What would you ask a talent booker, agent or manager?
Hola Dave – I’ll make this quick. When meeting a booker, agent or manager for the first time, should there be any questions a comedian should ask that are important to them (them being the booker etc..)? If so, should the questions be different between the three? I ask cause I will be attending The World Series Of Comedy in Vegas this year & turns out it will be loaded with scouts. Thank you señior – A
Hey A – That’s a really good question and I want to throw it back to our readers before tossing in my thoughts. If you have suggestions about questions, please use the contact links below or send a comment through this site and I’ll share them in a future newsletter. Thanks!
The audition process
As I mentioned in a direct reply to A’s email, I’ve mostly been on the other side – as the booker or agent – which means I was the guy who had questions for the comedians (I’ve also worked with speakers, musicians and variety acts). If I couldn’t watch a live showcase in a club, I would review a video and then if still interested, check out the promo – performing credits, letters of recommendation, training, etc… If the performer looked like a good match for particular bookings – for instance, college shows or corporate events – I’d call or email and schedule a time to talk.
This is pretty standard routine. When industry execs (agents, managers and bookers) are thinking about scheduling or representing a comedian for the first time they’ll want to find out who else the comic’s worked for and in what types of venues and what position (opener, feature or headliner). If they’re located in the same city a live showcase can be arranged. But when you’re dealing with distance and regional bookings – for instance the agent is based in Chicago, the performer is in Atlanta and the gig is in Dallas – everyone has to rely on video.
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I also know bookers rely on personal recommendations from other comedians and industry people they’ve worked with and trust. I get calls and emails requesting info about comics I might know or have worked with – and do the same. In fact, I sent an email last night to a friend for any info about a comedian I don’t know, but had contacted me for work. So it does happen. It’s a wide-ranging network when you think about it.
But for you as a comic (or humorous speaker) a lot of your questions can be answered by also networking and researching. If you haven’t heard of the agent or booker, do a Google Search. They’re all on the internet with websites – if they’re legit. See what other comics they represent and what they’re doing (credits).
NOT The Improv bar
- but close enough.
Also network with other working comics and/or speakers. From my experiences, conversations about agents and bookers are pretty common. There are a lot of different opinions and experiences being shared – both good and bad. I always learned a lot about the biz and who’s doing what (good and bad) just by listening to the comics talking around the bar at The Improv.
If I were to suggest any questions, I would ask if there are any specific markets they specialize in. For instance, when I worked in NYC and LA most of the agents I came in contact with worked to get their clients on television and into the good clubs on the road. I know that sounds limited, but they were the two markets I was exposed to as a club booker in those cities.
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BUT when I started working in the Midwest, I found agencies I had NEVER even heard of before that were HUGE in the college and corporate markets. I hadn’t encountered them before because my job had me totally focused on the NYC and LA comedy clubs and TV shows.
When I got involved as a college agent (NACA) I talked with the other agents and learned most really had no interest in the NYC and LA comedy scenes. Their bread and butter ($$’s) was booking shows for colleges throughout the country. It was a full time job and the specific market they chose to work in.
So if you wanted to be on television, you would need an agent that focused on that market. If you wanted to do colleges, you’d want a good college agent.
Make sense?
So if you have an opportunity to ask an agent, manager or talent booker any questions, I would suggest learning what markets they work in the most. The big ones can usually do it all. The smaller ones have to focus on where the $$’s are for them.
One bit of advice for a first getting to know you meeting is not to ask about percentages and other contractual details – unless they bring it up first. They will if they’re interested in working with you. Then you can accept, decline or negotiate. But that’s not something you’ll have to deal with at a meet and greet session.
Otherwise, I can’t think of anything specific. The usual deal with meeting these industry people is that they’ll be asking the questions – especially if these are one on one meetings. So just answer honestly and promote yourself without being too aggressive (a pain in the butt – know what I mean?).
However if there is an opportunity to really ask questions, base them on who you are and your career goals.
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For instance, since I’ve worked with the comedian who supplied today’s question and realize “Hola” is not in my English Language word finder, he should be interested in knowing if they book any shows or work with other comedians, production companies, etc… in the Latino market. You know as well as I do how HUGE that is. If he was to go with an agent or manager, he MUST (and this is my professional opinion) go with someone who can break him into that specific market as well as English speaking gigs.
And now it’s time for one of my stories…
Al & Rocky
One of my best pals in NYC studied acting at The University of Miami. One of his classmates (his best friend!) is an actor named Rocky Echevarria, who is Cuban and bilingual. Right after graduating Rocky had a decent career working in Spanish speaking television shows, but his agent knew he was talented enough to also work in the English speaking market and put his focus in that direction. He changed his name to Steven Bauer and scored the part of Manny in the classic film Scarface with Al Pacino and earned an Academy Award nomination.
I’m not saying he couldn’t have done it with a different agent. But if had gone with an agent that only focused on the Latino market and Spanish speaking roles, my best pal (the guy at the beginning of this long story) might have had a better chance of being cast as Manny than Rocky (Steven) did. You never know.
The point is if you have an opportunity to really talk and ask questions with industry execs, find out specifically what they can offer you at this stage in your career and in the future. It could be a good fit – or it may not. But you’ll never know if you don’t ask.
Question suggestions? Please use the comment link below or email to dave@thecomedybook.com – thanks!
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Dave Schwensen is the author of How To Be A Working Comic: An Insider’s Business Guide To A Career In Stand-Up Comedy, Comedy FAQs And Answers: How The Stand-Up Biz Really Works, and Comedy Workshop: Creating & Writing Comedy Material for Comedians & Humorous Speakers.
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