Little Lark of London

“Part of what makes standup fun is the fear you might bomb”

Lucas Zelnick, an American comedian based in New York City, is starting a worldwide tour in London. His work, described as comedy that “challenges his cushy upbringing through punch-heavy material,” has received over 100 million views on both TikTok and Instagram. Before his London performance at the Leicester Square Theatre on 7 July, Little Lark of London had the chance to interview Zelnick about his tour. We discussed how he first got into comedy, what it has been like preparing for the tour and even what he hopes audiences take away from his show. 

How did you first get started in the world of comedy?

A fair amount of delusion. I got back to NY after college and realized that I didn’t want to work in finance and thought I was funny, so I started doing open mics. I was very lucky to meet a best friend and collaborator named Jamie Wolf, and we started doing shows together. One thing led to another and I started to get . . . I don’t know if I’d say good at comedy, but decent? But I was delusional, confident and believed I was funny from a young age.

What is your creative process like for a show like this one?

It’s interesting – it’s my first time headlining abroad. When I’m in America, I think about the place I’m going to, but also that people who are coming to see me know my tone and who I am. This process of preparation has been more about which jokes of mine translate internationally, so I’ve come here a little bit early to do spots at the clubs and figure out exactly which parts of the act they’ll understand. But this is all new territory for me because it’s my first international headlining show, so my primary goal is to be myself, have fun and start to build a fanbase here.

How does it feel to be performing on an international tour?

It’s kind of a crazy thought to be in another country and have people want to come see me, but I’m nervous – comedy is not as good at travelling as music is. So a little bit nerve-wracking, a little bit cool, a little bit exciting. I think part of what makes standup fun is the fear you might bomb, and certainly, I have more fear that I might bomb than I would in America.

Are you expecting different reactions in the different countries you’re touring in?

The biggest thing I’ve felt performing in England is that I’m running up against negative American stereotypes. Part of succeeding or excelling is showing confidence on stage is a touch of arrogance from the comedian, but when you’re dealing with the fact that people assume Americans are arrogant and over confident then it might not be not the best look. So I’ve tried to show that I’m confident on stage but also show respect for the new place that I’m in. For example, I’m from NY so when I go to Ohio in America, I would say that Ohio sucks. But I don’t think I should come to England and say it sucks because it doesn’t come off as funny, it comes off like I’m an annoying American. I’ve also heard that different audiences react differently – I’ve heard applause breaks are more common here, but laughter is less common so we’ll figure out if that’s true.

What is it like to not only perform full shows but curate your comedy for social media like Instagram and TikTok?

I don’t think of it as curating, but more [that] I do the full show and when the show is over I think about moments that can be cut up cleanly so it’s more the reverse. But one thing I definitely have to be aware of in this age of social media is, what are the moments from my show that would be good at marketing them to new fans? How do I edit them? Typically when I’m on stage I just think about doing the best show I can. When I’m off stage later I think – can any of that work on social media?

What do you hope audiences take away from the show?

My goal with comedy has always been to make audiences know and understand me as well as my best friends do when we’re all having a lot of fun together. So I want them to get to know me, and they have a lot of fun and I can make them laugh. I don’t always have specific goals in terms of making any one specific point. I don’t expect everyone to agree with all the points I make throughout the show, but what I want them to take away is my perspective on the world, and my perspective on the world is life is a lot more fun if you can laugh at it – the hard things, the easy things and everything in between

How would describe the show in one word?

I fucking hope funny! But if its not funny, I don’t have a good second word – everything would be a very distant second place to funny. If someone called my show “thoughtful” I think I’d kill myself, but I do have some things that I talk about that mean a lot to me that I’ve thought a lot about. I guess thoughtful would be a distant second to funny, but if that’s what you call it – know you’re insulting me.

Lucas Zelnick’s next show is in London at the Leicester Square Theatre on 7 July. Tickets for this performance can be purchased here. Zelnick continues touring through December 2024. For more information, click here.

Photo Credit: Jim McCambridge