Jorjeana Marie adds a nutty flavor
Jorjeana Marie is the Los Angeles Times bestselling author of Improv for Writers (Penguin Random House/Ten Speed Press) and a staff writer on the Emmy-nominated Tab Time with Tabitha Brown. She is the magical rabbit “Trikini” on Disney’s Mickey Mouse Funhouse and Mickey Mouse and the Roadster Racers (she also wrote on both shows).
You may recognize her voice from Nickelodeon, Disney, PBS or for narrating over 400 audiobooks for authors including Meg Wolitzer, Nina La Cour, Jacqueline Woodson, R. L. Stine, Elizabeth Gilbert. Kate DiCamillo and Gayle Forman. Winner of a prestigious Audie, a SOVAS, and more than a dozen Earphones awards, Jorjeana has been named one of the best YA voices by AudioFile Magazine year after year.
What were you like as a teen?
I discovered I was funny onstage. In a Neil Simon play. I had no idea I was a funny person ’til the lights went up on the stage and the laughs rained down. I wept after. The audience had shown me who I could be. When I think about that moment… it’s bliss.
Did you have an un-sexy starter job?
I did rigging, roofing and siding, and carpentry. Manual labor. A lot of work being the only woman on a crew. So, stand-up was a similar thing, unfortunately. For a long time. I’m so glad it’s changing.
What do you consider to be your biggest comedy achievement to date?
I opened for Richard Lewis at The Improv. Two-person show.
I mean, I’ve written on Emmy-nominated shows and voiced characters for Disney and so on, but that… was another kind of dream come true. That was my my writing, my tenacity to get that gig booked, my delivery and I had grown up watching him… I really enjoyed working with someone I looked up to.
When you were coming up in comedy, what helped you stick with it?
The ideas for bits just kept hitting me hard alongside the head. And I just really felt I had to keep going with it and see where it took me.
Have you ever dealt with trolls? Hecklers?
I have had some pretty not great experiences touring as a woman. I was stalked while touring and yes, I escaped, but I left comedy for a long while. I’m pretty private now but I had to work through that, for real. I did get up again, I wrote some material about it, and tried a few things out. Of course, I saw a therapist, I got trauma counseling. I worked and worked on this and created a program with yoga/breathing to reset my nervous system to feel safe again. The thing is… I still want to do stand-up. I still love it. I still write regularly and make a part of my living from it, in addition to writing/acting. I still feel like I have to keep going and see where it will take me.
On your deathbed, what transcendent advice would you croak at a young comedian?
Quit clowning around and get the nurse already! Can’t you see I’m dying?
Best comedy advice you ever got?
From Eddie Izzard: They talked about the power of making it look improvised, but know exactly where you’re going, it’s ALL planned out. That was enlightening. From Robin Williams. No matter what, you play the part the best you can. (We were talking about Shakespeare – I had been cast very strangely in a production and he helped me make sense of it.)
Worst comedy advice you ever got?
Give up. Do something else. (From kind of a big TV star). Ugh. But I knew he was not a genuine clown himself so I just ignored him.
How has being funny helped you in your life?
Being funny really comes in handy. It’s just much more enjoyable than always being a sad-sack and complaining. Trust me, I’ve tried that too. Yech!
What specific things do you think a novice comic or comedy writer should do to shape their voice?
I think watching or listening to what worked and graphing it was one of the most helpful things I ever did. Rating the laughs you got at each joke, making sure you have jokes at every 20 seconds or so, etc. Re-listening is REALLY important, because in the moment, under the lights, your memory of the minute details – you just can’t capture how it’s all going down, but if you record your set, play it back, take notes, take notes, take notes, tighten it all up, you are going to be stronger the next set. That’s an absolute promise.
Was there one person who inspired you to go into comedy?
Really, just seeing women on TV on the specials and late at night was it. I was a pretty sick kid in the hospital a lot and I’d lie in bed and watch what we didn’t have at the trailer… cable. And I saw these women standing on stage. In suits. Making people laugh. And a whole world opened up for me. Get out there and get the gig!
Do you have a writing routine?
I write every day, aside from jotting bits down. When I’m touring, I’m working way more, memorizing, writing new bits for this audience, registering to what worked in the last show, preparing, preparing. Those have been my best sets, when I was just in it, writing, re-watching, studying, tightening, etc. Being more prepared left room on stage to be free and play a smidge and get laughs there too.
I don’t write every single day. I do writing sprints every single day for 90 days–giving myself a calendar and some gold or scratch-n-sniff stickers until I’ve hit all 90 days of whatever quota I give myself. (I’m currently on a write for ten minutes a day trip, but it always ends up being longer than ten minutes. It’s just to trick me, you know?) Then I take a little time off. After a while, I’ll start another sprint. I need the mix-up. The daily writing routine is awesome, but I love that I give myself little vacations from needing to do anything. Also, I run out of stickers.
What is your go-to show or movie when you’ve had a bad day?
Sketchy characters. Especially Key & Peele, SNL, and Kristen Wiig anytime.
What single word always cracks you up?
nut-sack or numb-nut. Hmm. I guess just nut. …Nope. Still needs the flavor… Nutball. Back on track.