The pandemic has changed our habits on a number of things.
- No more brand loyalty to coffee, toilet paper, or supermarkets.
- Getting Groceries and Vegetables delivered to our home.
- Watching new movie releases at home on TV.
The newest change happened last night. We watched Baratunde Thurston's live comedy show, in our kitchen, that was streamed from his house in LA over Zoom.
The show started at 9:20 instead of 9:10, and there was a warm-up act that used a handheld microphone that was quite right.
At that point I was worried.
The Main Show
But, when the stream switched over to Baratunde, the sound was perfect.
There were pages and pages of happy faces watching. We got instructions to turn down our mic levels to 1/5, but in my iPad I never saw how to do that, so I remained muted.
Many others figured it out, so as Baratunde performed, you could hear the audience laughing. It really was a perfect show.
I enjoyed hearing Baratunde's takes about the early days of stocking up for the pandemic, living with only one person for 10 weeks, and needing a haircut. ;-)
The ability of Zoom to bring Baratunde into our kitchen was powerful.
It also had the advantage of being able to stay home, not drive, have a good seat, get out own drinks, and have a bathroom nearby.
The people formally known as the audience
As a bonus, Baratunde took questions, over text chat, after the show. Also brilliant. If you paid for VIP access, you could also stay longer for the after show.
Audience interaction via Zoom is going to be a groundbreaking development for entertainers, once they fully understand its power. It's like when I first realized the power of online video. This is a similar time, where the audience can become part of the presentation, and enhance it. Once presenters truly understand the power of this collaborative medium, and how to manage it, we are going to see some creative productions follow.
To catch a glimpse of how this works, watch my friend Joseph Jaffe's CoronaTV and his Zoom after-show. The after show allows the audience to have a conversation with the guest, and valuable discussions happen with much of the value coming from 'the people formally known as the audience'.
I love comedy, and comedians, but maybe I don't like having to go out to comedy clubs?
You can try a Nowhere Comedy Club show here.
