Calling all Bright Clubbers!

Bright Club is an evening of stand-up comedy by scientists. After seven successful editions, we will host a aight science comedy night in Brussels on March 31st 2020.

 

After a short, yet intensive comedy training, you have three weeks to prepare an eight minute comedy set in English about your life and work in academia. On D-Day, you will perform alongside the other Bright Clubbers, comedians and a professional MC.

 

Sounds interesting? Fill in the form below!

How does it work?

Step 1: You’re a researcher, preferably without a lot of stage experience

Step 2: You register using the form at the bottom of this webpage.

Step 3: We let you know whether you made it into the line up.

Step 4: You take part in the Bright Club training session.

Step 5: You have three weeks to prepare your comedy set.

Step 6: The big day! Before going on stage, you and the other Bright Clubbers take the afternoon to practice together with your coach.

Step 7: D-Day, H-Hour, Go Time at RITCS café!

Step 8: Bathe in the adoration of the masses. Bright Club is not a competition. There is no jury and there will be no prizes to hand out. Instead, you’ll go home with a warm glow of confidence in your ability to communicate succinctly, to the point and above all with humour about your work.

The 10 Commandments of Bright Club

Each Bright Club follows these ten (and a bit) commandments, originally carved out in granite by the founders of Bright Club in London.

The first rule of Bright Club is that you tell all your friends about Bright Club

The second rule of Bright Club is that you TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT BRIGHT CLUB

Third rule: Everyone has to be funny

Fourth rule: Every event will be compered by a professional comedian and feature a professional comedian headline act.

Fifth rule: Every event will feature some (4 to 8) content performers, talking amusingly about the things they study, work on or know about.

Sixth rule: For most gigs content performers should be University researchers.

Seventh rule: Lots of extra points if your content performers don’t normally do this sort of thing.

Eighth rule: Time will be divided roughly equally between professionals and content performers.

Ninth rule: Anyone who won’t attend training or put in the time to write a set with jokes in can’t perform.

Tenth rule: If the audience don’t feel like they’ve come to a proper comedy night, you’re not doing it right.

Tenth and a halfth rule: If most of the audience work or study at Universities you’re not doing it right.

Ten and three-quarterth rule: If the audience AND performers don’t leave cleverer than they arrived you’re doing it wrong.

Ten and seven-eighth rule: Charge real money for people to attend. The audience will thank you for it.

Bright Club: I want to take part!

Interested in performing at Bright Club? Register here!
    VUB PhD students receive two credits for taking part in Bright Club
    The March 2020 edition of Bright Club will be in English.

  • Check your calendar!

    The next Bright Club will take place on March 31th, 2020 and will be in English.
  • Each Bright Club costs us a significant amount of time and funds to organise. By entering this form, you commit to attending the training session. Note that we will not force anyone to perform at Bright Club against their will but taking part in the training implies that you are willing to do so. Failing to attend the training session will exclude you from performing at the upcoming Bright Club (though you are free to apply for the next one). Failing to attend training without a valid reason might lead us to demand a no show fee of 200 EUR.