--- title: "Cruise Ship Comedian Sets: Clean and Adult Shows | D.O.C." description: "A roadmap for cruise comics: build a clean show and an adult show at the lengths lines and agencies publish, test them, and know when to audition." url: https://disciplesofcomedy.com/career-atlas-cruise-comedian-sets.html updated: 2026-11-10 --- The Career Atlas · Cruises & travel · stop 1 of 5 # Cruise ship sets: two shows that adapt Start the playbook → Your proof The short answer Cruise lines and their agencies book comics for whole shows, not short spots: a family-friendly show and an adult one, each long enough to fill the room’s slot, with enough different material that a guest who sees you twice hears something new. Build both to the lengths the buyers publish, test them in different rooms, and count the minutes that hold. - **15** steps, each with its “done when” - **3** buyers, in their own words - **4** places to send it - **4** notes ready to send By D.O.C. Editorial · [The Career Atlas](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-career-atlas.html) ## This roadmap, in five parts Your roadmap ## From here to send an audition that convinces Where you are, the tests for the next stop, and the steps between, in the order most comics take them. The steps are the Career Field Manual's; mark each one as you go, and the day goes in your passport. You’re here if… ### Act for the travel market: building the shows - You feature or headline in clubs, and a full set holds a paying room. - You have more material than one set, and some of it is clean enough for a family audience. - You’ve read what cruise lines and agencies ask for, and found they want whole shows at lengths of their own. - You can see yourself away from home for days at a time, playing for the same guests more than once. You’re ready to move on when… ### …to [send an audition that convinces](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/career-atlas-cruise-comedian-audition.html) These are the tests the cruise buyers set in their own published rules before they’ll watch an audition. Tick each one when it’s true for you. You have two shows that fill the slot: Warshaw Entertainment asks for an original family-friendly show and an adult (18+) show, each 30–55 minutes, and Carnival for 90 minutes of different material: a 30-minute family-friendly show and two 30-minute adult shows. [Warshaw Entertainment ↗](https://warshawentertainment.squarespace.com/soloists) · [Carnival Entertainment ↗](https://www.carnivalentertainment.com/opportunities/comedy-variety) Your clean material runs long: Lime Entertainment looks for comics with 90+ minutes of clean material. [Lime Entertainment ↗](https://lime.inc/performers/dj-techs-hosts/) You have video of both kinds of show: Carnival asks for two videos of previous show work, one with PG content and one with adult content. [Carnival Entertainment ↗](https://www.carnivalentertainment.com/opportunities/comedy-variety) Your experience reaches past the open mic: Warshaw looks for professional comics with experience in land-based clubs, cruise ships, resorts, casinos and colleges. [Warshaw Entertainment ↗](https://warshawentertainment.squarespace.com/soloists) Your promo is funny from the first seconds: Warshaw says that if it isn’t laughing 20 seconds into your promo, it’s a problem. [Warshaw Entertainment ↗](https://warshawentertainment.squarespace.com/soloists) 0 of 5 true ### The playbook 15 steps in 4 parts, from the Career Field Manual. Each has its “done when”, a D.O.C. tool for it, and your status, note and target date; star up to twelve for your 90-day plan. #### Know the audiences and the rules From the Career Field Manual: Choose your starting point and Explore specialty markets. In [the D.O.C. book](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-book.html): topics 1–20, 435–455, 132–142 and 143–173. 1. Choose your starting point · start-04 #### Identify three kinds of audiences you want to test **Done when** Three audience descriptions, not follower counts. [How comics read the room →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-read-the-room.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 2. Explore specialty markets · specialty-06 #### Research cruise entertainer audition requirements Read the line’s or the agency’s own page, not a job board: lengths, content rules and the number of shows differ from buyer to buyer. **Done when** Current operator or agency requirements. Where to send it, on this page → [Cruise lines, from the D.O.C. book →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-casino-and-cruise-comedy.html#topic-172) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date #### Grow two shows without padding From the Career Field Manual: Grow the act without padding and Write original material. In [the D.O.C. book](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-book.html): topics 51–70, 115–131, 435–455 and 21–50. 3. Grow the act without padding · set-04 #### Create alternate openers and closers **Done when** Two usable opening and closing choices. [The Writers’ Room →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/how-to-write-stand-up-comedy.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 4. Grow the act without padding · set-05 #### Build a flexible twenty-minute set **Done when** A recording that shows pacing across the act. [From five minutes to twenty →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-expand-a-comedy-set.html) [Log the set in Stage Time →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stage-time.html#log) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 5. Grow the act without padding · set-06 #### Build a thirty-minute feature-length set **Done when** Material tested in several different rooms. [Log the set in Stage Time →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stage-time.html#log) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 6. Grow the act without padding · set-07 #### Build forty-five minutes with a deliberate sequence **Done when** Audience-tested act, not just a timed draft. [Building an hour →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-build-an-hour.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 7. Grow the act without padding · set-08 #### Build and test an hour before promising an hour Carnival counts total minutes of different material: build the hour from bits your other show doesn’t use. **Done when** A full headline-length performance in a real room. [Building an hour →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-build-an-hour.html) [Read the tape in Comic Critique →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/critique.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 8. Write original material · write-08 #### Keep a retired-material folder instead of erasing work Keep a list of which bits sit in which show, so a guest who sees you twice hears different jokes. **Done when** A place for unused bits and past versions. [Keeping track of your jokes →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-joke-notebook.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date #### Make the clean show its own From the Career Field Manual: Explore specialty markets. In [the D.O.C. book](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-book.html): topics 132–142 and 143–173. 9. Explore specialty markets · specialty-01 #### Separate club-clean from client-clean material A ship’s family show and its adult show have two content rules: write down what each allows before you sort the bits. **Done when** Two clearly defined content policies. [Clean vs. Dirty →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/clean-dirty.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 10. Explore specialty markets · specialty-02 #### Build an actually tested clean set **Done when** A live recording of the specific clean set. [How to write a clean set →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-clean-comedy-set.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 11. Explore specialty markets · specialty-03 #### Document the length of clean material you can deliver **Done when** A proven runtime, not an optimistic estimate. [Your log in Stage Time →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stage-time.html#log) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date #### Test it, and count what holds From the Career Field Manual: Build a repetition habit and Assemble booking proof. In [the D.O.C. book](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-book.html): topics 96–114, 415–434 and 143–173. 12. Build a repetition habit · reps-01 #### Keep an accurate log of every performance **Done when** Venue, date, minutes, set and room notes. [Log it in Stage Time →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stage-time.html#log) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 13. Build a repetition habit · reps-05 #### Try the revised bit in a different room Test the clean show in front of a crowd that isn’t your home room: an older audience, a mixed one, one from out of town. **Done when** Two-room comparison rather than one verdict. [Find another room in Stage Time →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stage-time.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 14. Build a repetition habit · reps-07 #### Track your sets and minutes over the last 30 days **Done when** Your real count, not a target presented as fact. [Your log in Stage Time →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stage-time.html#log) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date 15. Assemble booking proof · package-06 #### List your proven set lengths accurately List each show’s length as you’ve really done it in a room, not the length you hope to reach. **Done when** Lengths you can deliver in real rooms. The two-show sheet → [How long is a set? →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-comedy-set-lengths.html) **Your note and target date** Your note: what you did, a link, what's next Target date ### What speeds this up - **Write clean first** A joke that works clean can go in either show. [How to write a clean set →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-clean-comedy-set.html) - **Grow the set in tested steps** Five to ten to twenty and on to an hour, each step proven in a room. [Turning five minutes into twenty →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-expand-a-comedy-set.html) - **Read the room you have** A ship’s audience can span ages and countries in one room. [How comics read the room →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-read-the-room.html) - **Keep a list for each show** Know which bits belong to which show before a run starts. [Keeping track of your jokes →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-joke-notebook.html) - **Play the long rooms on land** Casinos, resorts and colleges book longer, cleaner shows too. [Rooms beyond the clubs →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-comedy-venues-beyond-clubs.html) - **Study a clean comic** Watch how a long clean act is built and paced. [Brian Regan: Making Ordinary Life Absurd →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/study-brian-regan.html) Each week ## Your weekly rhythm here Habits, not a timetable: the atlas has no stopwatch. Keep these going, and the proof for this stop builds up week by week. - **Run a long set** Where a room gives you the time, do the full show, not your strongest twenty. - **Alternate the shows** Do the clean show one night and the adult show the next, and log which minutes held in each. - **Fill one gap** Write or rework one piece for whichever show is shorter. - **Play a different crowd** Take one set in front of an audience unlike your usual one: older, younger, mixed or from out of town. - **Keep the material apart** Mark each bit clean, adult or both, so the two shows don’t trade the same jokes. - **Re-read one buyer’s page** Check one line’s or agency’s own page for its current lengths and content rules. What buyers check ## In their own words Each buyer's published rule, quoted from its own page, checked on 10 November 2026. They differ, so send each one what its page asks for, and read the page again before you send. A cruise agency’s published criteria ### Warshaw Entertainment An original family-friendly show and an adult (18+) show, each 30–55 minutes, from comics with experience in clubs, ships, resorts, casinos and colleges. Comics are typically away three to seven days at a time. - You must have an original family friendly and an adult (18+) show, each 30-55 minutes in length. - We're looking for professional comedians with experience in land based comedy clubs, cruise ships, resorts, casinos and colleges. - Comedians are typically away for three to seven days at a time. [Warshaw Entertainment’s page ↗](https://warshawentertainment.squarespace.com/soloists) · checked 10 November 2026 A cruise line’s own page ### Carnival Entertainment Ninety minutes of different material: a 30-minute family-friendly show and two 30-minute adult shows, for a gig of five performances that include repeats. - Experienced comic with a minimum of 90 total minutes of different material. - 30 minutes of clean content (Family Friendly Show) - Each gig consists of 5 performances which include repeats. [Carnival Entertainment’s page ↗](https://www.carnivalentertainment.com/opportunities/comedy-variety) · checked 10 November 2026 A cruise agency’s published criteria ### Lime Entertainment Comics with 90+ minutes of clean material, versatile enough for very different audiences, who send videos of their stand-up. - 90+ minutes of clean material, with the versatility to crack up even the most diverse of demographics - Send us videos of your stand-up [Lime Entertainment’s page ↗](https://lime.inc/performers/dj-techs-hosts/) · checked 10 November 2026 ### Where to send it Places that publish how a cruise comic gets in, each checked on 10 November 2026. Save one to your booking desk to keep its status, a follow-up date and a note. [62 places in all, on the Career Atlas →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-career-atlas.html#ways) Published route Carnival Cruise Line ships · Cruise line · Through an agent #### Carnival Entertainment, comedians Guest entertainers come to it through an agent. For comics: 90 minutes of different material (a 30-minute family-friendly show and two 30-minute adult shows), credits and bio as a PDF, a headshot, and two videos of show work, one PG and one adult. A gig is five performances, repeats included. **Worth knowing.** It asks agents who aren’t yet set up with it to contact its guest entertainer team: without an agent, start with one. [Its page ↗](https://www.carnivalentertainment.com/opportunities/comedy-variety) Checked 10 November 2026 Published route Royal Caribbean ships · Cruise line · Profile #### Royal Caribbean, Headliner Entertainment Its Headliner Entertainment careers list a Comedians position: professional comics who can work a comedy club or a theater setup, with at least an hour of varied material, clean and adult. Apply online by creating a profile on its site. **Worth knowing.** Its list of positions loads with the page’s script. You must be 18 or older to be hired. [Its page ↗](https://royalcaribbeanentertainment.com/headliner/careers/) Checked 10 November 2026 Published route Nationwide · Cruise market · Form #### Warshaw Entertainment An original family-friendly show and an adult (18+) show, each 30–55 minutes; comics are typically away three to seven days at a time. **Worth knowing.** Read the agency’s and the cruise line’s contracts before signing. [Its page ↗](https://warshawentertainment.squarespace.com/soloists) Checked 10 November 2026 Published route International · Cruise market · Form #### Lime Entertainment, comics Comics with 90+ minutes of clean material and the range for very different audiences: send videos of your stand-up through its application. **Worth knowing.** Its FAQ says that where a line’s arrangement calls for it, it takes a commission from the salary on board: read its terms before you sign. [Its page ↗](https://lime.inc/performers/comics/) Checked 10 November 2026 The money here ### What the shows cost you to build None of the buyers on this page publishes what it pays a comic, so this page gives no figure. At this stop the spending is yours: the stage time, the tape and the trips to the rooms where you test. **Know before you audition** - The lengths each buyer asks for, in its own words, with the date you read them - Whether it wants a clean show, an adult show or both - How many shows a run holds, and whether guests may see you twice - Whether it books comics directly or through an agent - What filming a long set costs you: the room, the camera and the trip - Your monthly budget for building the act [Road Maps: the Math of a Gig, with your own numbers](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/comedy-road-maps.html#math-of-a-gig) · [Get Paid, Get Back: the deal in writing](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/get-paid.html#deal) · [The IRS on gig work ↗](https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/manage-taxes-for-your-gig-work) Ready to copy ## The notes to send Fill in what you know once: it fills every note below and stays on this device. Anything left blank shows in [brackets], to fill in by hand. Your details Your name Your home town The club The booker’s name The set length you want to test, in minutes Your clean show, in minutes Your adult show, in minutes Where the clean show was tested Where the adult show was tested Bits in both shows, if any Your longest set in one night, in minutes Your clip’s link The show date Your credits, as they are Your SUCDb record or website ### The two-show sheet ``` [Your name]: two shows Family-friendly show: [Your clean show, in minutes] minutes, tested at [Where the clean show was tested] Adult show (18+): [Your adult show, in minutes] minutes, tested at [Where the adult show was tested] Bits in both shows: [Bits in both shows, if any] Longest set done in one night: [Your longest set in one night, in minutes] minutes Latest tape: [Your clip's link] ``` ### Asking a room for a longer set ``` Subject: A longer set at [The club]? Hi [The booker's name], I'm [Your name], a stand-up from [Your home town]. I'm building a [The set length you want to test, in minutes]-minute clean show and would like to test it in front of a real audience. If you have a night where a longer set would help the show, I'd be glad to do it. A recent set: [Your clip's link] Thank you, [Your name] ``` ### Asking to film the long set ``` Hi [The booker's name], May I film my set on [The show date] for an audition reel? One camera at the back, nothing in the way of the room, and I'll send you a copy. If the room has a recording policy, I'll follow it. Thank you, [Your name] ``` ### The two-line cruise bio ``` [Your name] is a stand-up comedian from [Your home town] with a family-friendly show and an adult show. Credits, as they are: [Your credits, as they are]. Clips: [Your SUCDb record or website] ``` Your proof ## Proof for your passport Tick each piece when you have it: the day goes in your passport with it. The passport keeps your whole career's record on this device, to download, print and review once a year. The evidence ### This stop is done when you have A family-friendly show, timed and tested in front of real audiences An adult show of different material, timed and tested the same way A long set of each show, filmed whole A log of where each show ran and which minutes held Two buyers’ current requirements, from their own pages, with the day you checked them Your status ### Several sets that adapt A link to your proof: a tape, a booking, a review Your private note **On your record** Nothing yet: your status changes and ticks appear here, each with its day. [Your whole passport: the timeline, your booking desk, your 90-day plan, the printable career record, the yearly review and the cloud copy →](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-career-atlas.html#passport) Saved in this browser ## Next stops [Cruises & travel · The package **Send an audition that convinces** Many cruise roles want an experienced act: read each one’s terms.](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/career-atlas-cruise-comedian-audition.html) [Private & corporate · Fit the room **A tested clean set** Give the buyer confidence that the act fits their guests.](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/career-atlas-clean-comedy-for-events.html) ## Go deeper - [How do comedians get casino and cruise ship gigs?](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-casino-and-cruise-comedy.html) The explainer, from the D.O.C. book - [Chapter 7, Working Clean](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-book.html) In D.O.C.’s companion book, Stand-Up Comedy: From Writing to Touring - [How do comedians build an hour of material?](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-build-an-hour.html) From the D.O.C. book: growing the act without padding ## Sources The buyers' rules are quoted from each buyer's own page, checked on 10 November 2026. A buyer can change its rules at any time, so read its page before you send anything. - [Warshaw Entertainment, comedian criteria ↗](https://warshawentertainment.squarespace.com/soloists) A cruise agency’s published criteria. - [Carnival Entertainment, comedy and variety openings ↗](https://www.carnivalentertainment.com/opportunities/comedy-variety) A cruise line’s own page. - [Lime Entertainment, comedians ↗](https://lime.inc/performers/dj-techs-hosts/) A cruise agency’s published criteria. - [Royal Caribbean, Headliner Entertainment ↗](https://royalcaribbeanentertainment.com/headliner/careers/) Its published route, checked 10 November 2026. - [Lime Entertainment, comics ↗](https://lime.inc/performers/comics/) Its published route, checked 10 November 2026. - [The D.O.C. book](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-book.html) The playbook's book topics, matched to the book's contents on 10 November 2026. ## About this roadmap **By D.O.C. Editorial.** This is one stop of [the Stand-Up Career Atlas](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-career-atlas.html): cruises & travel, stop 1 of 5. It's a way to plan, not a promise of bookings: it gives no expected years, its only figures are the ones buyers and venues publish on their own pages, and the buyers' rules are theirs. For what cruise and casino work asks of a comic, read [How do comedians get casino and cruise ship gigs?](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/answer-casino-and-cruise-comedy.html). Updated 10 November 2026 · [The Career Atlas](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/stand-up-comedy-career-atlas.html) · [Comic's Corner](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/tools-for-comedians.html) · [Privacy](https://disciplesofcomedy.com/privacy.html)