Comedian undersimate

1. “COMEDIAN” – The Most Extraordinary Job
1.What do you do to carry out the job? What makes the job special/interesting?
2. What requirements that people need to have this job? What will the person get from the job?
3. What are the positive and negative aspects of this job? What kinds of risks that this job has? Explain and
give examples.
4. Does your job meet the requirements you have to consider whether a job is good or not? If it does not meet
all the requirements, do you still think it is a good job? Why so? Explain this.
5. Do you think other people think this job is good for them? Why or why not?
A comedian or comic (a professional comedian) is a person who seeks to entertain an
audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing
situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy. A comedian who
addresses an audience directly is called a stand-up comic.
A popular saying, variously quoted but generally attributed to Ed Wynn,[1] is, "A comic says
funny things; a comedian says things funny", which draws a distinction between how much
of the comedy can be attributed to verbal content and how much to acting and persona.
Since the 1980s, a new wave of comedy, called alternative comedy, has grown in popularity
with its more offbeat and experimental style. This normally involves more experiential, or
observational reporting, e.g. Alexei Sayle, Daniel Tosh, Louis C.K. and Malcolm Hardee. As
far as content is concerned, comedians such as Tommy Tiernan, Des Bishop, and Joan Rivers
draw on their background to poke fun at themselves, while others such as Jon Stewart, and
Ben Elton have very strong political and cultural undertones. Contemporary comedians
include Conan O'Brien and Jonathan Ross.
Many comics achieve a cult following while touring famous comedy hubs such as the Just for
Laughs festival in Montreal, the Edinburgh Fringe, and Melbourne Comedy Festival in
Australia. Often a comic's career advances significantly when they win a notable comedy
award, such as the Edinburgh Comedy Award (formerly the Perrier comedy award). Comics
sometimes foray into other areas of entertainment, such as film and television, where they
become more widely known; e.g., Eddie Izzard or Charlyne Yi. However, a comic's stand-up
success does not guarantee a film's critical or box office success.
The word 'comedienne' was used to denote a female comedian in the late 19th century and
most of the 20th century. This term has fallen into disfavor, however, as the word 'comedian'
is not gender-restricted, thus its feminized version is considered sexist.

2. A Day in the life of a Comedian
Comedians get a thrill from making people laugh. A comedian develops a unique style, skill,
and body of work as an entertainer. Most noncomedians are only familiar with comic
superstars, such as Steve Martin, Jim Carrey, Robin Williams,Whoopi Goldberg, and Jerry
Seinfeld, to name a few. Most of the comedians we surveyed mentioned these visible
successes as partially responsible for their staying in the profession, however unlikely a
similar meteoric rise may be. Most of the surveys received from comedians were distinctly
unfunny in their responses to our questions about how they live day to day. “Everybody in
the world thinks they’re funny. It’s just that I’m crazy enough to bet on [my prospects as a
comedian],” wrote one professional comedian from Denver who quit his job as a salesman to
pursue a full-time career in comedy. A comedian works long hours for little (if any) pay and
endures enormous uncertainty, never knowing where the next paycheck will be coming from.
The average stand-up comedian earns around $50 for two 20-minute sets at a comedy club.
While this translates into a solid hourly wage, a new comedian may do four sets per week,
with the rest of the time spent writing material, watching other comedians, and keeping an
additional job to pay the rent. A successful comedian must be quick-witted, able to think on
his or her feet, dedicated, and lucky. A great deal of self-confidence is required if one is to
last over two years in this profession (and over half don’t), since failure, disappointment, and
rejection are standard. Comedy troupes develop, perform, and publicize their own material.
Most of the members maintain freelance or day jobs that allow them to pursue this career.
They usually schedule a weekly show, bracketed around rehearsals and workshops where
they critique one another’s sketches and performances. Because attendees will not return to
see the same material, it is a highly pressured large-output environment. A troupe comedian
must adapt to peers’ comments and take criticism well. The ability to work with others is
critical to success in comedy groups. The troupes are often formed in major urban centers
where actors and comedians congregate due to the larger opportunity for work. Solo
comedians perform on club circuits around the country, usually one after another on a given
night, creating a very competitive atmosphere. Being a solo comedian can be an “if-you-winI-lose” type of career. “There are only so many laughs on any given night, and if possible,
you want to get all of them,” wrote one regular at a comedy club in New York. Solo stand-up
comics face a significant level isolation. At the same time, studying fellow performers’
material, style, delivery, and presence are facets of the successful comedian’s life.
Paying Your Dues
Being in dingy nightclubs before an audience of one for unpaid stand-up sets are part of the
aspiring comedian’s dues. No academic requirements exist, but many performers get their
start in college acting or comedy troupes, thereby gaining some exposure to large audiences.
Stand-up comedians have a more uncertain road than troupe comedians, going from club to
club, writing material, practicing and refining it, and hoping for a break. It is not unusual for
an aspiring stand-up comic to log more than 200 days per year away from home.
Associated Careers
More than 30 percent of exiting comedians slide smoothly into acting, where they face much
the same odds against success. Others find homes in advertising, teaching, writing, and one
mentioned that he ended up in law enforcement. The skills associated with comedy—the
ability to make others laugh, defuse tense situations with a well-timed remark, and think on
one’s feet—are invaluable assets in any other career.

7. Sruti Respati prefers to be called a sinden (a gamelan orchestra singer) rather than a vocalist.
It’s not that she regards one profession superior to the other, but believes the term sinden better
reflects her Javanese character.
“Saying I am a sinden reminds me of my passion for traditional arts on which I’ve thrived. It’s more
appropriate for me to be called a sinden and I’m proud of it,” said the young woman.
Born in Surakarta, also known as Solo, in 1980, Sruti was brought up in a family steeped in Javanese
traditional arts. Her father Sri Djoko Rahardjo and grandpa Ki Njoto Tjarito were famous dalang
wayang kulit (leather puppet show players) in Solo, while her mother Sri Maryati was a Javanese
dancer.
“When I was a child, my father frequently took me to watch his wayang shows. When I grew up, now
and again I would join wayang performances and karawitan [gamelan music and vocals] concerts as
a sinden, besides also dancing with my mother,” added Sruti.
She moved to Jakarta with her family when she was a second grader and finished her junior high
school (SMP) in the capital. There, she became acquainted with various kinds of modern music like
classic, jazz, rock and pop. While she liked listening to them, she never wanted to abandon
traditional arts.
“In SMP I took different lessons including ballet. I tried almost everything as a teenager. Now I am
familiar with many arts, which was useful for my emotional enrichment,” said the graduate of
Javanese literature from Sebelas Maret State University (UNS), Solo.
She began her sinden career when she returned to Solo after finishing high school. While studying in
college, she appeared in various wayang and orchestral performances. During those years, she met
several karawitan musicians in Solo. Besides learning from her father, she was a Banyumasan
(southern gamelan music) student of Arno Kartawi and Suyoto, lecturers at the Indonesian Arts
Institute (ISI), Solo.
In 2002, Sruti became a protégé of ethnic musician Dedek Wayudi, who later introduced her to some
experts including Wayan Sadra, Danis Sugiyanto and Rahayu Supanggah. Through her involvement in
the many concerts organized by these noted Solo musicians, Sruti grew into a reliable sinden. Oncemusician and noted dalang Sudjiwo Tedjo was drawn to her stage skills and has since collaborated
with her in his shows.
Beyond her vocal skills for wayang and gamelan orchestration, she further expanded her techniques
to cover contemporary music, jazz, and keroncong (pop music with a Portuguese tint), the last with
the Swastika keroncong group.
“I allowed myself to explore different musical genres as I don’t like being limited to one type of
music,” said the wife of Wahyu Wijayanto.

8. Under the instruction of gamelan specialist Rahayu Supanggah, Sruti was selected to represent
Indonesia at the ASEAN-Korea Traditional Music Orchestra in Korea for two years in a row (2009 and
2010). In the forum, Sruti presented langgam (Javanese pop style) Bengawan Solo or Solo River and
mobile concerts in several South Korean cities.
“I grew up with Javanese art but I’ve come to know diverse musical genres. I’m going to retain the
character of Java in whatever music I sing, as my way of highlighting Javanese traditional arts,” said
the woman, who in July became the icon of the Solo International Performing Art (SIPA) program in
this Central Java city.
In her early musical explorations, Sruti was more engaged in Javanese langgam and keroncong, and
later in contemporary and jazz music. Determined to highlight the Javanese character of the songs
she presents, Sruti is in fact obsessed with bringing Javanese art to the world stage.
“We have more than pop music, as the country’s traditional compositions are great works. We
should introduce our cultural riches to the outside world. Since I’m Javanese, I’m automatically an
advocate of Javanese art,” said the sinden, who on Dec. 17 jointly performed with Sudjiwo Tedjo at
Airlangga University, Surabaya, East Java.
Sruti is able to combine Javanese cengkok (pitch or key changes) with modern music’s vocal
techniques. She manages to give the sinden vocal color to any musical genre, especially jazz.
In December 2009, for instance, she stunned the audience at the Solo City Jazz. Her collaboration
with Bintang Indrianto (Akordeon group) became a memorable event. She repeated her success in
2010 with Akordeon (Bintang Indrianto, Rindra “Padi”, and Roedyanto Warsito).
“Sinden and jazz share the same feature of allowing room to improvise. Hundreds of cengkok
variants in traditional poetry singing are equivalent to jazz improvisations,” said Sruti, who in early
December appeared at Bentara Budaya Jakarta along with her band, Sruti Respati and Friends.
With Sruti, traditional and contemporary music can be enjoyed at the same time. The character
difference between both styles, normally very markedly perceived, fades away and turns into a type
of uniquely “new music” pleasant to the ear yet still impossible to define.
Sruti said she was lucky to have grown up in a moderate family of traditional artists and later meet
with great musicians in Solo.
They’re great not only because of their ingenuity in musical innovation but also their democratic
attitude toward musical expression.
“They’ve never been shackled by a single type of music. They are democratic for being open to the
other types *of music+. There’s no more single genre representing a certain group, because music is a
democratic forum. I’m a democratic sinden,” she said laughingly.
Sruti is winding up her musical journey in 2010 by releasing a jazz album entitled Sruti: Kemarin,

9. Esok, Adalah Saat Ini (Sruti: Yesterday, Tomorrow, is Today). It’s a collaboration with artists Bintang
Indrianto and Imam Garmasah.