Michelle Wolf Quotes

I started by doing a little funny story, and then I started going to open mics. I realized I had a lot of work to do - you have to get over the stage fright and get your stage presence up. It took me some time, but I finally feel that I'm at a point where I feel comfortable on stage and giving my point of view.

You have to do stand-up quite a long time before you learn how to do it well. It was probably years before I was confident enough in stand-up that I was able to talk about the things I wanted to talk about, the way I wanted to talk about them.

I could never do stand-up because it's that thing of having to get up on stage. And out of every 10 jokes you tell, nine of them have to get a really good response.

The more you perform and get out there, I guess the more practice you have at it and the better you are and the more comfortable you are on stage.

I'd say I'm the opposite of someone that has the urge to stand in front of strangers and make them laugh, but the idea of getting up and telling a story and people finding it amusing always appealed to me.

Stand-up keeps you alive. It is definitely the most specialized field in comedy because you need to stay sharp and well-tuned every night.

If you are doing stand-up comedy, you have to be confident in what you are doing. That doesn't mean just because you are confident you are funny.

I didn't know if I could be funny on stage or write a joke. But I saw that there are no rules. If you're funny offstage, you can figure out a way to be funny onstage.

Stand-up comedy is not a man's job. It's an alpha job: To be the only person in a room with a microphone who's allowed to talk.

As a presenter, you have to speak with artificial energy and enthusiasm.

Stand-up is not something that you're good at right away. You have to do it a ton. But, I think I got to shave a year off because I didn't have to get over stage fright.

I think anybody in front of a crowd is a comedian.

One place that I really feel comfortable is being a comedienne. I'm very socially inept. There's so many things that I can not do in life, and this is, like, the one thing that I have mastery over. It's my world. And anybody who's coming to the show, it's like they're coming because they know that this is my world.

I think the more you do this and the more comfortable you become on stage, you start speaking more and becoming more of a character in yourself.

I feel like I own the stage.

I feel so much at home onstage and so comfortable in my body.

I guess there's this mind shift that happens once you're on stage. I don't know, chemicals, something happens and you just... I just become completely in control of where I am. And it's all about trusting the people that you're on the stage with, listening... and it just falls into place really easily.

Onstage I have a natural chutzpa that audiences like. I'm out there.

You have to open up on stage.

When you're a stand-up, you play in front of 600 people, and it's all about timing. I could never do stand-up comedy; it would be way too hard for me.

The really good stand up comedians can be angry but relatable, and they have interestingly humanizing personalities. Their observational skills are far greater than mine, so I'll just stick to reading lines off a page.

I took a public speaking class in college and managed to make the class laugh a little bit.

There's just something about being on stage and being with the people that, once that camera turns on, you find the strength to keep it cool, look good, act like you're not cold, act like you ain't nervous, act like you aren't scared. I think that comes with confidence and practice.

I don't think one should be comfortable standing on a stage with people applauding and laughing at every stupid thing you say.

I had no fear of speaking to large audiences.