You’ve heard comics talk about having material with an “edge,” or “being edgy,” or telling jokes that are on the “cutting edge.”
What exactly does it mean to be edgy as a comic?
“The way I determine it is if I write a bit and I think to myself, `Ohhh, I shouldn’t do that,’ then I think it’s edgy,” says Michael Alexander.
Comedy with edge can usually include adult humor, biting political or social satire, or themes and subject matter that ruffle people’s taste levels.
Alexander, a longtime Chicago comic who has come back home after a stint in Los Angeles, made a conscious effort to become edgier by changing up his already-intelligent jokes to push boundaries and to grow as a performer.
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The decision had more far-reaching implications than one might have thought.
“It’s just kind of finding yourself,” says Alexander, 37. “It takes a lot of years being a standup to find yourself. And a lot of times you don’t even realize that you haven’t even found yourself yet, and you’re doing this (crummy) material and you’re going straight down the middle (with safe jokes) like one of those machines that make the little white lines on highways.”
Racism, politics and finding fault with fallen celebrities are some of the topics that Alexander, a comedian for 14 years, is talking about these days.
One byproduct of this new approach is Alexander saying he writes better now that he ever has in his career: “I think that I can write anything I want to write: comedy, drama, anything.”
As proof of that, Alexander is working on several projects, including the “very funny and poignant” story of his life, “In My Father’s Footsteps”; a movie about the first African-American Santa Claus called “Better Not Shout”; and the children’s book “Sarah’s Garden,” which deals with racism.
Alexander is a former writer for “The Arsenio Hall Show,” and it was while he was with the show, about five years ago, that he decided he wanted to toughen up his act. But he waited for two years before doing it.
“I think I didn’t want to rock the boat. I was getting a lot of bookings so I was working a lot,” Alexander says.
“And I’ll tell you, I think actually — and I’m not going to mention the club in particular — but I think my edgier approach has actually hurt me at one of the major clubs here, even though I work for them still.” He adds that the club in question wanted him to be like another of their favorite — less edgier — comics, but Alexander didn’t think he would be true to himself if he went their way.
And that might be the main reason why Alexander wanted to put more edge into his act.
“I just care less about what the audience thinks and what club owners think,” Alexander says frankly. “I think it really comes down to me not having to live with the audience, me not having to live with the club owner.
“When I’m on stage it’s 30 minutes or 45 minutes of a show. I’ve got to live with me the rest of the day. And I don’t think that I want to spend the rest of my career just writing jokes that are easy and simple. I want to write something I’m proud of.”
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Michael Alexander performs Friday and Saturday at Comedy Comedy (the club formerly known as the Funny Bone), 3000 Warrenville Rd., in the Radisson Hotel Lisle-Naperville, Lisle. For show times and reservations, call 630-955-0500.
The standup lineup
Here’s who’s funny. Current sets are scheduled to run through Saturday; new acts begin on Thursday unless otherwise noted. Lineups are subject to change.
– Hopefully, Carrot Top won’t take Mike Alexander’s words up above too hard. Carrot Top is a smart standup who puts thought and consideration into his props to make them effective jokes. Carrot is working the Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet on Friday. For tickets and other details, call 815-726-6600 or 312-902-1500.
– Diverse sketch comedy group Oui Be Negroes’ latest is “Absolute Negritude,” a mix of satire, music and sketches that will be conducted Fridays and Saturdays at the Bailiwick Arts Center, 1229 W. Belmont Ave., through Dec. 11; call 773-274-4563.
– Comic-musician Gerry Grossman performs this weekend at the Barrel of Laughs (10345 S. Central Ave., Oak Lawn, 708-499-2969).
– “Police Academy” veteran and human sound effects machine Michael Winslow spends the weekend at Zanies-Vernon Hills (230 Hawthorn Village Commons, Vernon Hills; 847-549-6030).