The rules of funny

Sometimes Mel Gelbart goes blue. In the comedy world, that means she talks dirty. As a cast member at the Sacramento Comedy Spot (1050 20th Street, Suite 130), she can be seen playing new wacky characters—and occasionally vulgar ones—every week with different improv groups, including Lady Business and Anti-Cooperation League. She also directs the Harold program, coaching new comics the ways of improv. (Quick comedy lesson: Improv comedy is made up on the spot, sketch and stand-up comedy are scripted.) She's worked with Comedy Spot owner Brian Crall since 2001, long before the Midtown club even opened, but she balances it with a heavy-duty job, too. Gelbart spends her days at the district attorney's office, working with victims of juvenile crimes. Molestation. Assault. Burglaries. Sounds like a draining gig. Maybe that's why she does comedy.

When did you first realize you were funny?

Birth. I'm the younger of two. My brother is the better-at-everything-else one. He's very good looking, very smart, very athletic. So, I think I just naturally fit in as the entertainer, the class clown, the prankster. I was the troublemaker in school.

Do you think humor can be taught?

Yeah. I think the principles of comedy can definitely be taught. I think some people have an inherent knack for it. Some people have timing or just get funny. But improv has rules. I can teach you the basic rules and put you onstage, and you'll succeed. And sketch is the same thing. You watch Saturday Night Live, and you think, “I get it. You need these things to make it funny: You need an out at the end; it's gotta have an arc; it's gotta get bigger, heighten and get crazier; and then it's gotta have a big punch. I can write that.” And we have somebody here who will teach you how. I don't think everyone is naturally hilarious, but you can learn the craft. It's an art form. Like anything else, you learn the rules and practice.

Common pitfalls for new students?

Trying to be funny. Trying to be dirty. Going for a joke instead of letting it evolve naturally. If you go right out and rape the scene, it's not going to be funny. The audience is going to be taken aback. I think you have to learn to take your time and find your laugh rather than force your laugh. You'll see that with great stand-up. You'll have that smooth lead in before they hit you with that hilarious punch line, and you won't even see it coming. Improv is the same way. You'll have new students come in, and they try to do something crazy or wacky, and I'm like, “Chill. Take your time, follow the rules, set it up, have a relationship, have a location.” Because with improv, you don't have props or costumes—you have to create a world. And so much about improv is trust and collaboration. If I come out and do my one-man show of hilarious jokes, that's not improv. It's gotta be something we do together.

Have you ever done stand-up?

Once. I loved it, but it's not for me. It's very hard. It's a lot of memorization. I like being able to not worry about it, show up and just do my thing.

Is there anything you find really funny that most normal people find really unfunny?

I think when you're doing improv, you start looking around you all the time. I'll be sitting on the street and see someone and think, “Oh, that's a character. That's frickin' funny the way that person walks or stands or is interacting with their friend—that's priceless.” So I think I find the world in general funnier, and I see things maybe other people don't see.

Does Sacramento have its own sense of humor?

I think we definitely have an angle. You see a lot of hipster comedy that people in other cities may not get, but since we have such a strong Midtown community, you'll see a lot of people here really appreciate it. You start doing jokes about guys in skinny jeans and white belts, and everyone's like, “Yeah, I know him.”

Future comedic goals?

No. It sounds so pathetic, but I feel like I'm getting old.

Really? How old are you?

It's none of your business. I am very old. If I was younger, I might think about moving to a big city. But I'm so comfortable here. I love the community here. I love my house. I love my job. My relationship is here. I like where I'm at in my life. I get my needs fulfilled here at the Comedy Spot. I'm not saying if someone walked in and said, “Hey, we're doing this pilot, and we want to cast you in it,” I wouldn't say, “Fuck yes, I'll do a pilot.” But at my age, going to cattle calls and auditioning isn't for me. I'm pretty happy here.