I also performed at RiRa last Wednesday. They moved the show from the small room upstairs (seated about 60 and was always packed) to the bar downstairs. I have done enough comedy shows to know this is a mistake. The other room was a captive audience of people who specifically came to see comedy. This room is filled with people who either didn't know there was comedy show that night, or didn't know there was comedy show that night and don't want to watch one. Either way, it's a recipe for a poor show. The show did okay, but nothing like what it did in the other room.
Briefly, if you are doing an open mic you shouldn't do a 30 minute set in the middle of the show for the following reasons:
1. I've spoken before about the purpose of an open mic for a comic. Unless you wrote 30 minutes of new material then I don't know how you benefit.
2. There are comics behind you and an hour left of show. Some of these guys are very good comics, but you have let the room know the show is over with your set. It would be the equivalent of having 6 comics do 7 minutes each after the headliner at a real show.
3. It makes the show bad. Yes you crushed, but there is an hour left of show and now the audience has to sit thru 6 more comics working thru their new material after you did a crisp 30 in the middle. The majority of what they saw paled. Again, it's their job to be funny. However I am very sympathetic to their complaints knowing many of them could do their regular set, but don't because that's not why they came.
Whatever, if you want to do that, do it at the end. You're a great comic. Everyone recognizes that, but we still want the show to work.
I promised I wouldn't talk politics anymore. I lied, but if you aren't interested, stop reading now.
If you are complaining about media bias you have tunnel vision. If you watch Fox you will get a conservative slant and if you watch CSNBC you'll get the liberal slant. If you watch Bill O'Reilly interview Obama you'll get the opposite of Charles Gibson interviewing Palin.
If you are outraged, be outraged for the right reasons. If during the interview, a question is asked and before the answer is given the interviewer says, ''That takes a great deal