Performing Arts

The key principles of stand-up comedy can be applied to your speaking engagements and presentations to make you funnier, more interesting, and better looking (or at least two of the three)....

A memoir and self-help manual by one of the country's most treasured comedians - for anyone who feels stuck in a rut but doesn't have the tools or self-belief to shake things up....

En esta galardonada producción de Audible Studios, Trevor Noah cuenta su salvaje historia sobre la mayoría de edad durante el ocaso del apartheid en Sudáfrica....

At 95, the legendary Mel Brooks continues to set the standard for comedy across television, film, and the stage. Now, for the first time, this EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winner shares his story in his own words....

"I've experienced a whole lot the last few years and I have a lot to share....

The exercises in this book will get you off the couch and onto the stage, helping you develop the skills necessary to envision, and achieve, a successful career in comedy....

In Seven Dirty Words, journalist and cultural critic James Sullivan tells the story of Alternative America from the 1950s to the present, from the singular vantage point of George Carlin....

This sharply written guide - for both beginners breaking into comedy and professionals seeking to improve their sets and advance their careers - examines the work of great comedians as a as a means of illustrating the most important techniques of performing and writing stand-up.... 

The brand new audiobook from the best-selling author of The Break and The Woman Who Stole My Life....

The world of comedy and comedians of the last five decades. By the man the New York Times calls "a comic institution himself", the only comedian (26 years in stand-up) to have made Elie Wiesel laugh....

Will Arnett (Arrested Development, BoJack Horseman) presents themed comedy shows from around the U.S., featuring the likes of Mary Lynn Rajskub, Jon Ronson, and Eugene Mirman....

Audible records stand-up in nightclubs and festivals year-round, and hand-picks standout moments, exclusively for Members’ ears. We blend those fresh bits with selections....

[Contains explicit content] Sounds Like America is a wild sound collage of the United States as seen by the people who know it best and tell it like it really is: comedians....

At some point every one of us embarks on a journey to find love....

Responding to a question about why there are not many women comediennes or jokes which do not have a male chauvinistic ring to them, Osho dives into the context and history of women in societies and the sense of humor coming into existence at a late stage of evolution....

If it can happen in show business, it’s happened to Jon Cryer. Now he’s opening up for the first time and sharing his behind-the-scenes stories in a warmly endearing, sharply observed, and frankly funny look at life in Hollywood....

Lewis Black (the voice of “Anger” from Inside Out) serves as America's ranter-in-chief as he gives voice to fans’ real-life rants....

At last, the definitive audiobook about perhaps the best cabin crew dramedy ever filmed: View from the Top starring Gwyneth Paltrow.....

David Mitchell’s 2014 best seller Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse must really have made people think - because everything’s got worse....

Actor, voice actor, and comedian H. Jon Benjamin helps us all feel a little better about our own failures by sharing his own - despite his success starring on Archer and Bob's Burgers - in a hilarious, self-helpful memoir....

In this definitive joke-writing handbook, learn comedy writing and how to write a joke with a simple comedy-writing and joke-writing formula you can use right now to write your own jokes....

 After nine years in production, the most rumored comedy album is finally hitting the streets. Macdonald has reimagined the sketch comedy record for a new generation....

 Norm Macdonald, the iconic anchor of SNL's "Weekend Update" and star of the cult classic Dirty Work, is back with a vengeance. This time he serves up a hilarious feature-length standup special....

Doug Stanhope is one of the most critically acclaimed and stridently unrepentant comedians of his generation....

[Contains explicit content] What’s the weirdest conversation you’ve ever overheard while eavesdropping? Was it hilarious? Disturbing? None of Our Business is a new audio series about the intrigue of eavesdropping....

100 Quotes by Groucho Marx is a collection of quips, thoughts, and reflections by one of comedy’s greatest clowns. From the classic "I refuse to join any club that would have me as a member" to lesser-known one-liners, it’s a superb read for anyone with even the faintest interest in comedic art. The perfect book for dipping in and out of, there are some wisecracks worth committing to memory, alongside some observations into the mind of the man behind the moustache.

幇間（たいこもち）が主人公になる落語も数多くありますが、何方かと言うと、災難に遭うネタの方が多いかも知れません。

丁稚奉公は、悪い制度ではなかったでしょう。大人に揉まれながら、商いのコツを身に付けるのですから、効率良く育って行くでしょう。

歌舞伎や文楽の名作「義経千本桜」を採り入れたパロディ落語で、かなり昔から人気演目の一つでした。滑稽味満載の内容に、恐ろしさがスパイスとして、ピリリと緊張を加えています。

東京落語「お見立て」の上方落語バージョンだけに、大阪の色街の風情を楽しんでいただけるでしょう。「粋」という字は、江戸は「いき」、上方は「すい」と読みます。色街の風情も、東西の違いは大きかった。

滑稽な内容でありながら、ホッコリした気分になる人情噺のような構成にもなっています。コント仕立てのように見えて、実は見事なドラマ。近年、上演される機会が少なくなったのは残念です。

気を付けて演じないと、後味の悪いネタに仕上がる場合があります。金持ちの座敷遊びを、爽やかに演じることが大切でしょう。おおらかに、無邪気に演じる方が良いのかも知れません。

熨斗は「のし」と読み、お祝いを持って行く時に使う袋に付いている物と言えば、おわかりでしょう。

ギャグが多く、わかり易い内容の芝居噺なので、歌舞伎や文楽に詳しくなく、邦楽の素養の無い者も演じたりしますが、表現の稚拙さが如実に出るネタと言えます。

肉食が許されていなかった時代も、猪は別物だったようで、昔の浮世絵にも、猪を売っている絵を目にすることがあります。猪を「山くじら」と呼び、牡丹鍋を楽しみながら、寒い冬に耐えていたのでしょう。

近年では、三代目桂春團治の流麗な高座が光っていました。東京落語では「反魂香」という演題となり、八代目三笑亭可楽の名演が有名で、歌手のフランク永井も大好きだったそうです。

世間では、知らない間に犯罪に巻き込まれている場合もあります。それは昔も今も変わらないようで、前世からの因縁と諦めなければならないのかも知れません。

何とも言えない大層なネタで、東京落語には移植されていません。聞き終わった後で、「あァ、騙された！」と思うか、「これぞ、落語の中の落語！」と思うかは、皆様方の好みと感性の違いによると・・・

秋になると聞きたい落語の一つですが、意外に演者は少なく、寄席や落語会で上演されることは稀です。面白い内容だと思いますし、季節感もタップリだけに、もっと演者が増えてもいいと思うのですが・・・

幕末から明治初期までの上方落語界の大家・初代桂文枝が長編の大作に仕上げて大好評を博しましたが、借金の質草に取られ、どうしても聴きたい贔屓筋が請け出したという、曰く因縁付きのネタなのです。