Morgan Landis thinks that you should spend more time laughing. To that end, she recently launched ColumbusLaughs.com, an online repository for all things related to the local comedy scene. The site includes local stand-up comedian profiles, an events calendar, and plenty of info about specific improv and sketch groups who perform around town.
We spoke with Morgan (also known by her stage name Morgan Nicole) recently to find out more about the local comedy scene and what she hopes this effort will accomplish. Our Q&A can be found below:
Q: Can you first tell us a bit about yourself as a comedian and what got you interested in launching this new website?
A: In June, I will have been doing stand up for two years. I started stand up as a dare to myself (to get myself out of my comfort zone) and I fell in love with the creativity it brought into my life. I have also tried my hand at improv, but my favorite is writing and performing sketch comedy.
When I talk to people about Columbus comedy, many people don’t know about shows or where to find out more information on them, so there was no real organization. There were also small pockets of comics doing their own thing, but no real sense of community.
Also, some people are a bit reticent on going to shows seeing people they’ve never heard of before, and couldn’t find much information on other comics or groups to even know if they’d like them or not. Some people didn’t want to take that risk.
Since I help create websites and branding for a living, making a website seemed like the best way to unify the community and help others outside it find the information they were looking for.
I worked with Thomas Clune, who started First Beat Theater, to find and input as many of the improv, sketch, and stand up events we could find for the calendar. I also made posts asking for profiles and events in both the comedians’ and the improv groups’ Facebook pages. I messaged many people directly that I knew organized events, and comics I hadn’t seen out for awhile, to have them look at the site and how they could contribute.
Q: When we spoke to comedian and comedy event organizer Justin Golak in December, he had some pretty negative things to say about the lack of support he’s witnessed over the past two years. What do you think of the current state of the comedy scene in Columbus?
A: We are an incredibly talented group of people (stand up, improv, and sketch), but I think it’s like a lot of things in Columbus — it’s a growing community — so there are bound to be some growing pains. People who have been around for awhile are used to things working a certain way, or expectations of what was to happen, but there’s also an influx of people who are doing their own things, trying out different avenues, and creating new opportunities.
Also, since the scene has been getting bigger, more people are attracted to it. It definitely seems as if there’s a lot of young blood in stand up, and that’s good a thing. That means there are more people to bring fresh ideas, have a unique voice, or show a new perspective. Not everyone likes the same kind of comedy, so having all these different voices, types of comedy, and opportunities to see them makes the comedy scene an exciting place to be right now.
I know some people have been leaving for bigger cities, but some of us see the value of staying. First, we know we have to travel the country for more exposure, and Columbus isn’t far from most of the big cities on the East coast. Second, it’s also a low-cost city, so those who want to try comedy as a living could probably afford it here more than they could in other places. For example, local comedian Bill Arrundale has been on MTV, written for Comedy Central roasts, and has performed nationwide, yet he resides in Columbus.
Plus, it’s the internet age! People can use Youtube, Twitter, and podcasts to gain a following and book gigs. Anjelah Johnson had only been doing comedy for four months when someone recorded her “Nail Salon Lady” bit (over 32 million views) and it went viral, which got her a job at MadTV. She’s now a national touring comedian. Other people have parlayed their witty tweets to writing jobs for a sitcom.
Q: What do you think are the biggest challenges that comedians face in Columbus?
A: I think the main challenges we face would be finding a venue and finding a bigger audience.
There are a few venues that have been very kind to us, letting us throw events or rent a room, but the location isn’t conducive to bringing in people. For example, I’m over 30 years old, and there’s no way I’m going to campus unless there’s a show I just cannot miss. If I’m out, I’m in the Short North or Downtown and I want to grab some drinks and go to a comedy show.
Also, we have an amazing fan base of supporters right now. I know people who go to a ton of comedy events, know the comedians by name, or religiously follow an improv group (along with other groups supporting each other). But we are having a hard time getting those people out of our circles to come see the shows. Of course we try to market our events, but we mostly do this for free (or very little), so we can’t really pay money for advertisements in the local media.
Q: Are there any specific upcoming events we should know about?
A: All of them! Check out our event calendar. It’s color-coded by type of event (open-mic, classes, improv, sketch, and stand up), and you can subscribe to any of them.
For more information, visit www.columbuslaughs.com.