The Problem
Having years of experience in the industry, one of the biggest problems we come across everyday is the lack of gender equality within the world of comedy.
In fact, only 25% of pro comics on an agent’s books are women.
This is a problem for a number of different reasons;
- It doesn’t allow for an equal distribution of work and opportunities
- It demonstrates a lack of trust in female comics in the industry
- It’s not representative of the sheer number of (amazing!) female comics out there
How can we change this?
This is a problem for many women in stand-up comedy, whether it’s getting the only slot for a woman on a mixed bill or having to deal with misogynist bookers and promoters – so the question is, how can we change this?
At NextUp, we champion equality and diversity, and run a number of different initiatives to better improve the inequality we see in the industry.
Workshops with female comics
This isn’t a new problem, and many comics have experienced this inequality in a very real way. One of the ways we try and address this is by hosting regular workshops with the female comics we work with.
Hosted in central London, these workshops are there to provide a safe and open space for women at all stages of their career, and to offer advice, share experiences and give support to those who are stuck.
Filming & scouting
We work with a number of talented female comics, filming their work, promoting their live shows and supporting their careers. We’re striving to hit a 50/50 gender parity on our platform, meaning we actively scout and film female comics to help redress the balance in the wider industry.
This topic has been around for a long time, but sadly there’s still a long way to go before we achieve our goals. We know we can still do more, so if you have an idea or suggestion on how we can improve gender equality in the stand-up comedy industry, or you’re running a project or initiative that you think we could support you on, get in touch below and let us know.