How comedy heals past wounds

Finding joy in laughter, light roasts, and stand-up comedians

- POCH EULALIA

Though a crowd of 11 people might not seem much for a comedy show, we felt an immense joy that let us escape our mundane lives for even just a short while.

From reels online, a crowd work show might seem like a risk to watch live, in fear that you become targeted by the performer's playful jabs. There are those who might find themselves turning viral and immortalized online over what should've been a five-second gag. Others could be bold enough to heckle the performer, oftentimes unsuccessfully, and end up making a proper fool of themselves. This recent crowd work performance we caught live at the Koolpals Bar at Cellar, Century City Hotel, however, shows us these risks are worth taking.

In one night, seven stand-up comedians (Joseph Montecillo, Ron Dulatre, Emman Lauz, Dex Conche, Russel Arabis, Jasper Reyes, and River Cruz) took to the mic and gave their all in making sure everyone in the room had a good laugh. No one was spared from each performer's act, as much of the show was interactive, with those onstage asking members of the audience about their personal lives to find material to work with. Yet, even with all the light roasts being thrown, it almost felt like a therapeutic experience for those present to share aspects of their life willingly as material for quick jokes. There were stories of traumatic events, tragic losses, heart-wrenching breakups, nightmare workloads, and somehow the performers onstage managed to work their magic and turn each crushing moment into punchlines we all enjoyed. After the show, we sat down with the night's main acts, Joseph and Ron, to see just how comedy manages to get us through hard times and what it's like to be behind the mic.

Crowd work isn't easy, you can have a dead audience or someone could get mad. How do you guys deal with working with a crowd, especially if it's not in your favor?