Quotes from Ted Alexandro

The blues is a hopeful music. It helps you process something rather than avoid it. It's like mourning, in essence.

Laughing at something is a form of accepting it or at list making peace with it.

I don't know that I have a single comedy philosophy. But talking about things that matter to you is a good place to start. Listening is a big part of it, too.

Opening for Louis C.K. during his "Hilarious" tour was a great experience for me. He is the generation just ahead of me, because he started so young.

Comedians act every night on stage, so they have great performing chops. They especially know how to play themselves, which is how we set 'Teachers Lounge' up.

Comedy takes all of life and puts it through a lens of acceptance, just by the mere act of talking about it on stage in a communal setting. It's very primal and ritualistic in that sense.

I think there comes a time in any comedian's career where they can either coast or keep growing and evolving.

'Teachers Lounge' is a web series I co-created with Hollis James. We intentionally left the apostrophe out to turn 'Lounge' into a verb. The show is about teachers lounging around, wasting time.

Sometimes crowds start out not liking someone but then they shift and love them. Or vice versa. It can shift on a dime.

Ultimately, an audience wants to laugh. That's who they like, the comedian who makes them laugh.

Hard work is a muscle that you develop, as is taking risks.

In terms of my own work ethic, I've always been a determined person. When I'm focused on something, I try to see it through.

With a project like 'Teachers Lounge,' you're wearing a lot of hats, so it demands hard work and focus if you want to do it right.

If you're funny, you can find a stage to get on. If you're good, you'll start to get work and eventually get paid.

Certainly, you want to be liked, but as you gain confidence and experience you're more concerned with expressing yourself and what matters to you.

I'm keeping in shape, you know, gotta look good for the ladies - and certain guys. Hey, I can't control who's looking. I just gotta bring the heat.

That heightened dynamic can produce interesting, funny ideas that are phrased in ways that surprise even you, as the performer.

I think the more you hone your voice, take risks and talk about things that matter, the better chance you have of getting into the realm of the philosophers of stand up. But you have to be funny.

I often think about my future wife and how lax she's been about getting in touch with me.

Not that that's the goal, but sometimes these funny insights can also be deeply profound.