Choosing the right format and performers is critical to long term success. In addition to hiring talented performers, it’s also important to diversify subsequent shows to prevent “burnout”. Comedy Carousel avoids this with our proprietary booking platform that selects from over 500 seasoned performers worldwide.

Many bookers make the mistake of hiring based on personal gain (cost) or social connections (clout). While booking one’s friends may score them brownie points with the local scene, it does no favors for the venue or audience Needless to say, neglecting two out of three principal interests is a poor long term strategy, especially if the producer continually books the same cast. Even great performers get old after several viewings and “burning out” the audience is a surefire way to crash attendance numbers.

Customers that attend a sub-optimal performances are less likely to think favorably of the venue and return for future business. Likewise, hiring performers ill-suited to the tastes of the audience will invariably lead to poor reviews. It is therefore just as critical to hire a talented ensemble as it is to market them to an appropriately “warm”, accommodating audience. (For more on how we accomplish this visit our promotion section of venue services.)

This is particularly true with comedy performances. People’s taste in humor varies greatly with political views, economic status, age, education, and a host of other factors. Marketing a comedy show without controlling for these factors can lead to devastating consequences like negative reviews or even altercations. Poorly run open mics are notoriously prone to these negative effects if the show’s host is not experienced enough to read the room. For this reason, Comedy Carousel produces an open mic more like a regular showcase. Our open mics are always run by a competent host and feature one or two booked comedians to ensure a baseline quality of performance. This allows us to promote the event much like a showcase as well, simply on a smaller scale. Doing so also helps us collect valuable marketing data should the venue decide to up the budget and convert the event to a booked showcase in the future.

Learn more about the industry and see our most popular formats!