Ask any old white male comic (or Pete Davidson) who has bombed at a college about what is “killing” comedy and they will talk about how people are ungrateful or pc culture because you can’t joke about things you could joke about years ago. If things were only like the good old days then comedy would be alive and well!
Yet when you look at the make up of most comedy shows and improv teams it’s hard to tell where the good old days ended.
To be clear, this isn’t meant to be an attack on white men but rather the institutions that don’t make them work as hard as anyone else. With the 2010’s ending, comedy is in a cold period.
The internet has cut into revenue, comedies as a percentage of box office revenue is smaller than it was 20 years ago. It seems as if more people are angry than wanting a laugh these days.
Or maybe they just want fresh faces? And to see people with differing backgrounds?
Here in Chicago, with the improv theater scene, this has been a real problem. There have been diversity programs put in place but when you’re placed into those programs that’s your destination. If you’re lucky maybe you’ll get a try out for a show that’s marketed for general audiences. Diversity shows almost always feel like the theaters are being forced to put them on, not that they’re showcasing great talent. A golden opportunity to expand the reach of the improv scene while changing the make up of it is lost.
The biggest joke of it all is how the actual minority that is over represented is white males. As long as improv and sketch shows start with multiple white guys in mind when they’re not a majority of our population or talent is a step towards failing as an institution.
Keeping talent as diversity talent instead of recognizing them as performers to invest in is hurting comedy. It’s perception as a white man’s club is hurting the industry. Anyone can be funny but when you don’t look for just anyone you end up with shows that are not as great as they can be.