Opening & closing

The five moves

Same rhythm, every week.

1. 1 — Study

   First and last two minutes of five specials.

   Watch on purpose. Specific comedians, specific reason.

2. 2 — Deconstruct

   Write out the opening and closing lines verbatim.

   Isolate one mechanism. Name it before you use it.

3. 3 — Write

   Three openers and three closers of your own.

   10–25 premises minimum. Quantity buys quality.

4. 4 — Perform

   Test all three openers over three nights.

   Somewhere live. The classroom is useful; the audience is the laboratory.

5. 5 — Review

   Rank your material by laugh size. Your closer should be number one.

   Watch the tape. Log what the room did, not what you felt.