Sketch Show Writing
How does writing sketch comedy differ from other types of comedy?
Where you have twenty two minutes in a sitcom to get a story out, in a sketch comedy show you have only four minutes to get a story out. So that's an obvious talent. So, how do you tell that story. Well just pack it with jokes, and establish the characters in that brief amount of time. It's an art. There are people that do it very, very well; others who try and just don't know how to do it.
How do writers create recurring characters in sketch shows?
It always happens as a by-product of a successful performance - for us. In sitcoms it's more engineered and more written, but on sketch shows and talk shows it's usually when we have a character that comes on the show and is hilarious. We are smart enough to know to bring them back a few times and get that many more laughs.
What is the role of recurring characters on sketch shows?
Recurring characters are interesting because you have to know how to use them, and how much to use them. On the Mind of Mencia show, Carlos' brother Joseph, who's a guy who has a very heavy accent and very dark skin and looks like your typical Mexican (but he is actually Guatemalan), and we use him quite a lot to play off pieces. We use him to come out with a single line that he butchers up and it's always the high point of the show. The problem is the more you see it, the more it loses a little punch, and it also loses a little bit of strength and effectiveness. We used to do it with the Letterman show with Larry “Bud” Melman. He was always a great recurring character, but you just can't be greedy. You know that these people will always deliver and you want to use them more and more and more. You know that by having these recurring characters, and if they are good, that there is a sure fire laugh, but you just don't want to use it all up.
