What to Do if Someone is Heckling You

It never fails. Mix one part alcohol, one part comedy club, and one part drunk guy trying to impress his friends. And you get a Heckler. Comedians new to stand up get pounced upon by hecklers like lions, zeroing in on the slowest antelope in the herd. They smell blood, lure the weak one out and destroy him. But, if you understand the Heckler, and heckling as a whole it can be used for your benefit, and make your act even funnier.

First off, Hecklers heckle for one reason, attention. Don’t judge them for that, after all you’re the one standing on the stage. A lot of comedians ignore hecklers, but I try to give them what they think they want, and then make them the butt of their own joke. Nothing shuts a Heckler up like being embarassed in front of his own friends, because friends never forget. Call the Heckler up on stage, and substitute your two minutes of “B” material on making this guy look, and more importantly, feel like a clown. Most people are petrified of being in the spotlight, and when you couple that with a few strategic jokes, you can take the heckle right out of the heckler.