Stand-up comedy is an incredible tool for growth. The obvious areas of growth are confidence in public speaking and writing, but along the way, a group will learn a tremendous amount about each other, and about themselves as individuals. Learning to create and perform a short set is incredibly team-building, and fosters a large amount of self-knowledge, resilience and ultimately empathy. A group is the perfect place to learn the skills of stand-up comedy.

CONFIDENCE, BRAVERY AND RESILIENCE

It takes enormous confidence to step out and speak up and this course will work to everyone’s strengths. We are not all outgoing, we do not all speak loudly and clearly, but if we feel that what we are saying is meaningful, and we feel allowed to say it in a way that suits us, then we will be able to focus more positively on getting our message out there. Stand-up is a skill where material is honed. Often the first iteration of a joke doesn’t work. In the workshop, everyone is encouraged to try things out, and with the help of the group, weaknesses in material are pinpointed and can be improved, encouraging the constant possibility of improvement as a matter of course. This develops resilience.

TEAM BUILDING

It takes a whole room to make a comedian. The workshop is built around trust and support. Ideas and honesty are respected and nurtured to create a room where everyone feels safe and able to be brave. Everyone contributes positively to the success of each individual by adding ideas and feedback.

SELF KNOWLEDGE/EMPATHY

During the workshop, each person will engage in a certain amount of self-examination, however lighthearted. This will, over the duration of the course, result in more self-acceptance which in turn leads to greater empathy. We will all laugh at ourselves and also laugh along with other people, which results in greater feelings of joy.

CRAFT

We all speak, and if we can accept our own voices and silence the critic in our heads, we can do it — in our own way. The format of stand-up can really relate to other longer forms of writing. First and foremost it promotes an authentic voice. Creating even a short set involves the practice of mental agility. Stand-up is a way of looking at the everyday from a fresh and personal perspective. Ideas are stretched, warped, teased, exploded and woven into a whole where they resonate. The making of a set invites forensic attention to both the micro and the macro.September 10, 2024

JULIET COWAN

Juliet Cowan is an award-winning actress who has appeared as a regular in some of the most successful shows on TV; Skins, Fresh Meat, The Power, Am I Being Unreasonable, Pulling, Phoneshop, Back to Life, This Life. In 2024, alongside TV shows such as Spent, Brassic, Big Boys and What it Feels Like To Be A Girl, Juliet had three feature films released; Back to Black (directed by Sam Taylor Johnson), where she played Janis Winehouse, Amy Winehouse’s mother; Members Club (directed by Marc Coleman), a comedy horror and Falling Into Place (directed by Aylin Tezel), which has been taking the film festivals by storm.

Juliet began her career as a stand-up, her chosen route into the acting profession, having not gone to drama school. Shortly before the birth of Juliet’s middle child, she beat Jimmy Carr, Russell Howard and Andy Zaltzman in the comedy competition So You Think You Are Funny. Touring stand-up is no job for a mother of three so Juliet settled into a very successful career as an actor. However, in 2023, Juliet reprised her stand-up career with her solo show Fuck Off And Leave Me Alone, which played to full houses at The Bush Theatre and The Vault Festival.