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The Evolution of Mediatized Stand-Up Comedy: Investigating Para-Performances on Television, Film, and Youtube

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The Evolution of Mediatized Stand-Up Comedy: Investigating Para-Performances on Television, Film, and Youtube The Evolution of Mediatized Stand-Up Comedy: Investigating Para-Performances on Television, Film, and YouTube by Mirali Almaula A Thesis presented to The University of Guelph In partial fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Literary/Theatre Studies in English Guelph, Ontario, Canada © Mirali Almaula, September, 2015 ABSTRACT THE EVOLUTION OF MEDIATIZED STAND-UP COMEDY: INVESTIGATING PARA-PERFORMANCES ON TELEVISION, FILM, AND YOUTUBE Mirali Almaula Advisor: University of Guelph, 2015 Professor A. Filewod Although the majority of today’s performances are accessible on multiple platforms, performance analysis often continues to focus on the live event or to discuss the recorded event as if it were live. This thesis explores the influence of various mediatizations on a performance form. In order to better understand changes in power, control, and authority that are produced on differing mediums, it develops a form of analysis that views the performance event as comprised of two aspects. It argues that a performance event is comprised of the performance proper, which is a performance that is identifiable as being for entertainment purposes, and the para- performance, which arises due to the intention and/or execution of the performance proper. For example, the performance text of a theatrical work is the performance proper whereas the audience’s reactions, the architecture of the performance space, and the promotional materials and reviews are part of the para-performance. A para- performance analysis thus reads both the performance proper and the para- performance “as” performance. This thesis is an investigation of the process of adapting live performance to media platforms. That process, referred to as mediatization, is explored through the evolution of contemporary stand-up comedy in Anglophone North America. Specifically, the dissertation focuses on the development of the content, form, and audiences of contemporary stand-up comedy across live, televised, filmic (i.e. VHS, DVD, and Netflix), and YouTube mediatizations of the performance form. Moreover, a performance analysis approach to the objects of study is used to understand the relationship between power and platform. The dissertation examines how marginalized performers negotiate power through their para-performances and performances. Analysis of the objects of study reveals that manipulating elements of the para-performance can align performers with power and invest their voices with authority. The dissertation demonstrates that media platforms that offer performers control over various para-performance elements, access to accidental audiences, and positions alongside those in power provide the performer with the greatest opportunity to challenge dominant ideologies and positively reconfigure existing hegemonic structures. iv Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my grandmother: Dharmika Jayendra Saraiya. She once told me she dreamed of getting her doctorate in Hindi and Gujarati literature but because of the times and her circumstances she could only complete her MA. She told me to study what I loved while I could because life is filled with responsibilities and later may not be an option. For a woman to get her MA in India at the time was no small feat; it is a mark of her passion. Her deep love for literature inspires me to this day. Although the language barrier means that she will never read nor understand this dissertation, it exists because of her, and she is behind every word. v Acknowledgements I would like to thank my dissertation advisory committee members: Dr. Alan Filewod, Dr. Paul Salmon, and Dr. Stuart McCook. I thank them for their constant encouragement, their genuine interest in my project, their thoughtful guidance, and their stories about graduate school and experiences with comedy. I deeply appreciate the time and effort they put into helping me to develop and to refine this work. I have learned so much from each of them and could not have asked for kinder or more dedicated educators to advise me in this endeavour. And, a special thanks to Alan Filewod, for being my supervisor since I began my doctoral studies at Guelph, for sitting on each of my advisory committees, for understanding my approach to graduate school, and for encouraging me to take those stand-up comedy classes. I thank the faculty and staff in the School of English and Theatre Studies for their assistance throughout my time at the University of Guelph. I’m very grateful for the opportunity to pursue my research interests here and for the funding – through the College of the Arts and Dean’s Scholarships – that allowed me to complete my graduate studies. I greatly enjoyed my experiences here as a graduate student, a teaching assistant, and a sessional professor. The University also provides many helpful resources and two were especially beneficial for me. Firstly, I thank the organizers of Dissertation Boot Camp (especially Dr. Jodie Salter); if it were not for the work I did during that week I’m uncertain this dissertation would have been completed. And secondly, I appreciate those at Counselling Services for their support during stressful times. vi Thanks to all the welcoming and funny people who are part of The Making-Box (with a special thanks to Jay Reid, for answering my endless questions about The Making-Box). Thanks to Jim McAleese and Joel Buxton, my stand-up comedy teachers at The Second City, for introducing me to the practical side of stand-up comedy and teaching me how to be funnier. And, thanks to Eric Andrews, for making me love comedy before either of us knew what stand-up even was, for helping me find my laugh, and for talking to me about stand-up comedy after a decade of silence. I thank those I have met in graduate school – especially, Mark Kaethler, Alec Follet, and Cynthia Ing – for your feedback, your support, and your company. I thank all of the roommates, friends, and friendly acquaintances I have made, kept, or lost touch with over these hectic years. And, thanks to my closest friends over the last several years: Adriana Chong (for brutal honesty and long calls that maintained my joy); Reena Patel (for showing me how to take it easy and laughing at all my jokes); Irram Bhatti (for teaching me how to feel pretty and for never judging me); Fereshteh T. Yazdi (for inspiring me to stay positive and encouraging me to take risks); Cassandra Kotva (for making me chocolates and always being my friend – no matter how much time or silence passes between visits); and, Tanya Debi (for being a generous friend and a kind listener – no matter how long it’s been). Thanks to my parents, Sonal and Dhruv Almaula, for teaching me to work hard but enjoy life, to follow my dreams but be realistic, and to always try my very best and then leave it all to fate. I thank my brother Karan Almaula for teaching me to laugh at myself, keeping me humble, forcing me to take breaks, and for convincing me to still try graduate school in Guelph when I was ready to give up. vii I thank my family and my friends for making me feel loved; for always understanding when I had to study, work, or write; for listening to me vent; for making me laugh; for sitting with me while I cry; for encouraging me in everything I do; and for believing I will succeed without ever having a doubt. You have each made me stronger, kinder, braver, and happier than I ever hoped I could be. I wouldn’t be me without all of you. And, no matter how many times I write it, I can’t thank each of you enough. viii Table of Contents Abstract ....................................................................................................................................... ii Dedication ................................................................................................................................. iv Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................. v Chapter One: The Emergence of Mediatized Stand-Up Comedy & Introductions ........................................................................................................................ 1 Defining Stand-Up Comedy ............................................................................................................ 2 Stand-Up Comedy vs. Comedic Theatrical Solo Performance ............................................ 3 Stand-Up Comedy vs. Vaudeville .................................................................................................. 6 Stand-Up Comedy vs. Sketch Comedy ......................................................................................... 7 Stand-Up Comedy vs. Sit-Down Comedy .................................................................................... 8 Comedic Vlogs/Direct YouTube Comedy/Post-Stand-Up Comedy ................................... 9 The Emergence of Live Stand-Up Comedy in North America .......................................... 10 The Emergence of Mediatized Stand-Up Comedy in North America ............................. 12 An Argument for Mediatized Stand-Up Comedy .................................................................. 16 My Subject Position & My Reasons For Studying Stand-Up Comedy ............................. 17 Positioning the Dissertation within Performance Studies .............................................. 21 Theoretical Approaches ............................................................................................................... 24 Introducing
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