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Buckin’ Harley’s is an open mic comedy show on Monday nights, located at 1451 Cortez St, Denver, CO, 80221, (303) 487-0020.

THE GOOD:

Buckin’ Harley’s has an excellent stage: it’s well lit and has lots of space to roam around.

Buckin’ Harley’s gets out just in time to make it to the Lion’s Lair for a second set for the night. If you’re looking to rack up the stage time on a Monday night Buckin’ is a great first show to hit.

Buckin’ Harley’s is very new-comic friendly. This is not a stage where you have to worry about hecklers. If you’re new to comedy than hitting one of the late-late shows with a drunken audience might be daunting. None of that going on here. The audience is very supportive of new comics and first timers still trying to work out kinks in their material.

All the comics I’ve met at Buckin’ Harley’s are very friendly. This is not a ‘clicky’ venue where you won’t feel welcome if you’re not on the in-crowd. It’s an excellent place to network. Many comics will hang out after their set, drink, smoke on the patio, and trade stories.

There’s a great mixture of seasoned comics and newbies. This is good for the audience as well as the comics. If a comic bombs than you can be sure there’s a seasoned comic who’s ready to get the show back on track.

The audience isn’t roudy. The show starts early, so you won’t find drunk audience members shouting during your set. Even the people playing pool on the other side of the room don’t get out of hand.

The number of comics per night is usually low. Many open mics you might end up number 20 on the list for the night. By the time you hit the stage the audience is exhausted (if they stuck around at all). There’s usually between 5-8 comics on a given night here, so the audience won’t be sick of watching comedy by the time you hit the stage.

The producer is very relaxed about stage time. He’s not going to cut the lights off on you if you go a little over. Since there’s few comics he’ll usually work with you if you want a longer set (as long as you keep the audience laughing).

The show ends with a headliner. Audience members rarely leave before the show is over. So no worrying about a comedian bringing 10 people who all get up and leave before you get on stage.

It’s a true open mic. You don’t need to know anybody and there’s no signing up in advance. Show up and you will get some stage time.

THE BAD:

Audience dynamics can get a pretty tough at Buckin’ Harley’s. Audience members tend to spread themselves out in this large venue. The audience is situated on a large dance floor with a couple audience members per table and lots of empty space inbetween. Making a connection and engaging the audience can be difficult. If you’re not careful you can lose the audience to table talk.

The laughter can disipate quickly, making it tough to figure out just how many laughs you’re getting. This is because Buckin’ Harley’s has one giant room instead of a seperate room for shows. There are always several people way in the back of the club listening, but you’re never going to hear them laughing cause they’re simply too far away from the stage.

There’s no light to let you know you’re running out of time. The producer usually makes an “X” with his arms to let you know your time is up. This is very easy to miss. So if you’re use to longer sets make sure you keep an eye out for the producer.

This review was written by Drew Volle, comedian and host of www.creativestandup.com and author of the book, The Making of Great Comedy which can be found on his website.