This is dedicated to ThatBlondeGirl, who contacted me and asked for a detailed explanation on how I create a routine from start to finish.

First, I'm afraid I have to confess that every time I create a routine it's slightly different. Sometimes the Music sparks the idea, sometimes it's a prop or a costume.

Most likely it's an idea that just appears one day.

The most recently created routine has been my Pirate themed "Pasties Ahoy!".

Once upon a day, on a far away notice board known as Facebook there was a post from a costumer looking for a performer wanting a pirate costume. My mind started brimming with ideas and a couple of messages later we'd settled on a time travelling steampunk pirate.

One of my personal heroines is the fabulous Emma Hamilton (I highly recommend 'Englands Mistress by ) and I decided to base my character on her fictional roommate. Cast aside by Nelson and gang pressed into a steampunk pirate space. The character in place I was able to play around with plots and ideas. You can't have pirates without treasure so I decided that She would be hunting down the belongings of her former friend and rival.

I'm a big fan of treating each routine as a little play (even if not instantly apparent to the audience) so I had the idea for first act in Place.

Act 1. The hunt for the treasure

Watching lot's of Pirate cartoons I had the idea of casting away the old fashioned treasure chest in return for the more modern Sat Nav, And while watching nautical cartoons you will come across plenty of Spongebob episodes - which lead me to the music for the first act of my routine.

Act 2. The opening of the treasure

After the success of finding the treasure, you need a disappointment - how to open it? Sword & Gun both fail. Only for the memory of a key to appear (although I am still playing with the loony Tune idea of spending time and energy undoing a lock…that then turns out to have been open all along)…

I had so much trouble finding the right music for this part of the act. I tried hunting for pirate/nautical/sea shanties/movie music and just couldn't find the right music for the act. Then when hunting for music for an entirely different act, I came across the Pete Gunn theme tune which proved to be perfect. I used this music for the remainder of the routine.

Act 3. Success!

The treasure is opened and there was buried gold…of a sort ….

 

Notes:

I am a firm believer that act's should be under five minutes. Nothing worse then seeing someone struggle through minute number 9 of an act that really should have finished 7 minutes ago. Yes, there are some fabulous performers out there who can hold a stage for 10 minutes of magic. Most can't - and as always, you should leave the audience wanting more.

If you find yourself rushing through an act, then try rethinking it. You don't need 17 items to remove - just removing one can take 3 minutes if done well. And don't try to cram too much in, if need be make it two separate acts instead of one long one.

If you're trying to think of ideas and keep hitting a mental block, then go and do something else completely. You'll be amazed at what your mind throws up when you least expect it. But try to think about character before plot & costume as it'll influence both. When you do have an idea then youtube it. Watch any cartoons/slapstick/popular scenes about the subject to help with ideas. (And to make sure your idea isn't already out there*)

 

* Performers spend a lot of time and energy creating routines and it has been known for new performers to 'borrow' routines. Don't. It'll get you blacklisted and annoy people who are probably much better established and have a lot more contacts. In the case of one performer who borrowed another's routine down to the design of the pasties, it could even have you barred from being an audience member.
At the same time, most performers realise that there are no 'new ideas' and the same theme pops up a lot. Housewife, Secretary, Innocent getting drunk - they've all been done and will always be a safe fall back for those learning. But for the more unusual ideas you have an additional problem if you are a newbie to the scene. There are performers out there who have stamped their personality/style so strongly on a routine that similar routines created by a newer performer will be dismissed as it simply won't measure up. Have a look at Anna Fur Laxis's iconic 'Betty' tribute. No other Betty routine I've seen comes close.

 

Just to give you a balanced look at act creation, I'm also posting a 'How I do it' from another performer, Rose De Vine.

 

 

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