So You Wanna Try Stand Up?

From First Joke to Final Set (A 6 Wk Course

Have you always wanted to try stand-up comedy but didn’t know where to start? Or are you a newer comic ready to sharpen your skills and build a brand-new set?

In this fun, supportive, and high-energy 6-week course, you’ll be introduced to the core fundamentals of stand-up comedy—joke writing, stage presence, mic technique, and developing your comedic voice. Each week combines writing exercises, live feedback, and performance practice to help you shape and refine a 5–10 minute set.

The course culminates in a live student showcase, where you’ll take the stage and perform your set in front of an audience.

Whether you’re taking the mic for the first time or looking to reboot your material with new direction, this course is your chance to dive in, level up, and get laughs.

This course is led by Comedy Works Pro Janae Burris

Janae Burris (Just For Laughs/NBC First Look) is a comedian and actor based in Denver, CO. A South Central Los Angeles native and CalArts alumna, who brings a bold, theatrical edge to stand-up comedy.

Janae has been featured at Portland’s Bridgetown Comedy Festival, Limestone Comedy Festival, Telluride Blues Festival, and Denver’s High Plains Comedy Festival. She’s headlined Ha Ha Harvest in Portland, JokeChella in Fort Collins, and Aspen Laugh Fest. In 2019, she was named a New Face at Just For Laughs in Montreal, and she’s showcased at NACA West, Midwest, and Central.

With a BFA in avant-garde theatre (brag), Janae’s acting credits include performances with Local Theater Co., The Catamounts, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Denver Center for the Performing Arts, and Off-Center, where she helped launch the immersive world premiere Theater of The Mind. She earned a 2021 True West Award for her acclaimed solo performance in Queen’s Girl in the World at Aurora Fox Theater. She is a proud member of Actors’ Equity.

Janae teaches empowerment through stand-up comedy to teenage girls as a camp counselor for Athena Project, and this summer marks her third year hosting Film on the Rocks at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Her debut comedy special MomBod, was released by Open Bar Media on YouTube in fall 2024. She currently tours with Josh Blue and Moms Unhinged, but if you're a local Colorado comic, you might recognize her as part of the New Talent team at Comedy Works.