Atlanta comedian Amanda Marks thrives on energy of performance and audience interaction
On the “City Lights” series “Speaking of Comedy,” Atlanta’s funniest locals share insights on the perks and perils of their profession. This installment features Atlanta-based comedian Amanda Marks.
Ready-made for the stage, even as a child Marks never turned down an opportunity to entertain. “I used to call into the local radio station – and this was in the ’80s when I was probably eight or nine – and tell them jokes, and they would put it on air,” recounted Marks. “I have always been a performer and a comedian at heart.”
However, Marks says she was always intimidated by the idea of doing stand-up, and only gave it a fair shot several years ago when her friend invited her to take a stand-up writing class. “We graduated with five minutes of material and performed in front of 300 people, and I just loved it,” she said. “This is my thing. This is what I want to do.” Marks thrives on the creative independence of writing material for a one-person performance, and the thrill of reacting to an audience’s instant feedback.
In a featured clip, Marks’ charming and confessional style is on display with a story about when her daughter was four years old: “She was super-obsessed with the idea of eventually having boobies, so I told her, ‘If you eat your broccoli, broccoli will give you boobies.’ But y’all, that smart-[expletive] took one look at me and said, ‘Mommy, looks like you only ate half of your broccoli.'”
As a busy mom, Marks admits that the hardest challenge of comedy is making time for the grind, in terms of getting out and participating in the scene’s abundance of comedy shows and open mics. But for Marks, taking production into her own hands offers an advantage.
“I started producing my own shows, so I know that that’s on the schedule, I know it’s happening, and I can coordinate with my family’s schedules,” she said. Of the Atlanta scene, among many praises, Marks said, “We have each other’s backs.”
Amanda Marks co-hosts the “Sis and Tell” podcast, and she can be found on TikTok here. Marks also hosts a recurring comedy night at The Distillery of Modern Art, with an event coming up on Feb. 23.
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