'The open-mic circuit's too competitive. I want to make it nicer'

How one comedian is trying to take the pressure off new acts

Stand-up Carl Carzana says he’s on a mission to make comedy nights ‘nice’ – by reinventing the circuit’s brutal roast battles and gong shows.

The Brighton-based comic is instead spearheading a format in which performers must trade compliments, not insults. And in a twist on the gong format, in which acts must typically leave the stage when they get three red cards from the audience, in his Go-on Show, comedians get an extra minute of stage time.

He said he was drawn to creating the nights – under the brand Bonhomie Comedy – after finding the new act scene too competitive.

‘I want to celebrate positivity and give performers and audiences a place to enjoy a night of comedy in an atmosphere that’s warm, welcoming and encouraging,’ he said.

‘I was inspired to create these formats after experiencing the competition circuit as a new act. The road to success is primarily through gigs that apply undue pressure, which I think deters talented but inexperienced comedians.

‘I hope Boast In Show will demonstrate that a joke does not need to have a victim to be funny. With The Go-on Show I hope to enable acts to progress through the industry in an environment that is kind and encouraging, rather than combative.’

He added that he believed audiences are ‘crying out to see positive, uplifting comedy which for years has simply not been on offer’.

Carzana cited the success of Troy Hawke’s Greeters Guild online and Viggo Venn’s victory on Britain's Got Talent as evidence people crave a more optimistic and kind brand of comedy.

However, he is no strange to competition himself; he came second in the Bath New Comedian Competition in 2018. He will be returning the city for the next instalments of his shows next month.

Boast In Show takes place on August 6 and The Go-on Show on August 27 – both at Moles nightclub as part of the Poor Man's Fringe comedy festival for local comics who cannot afford the journey to Edinburgh.

Here’s a showreel for Boast In Show: