Bring a clipboard or ask to borrow one. Keep the list of performers on this clipboard, but keep a blank sheet of paper on top to take notes, remind yourself of the rules, and jot ideas for transitions down in between sets. If this is a brand new open mic or you’re in charge, the rules are up to you! The first thing you need to figure out is the time limit for performers. Roughly 3 minutes per reader is a good limit for poets. You probably want to give stand-up comedians or bands 5 minutes or so.
Another option is to hold on to the list yourself. This is a good idea if the audience is younger and they may have questions. Just stand near the front of the stage and make an announcement every few minutes that performers can sign up with you. This also gives you the opportunity to make sure you spell and pronounce names correctly. You can put time slots on the sign-up sheet, but don’t expect them to be super accurate by the end of the night. It’s pretty hard to stick to a tight schedule when you have multiple acts getting on and off stage every couple of minutes.
If this is an event that you’re already familiar with, chat it up with the regulars and make them feel valued. Take note of the newcomers and go out of your way to introduce yourself and make them feel welcome.
If there’s a DJ, ask them if they play transition music. Are they going to fade the music in as you start introducing the next act, or is the end of the music your cue to start talking? Get their stage name as well so you can shout them out occasionally throughout the night. If you have a co-host, who speaks first? Who holds the list of performers? Are you going to tell any jokes together? Work things out with them to make sure nobody is stepping out of line in front of the audience. The more cohesive the two of you look together, the more engaged the audience will be.
For a poetry open mic, you might say, “Hello everyone! Welcome to the Wordsmith Reading Series, my name is Jack Fitters; I’m a poet, teacher, and all-around fan of all things verbose. ” At a musical open mic, you could say, “Are we ready to rock? This is the Downtown Noise Machine open mic and I’m Lindsey. I’ll be your lovely host tonight. ” For a stand-up comedy event, you may say, “Welcome everybody and thank you for coming out! This is the Jokes on You comedy series here at The Laugh Machine Comedy Club. My name is Victor, and I’ll be running the show tonight. ” Thank the venue or sponsors of the event if it’s appropriate. A simple, “Much love to Jimmy’s Tavern for letting us host this thing” is just fine.
For example, you might say, “At the Wordsmith Reading Series, every poet will have 3 minutes to read their work. Please do not go over the time limit! There will be a 15-minute break at 8:30, and we’re going to get through as much of the list as possible tonight. ” If you have a headliner, you could say, “At 9:30, we’re excited to welcome Vanessa Ray to the stage to read pieces from her new book, In the Morning Light, which is being published next month by Open City Books. ”
Respect the equipment (no mic drops, or chair kicking). Turn your phone off. Treat performers with kindness and respect (it takes guts to get up there!). No profanity or bigoted language (performers and audience). No long disclaimers (performers shouldn’t go up and give a 5-minute dialogue before they start reading or playing). [8] X Research source
At an upbeat poetry event or slam, you could say, “If you love what you’re hearing up there or a line just resonates so heavily that you want to show the poet some love, feel free to throw those fingers in the air and start snapping!” At a heavy metal open mic, you might say, “If a band is crushing it, this space in front of the stage is open for you to come up here and headbang your heart away, so don’t be shy. We’re all here to thrash together!” For a stand-up comedy event, you’re better off not inviting audience participation. Stand-up requires a lot of prep, and hecklers can get out of hand fast if you open the door for them to speak up.
For example, you may say, “Now that the rules are out of the way, let’s put our hands together for our first stand-up, Jacob! Keep it going as he gets on up here to show him some love!” Young people and first-time performers may not know how to adjust the mic stand, so you may need to do it for them. If you get off stage right away, they may start fumbling with the mic stand.
At a poetry event, you might say, “Thank you for that Nick, you really broke my heart with that ending. What a lovely way to finish a poem. ” At a music-based event, you could say, “That was The Zombie Plants, they’ve been crushing it and I heard they have a new EP coming out soon. I can’t wait!” At a stand-up event, be a little playful. You might say, “Thank you, Wiley, that was absolutely hilarious. Please show me how to do your hair like that so I don’t have to keep going to the drive-through barber shop. ” If you’re hosting a stand-up event and you’re a comedian yourself, feel free to throw some zingers and one-liners in there!
You don’t need to do anything fancy here. Just say, “Sarah, you’re on deck,” or, “Flaming Whiskers, please bring your equipment backstage, you’re up after our next act. ”
If you call someone up and nobody comes to the stage, give them 5-10 seconds to show up. Then, just move on to the next name. If they were in the bathroom or something when you called them, put them back into the list at the top. If you don’t mark the names off, you might accidentally skip someone!
This is also a great way to encourage future performers. If they see all the love you’re giving to newcomers, they may sign up next time. This also will help boost the number of participants in the future since more and more people will feel comfortable at your event. For example, you might say, “Our next performer is getting on stage for the very first time, so please show them all of the love, protection, and affection you possibly can. It takes guts to get up here and this is a moment to celebrate, so please welcome Alexis Shawsburry!”
If an audience member is interrupting and you can correct the behavior quietly and quickly without disrupting the performer, do it. If an audience member is being actively spiteful or disruptive, pause the set. Ask them to leave or be quiet. Then, apologize to the act and ask them to start over. Talk to the performer after the show to apologize again and explain what happened. This will help weed out the bad apples from returning every week. It will also reinforce the sense of community and keep the open mic feeling like a safe space for everybody. If people see you being kind and supportive, they’ll follow your lead.
Keep it appropriate and don’t go overboard with this. If you encourage too much interaction, things may get out of hand and you can lose track of time. Still, it’s fun to pepper these interactions into the transitions throughout the night.
For example, you may say, “That’s our show tonight, folks! Thank you to all of our wonderful performers, and thank you for being such a lovely audience. Please join us for the next Downtown Noise Machine open mic next Thursday at 7 pm. Please take your trash with you on the way out, and we’ll see you next time!”
