(don't) pass the mic

Before our last Laugh Sucka! show, my comedy compadre, Melanie, and I, handed out fliers for the show. At first I tried a loud, jokey approach - "AWESOME AND FUN FREE COMEDYS SHOW!!!!!!" One gentleman greeted me with "You're awesome!" and snubbed my outstretched flier-laden hand.

Then I toned it way down.

So in a casual, familiar voice I casually, familiarly approached passerbys. "Hey, like comedy? It's free." Or sometimes i'd just be silently shaking with tears.

OK - FF (fast-forward) to the show. We netted 2 people from the street. Both old men who had nowhere else to go. The 1st one left after 5 minutes. The 2nd guy stayed the whole time. He wore a white undershirt with a special homeade message:

I'm sorry.
I forgot.
My brain is full of shit.

Actually, it wasn't even that, but something like it that made less sense. Of course his t-shirt gets some notice during the show - it's what we call "talking to the crowd" in comedy-speak. Melanie invites him up to speak after all the comics go up. It is clear he has something he wants to say. He gets up and apologizes for stuttering then launches into several minutes of incoherent sentences, peppered with "fuck yous" and other curses. I think he had Tourettes and couldn't help himself. His first sentence was kinda funny - "It's taken me 25 years to say a full sentence" but then he lost his focus. Watching him struggle with words made me uncomfortable, but he got a kick out of having the mic. So, sometimes comedy can turn into one big, crazy mitzvah - even if it makes you squirm.