Sassi Keegan

Today I am interviewing Sassi Keegan, a comedian born in Lewiston, ME who has been doing comedy for four years. To find out more about Sassi, please visit her website.


Why did you start doing stand-up comedy?

I was tired of auditioning for plays, film and TV shows to get "stage time" and I saw Steve Aron's ad in Backstage for bringer shows at the New York Comedy Club and so I thought, "Great I can book myself! I don't have to wait to be cast." I did character monologues at first, and then eventually incorporated more mainstream stand-up.

What would you change about the business of stand-up comedy?

I've learned the hard way many times that I can only change myself. Many times I have waited for other people to give me "permission" to own the stage. In business most people are focused on themselves and how they can get ahead. It isn't necessarily bad, just true. I used to book a lot of people and expect them to remember the favor and book me at some point. This doesn't always happen. I produce a lot and I have my own entertainment company which generates the bulk of my road work. I love working for other people but I don't wait around for it. I do tend to book people who are kind and easy to work with. I'm lucky I know some brilliant comics who I can call true friends and I book them over and over again because they treat me with respect, do a great job and aren't drama queens. The rest of the time I spend working on my act so I can be undeniably funny. That's all subjective though, so I work most on speaking my truth and that is gratifying.

Do you have any role models or heroes and how do they influence you?

Lady comics in my circle who I really enjoy watching: Nancy Lomabardo, Becky Donahue, Mary Dimino, Bernadette Pauly. Famous people: Phyllis Diller, Lily Tomlin, Carol Burnette, Robin Williams, Steve Martin and this guy I just saw at Gotham Greg Morton, he did some crazy character pieces and sound effects that really inspired me creatively.