🤟 ASL Comedy: When I Tried to Learn Sign Language Mid-Set! 😂 “Learning sign language 🤣🤟! Watch my stand-up set go sideways as I attempt to teach myself (and the audience) a few signs. Did I nail the American Sign Language? Absolutely not. Was it hilarious?

Comedian: …And that’s the problem with texting! We’ve lost all non-verbal communication! We need to bring back expressing ourselves with our hands! Our hands! They’re so expressive! (Comedian gestures wildly with their free hand.)

(The comedian pauses, looking down at their hand with a sudden spark of realization.)

Comedian: Wait a minute. Speaking of hands… I’ve been trying to learn a little bit of ASL—American Sign Language—lately. I figure, hey, it’s a whole new avenue of communication! A way to be more inclusive! A way to silently order a burrito from across the room! Very practical stuff.

(The crowd laughs.)

Comedian: But I’m terrible. I look like I’m constantly arguing with a small, invisible wasp. And the signs are so specific! One tiny shift, and you’ve gone from asking for “help” to offering someone a “small, aggressive goat.”

(The comedian demonstrates an exaggerated hand shape, looking confused.)

The On-Stage Lesson

Comedian: Okay, let’s learn one together! Basic sign: “Funny.” This is important for my career. (The comedian demonstrates the correct sign for “funny” but does it hesitantly and slightly awkwardly.) You take your two fingers, and you brush them across your nose, like this! (Does the sign again.) It’s easy! Funny!

(The comedian looks at the crowd for confirmation. A few audience members attempt the sign.)

Comedian: Yeah, you look great! You look like you’re subtly wiping a smear of chocolate off your face. (Points to a person in the front row.) Sir, you look like you just remembered you left your car keys inside your nose. That’s not the sign for funny; that’s the sign for “Immediate Nasal Emergency.”

(The crowd roars.)

Comedian: Okay, let’s try a different one. A common phrase! I want to sign: “I love stand-up comedy.” That’s my brand! That’s my life!

(The comedian tries to sign a complicated sequence, resulting in a flurry of fingerspelling and random hand movements. They stop, looking totally lost.)

Comedian: Wait, wait, I messed up! I think I just told you all that my favorite color is the number seven!

The Misunderstanding

Comedian: The worst part is when you try to use the signs you think you know in real life. I was at a coffee shop the other day, and I wanted to sign “Thank you” to the barista. Simple, right?

(The comedian attempts the sign for “Thank you” but accidentally does a slightly altered version.)

Comedian: So I did this! (They demonstrate the incorrect sign, making it look like they are gently pushing something away.)

Comedian (As the Barista): “Oh, you’re welcome! Here’s your latte.”

Comedian (Signing back): “No, no, thank you!” (Does the confused sign again.)

Comedian (As the Barista, looking confused): “Are you… pushing the latte away? Are you telling me to take the latte back? Is the latte… haunted?”

Comedian: I kept signing it, trying to look sincere! And the barista just gave me this look like, “I appreciate the effort, but I’m pretty sure you just signed ‘Please keep the hot milk far away from my face.'” I ended up just having to yell “THANKS!” like a Neanderthal.

The Finale

Comedian: That’s my problem! I want to look smart and diverse, but I just end up looking like I’m doing the world’s most dramatic game of rock-paper-scissors!

(The comedian throws up the correct sign for “I love you” – the ILY sign.)

Comedian: I do know one sign I’ll always remember, and it’s a beautiful one: “I love you.” (Holds the sign up.) This one’s for the audience.

(The comedian then quickly changes the sign to “ROCK ON” (the devil horns sign) and shouts.)

Comedian: But more accurately, ROCK ON! Because I love you, but I also love loud music and staying up late! Thank you, you’ve been a great crowd! #standup #asl #standupcomedy