I’ve been setting up book readings, for the paperback edition of The Joys of Travel, and in doing so I’m always asked if I’ll need any audio-visual equipment. I always say no, feeling inevitably like a Luddite. But then I remember that standup comedy – one of my favorite art forms – is similarly free of new technology. While entertainment devices have gotten increasingly sophisticated, the comedian still stands, unaided and unencumbered, in front of an audience, just as in ancient times. It is one of the reasons I’m so fond of standup.
