Stand-up comedy

Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage and delivers humorous and satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical acts (act outs). These performances are typically composed of rehearsed scripts but often include varying degrees of live crowd interaction (crowdwork). Stand-up comedy consists of one-liners, stories, observations, or shticks that can employ props, music, impressions, magic tricks, or ventriloquism.

Performances can take place in various venues, including comedy clubs, comedy festivals, bars, nightclubs, colleges, or theaters.

Stand-up comedy originated in various traditions of popular entertainment in the late 19th century. These include vaudeville, the stump-speech monologues of minstrel shows, dime museums, concert saloons, freak shows, variety shows, medicine shows, American burlesque, English music halls, circus clown antics, Chautauqua, and humorist monologues, such as those delivered by Mark Twain in his 1866 touring show Our Fellow Savages of the Sandwich Islands.

Charles Farrar Browne (April 26, 1834 – March 6, 1867), better known by his nom de plume, Artemus Ward, is considered by comedian historians America's first stand-up comedian.

The first documented use of "stand-up" appeared in The Stage in 1911, describing Nellie Perrier delivering 'stand-up comic ditties in a chic and charming manner'. However, this referred to a performance of comedy songs rather than stand-up comedy in its modern form.

The term appeared again in the “Stage Gossip” column of The Yorkshire Evening Post on November 10, 1917. The article discussed the career of a comedian Finlay Dunn, stating that Dunn was "what he calls a stand-up comedian'" during the latter part of the 19th century. However, the term may have been used retrospectively.

Stand-up has multiple genres and styles with their formats. Common ones include:

In a typical stand-up show, the host, compere, or emcee "warms up" the audience and introduces the other performers. This is followed by the opener, the feature, and then the headliner. The host may also act as the opener for smaller shows. Proven comics tend to earn regular bookings at clubs that are part of a chain and comedy venues. Jobbing stand-ups may perform sets at two or more venues on the same day.^{[citation needed]}