand-up comedy. Five main themes emerge from the semi-structured interview data: respecting the stand-up comedian; expecting the unexpected; proximity and intimacy; opportunities for interaction; and sharing the comic experience. The article illustrates the differing ways in which audiences engage with live stand-up comedy at both the public and private level. |
Description: | Copyright @ 2011 The Authors. |
URI: | http://www.participations.org/Volume%208/Issue%202/contents.htm http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/8584 |
ISSN: | 1749-8716 |
Appears in Collections: | Sociology Publications Psychology Dept of Social and Political Sciences Research Papers |
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Fulltext.pdf | 553.06 kB | Adobe PDF | View/Open |
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