How we vet comics and venues
Trust and Safety
Booking a stranger for a paid gig takes trust in both directions. Here is exactly how that works, what to do when it goes wrong, and what we can do about it.
Reporting a problem
Sign in, open the profile of the person you are reporting, and use the Report button. You pick a reason, including "Did not pay for a booked gig", and add whatever detail helps. You can also report from inside a message thread with them.
What happens next
- A person reads it. There is no automated score and no threshold a report has to clear before a human sees it.
- We aim to look at every report within two working days.
- The report stays attached to the account it was made about, so a repeat shows up as a pattern rather than as one person's word.
Your report is private
The person being reported is never shown who reported them, and your name stays confidential when we follow something up.
Separately from reporting, you can Block someone from their profile. Blocking stops them messaging you and nothing else. You can undo it from Settings whenever you like.
Report and Block only appear when you are signed in and it is not your own profile. If you cannot sign in, or the person you need to tell us about is not on the platform at all, use the contact form and it reaches the same people.
How comedians are screened
Every profile shows the work rather than a claim about it. A comic can attach a clip to an application, and the booker watches it before deciding. Bookers make the final call on every act they hire.
Endorsements you can trust
An endorsement can only be written by a booker who actually hired that comic. We check the confirmed booking before the endorsement can exist, so every one you see was earned on a real gig.
The tape, not the pitch
Comics can attach video to their profile and to an application. Bookers watch before they book, which is the screen that matters most for a live room.
Getting paid
The fee is set on the listing before anyone applies, so the terms are written down rather than remembered. If a venue does not pay what it promised, report it from the booker or venue profile and choose "Did not pay for a booked gig".
Fees are paid directly between the venue or booker and the comic - the money never passes through us. What we can do is record every report, look into it, and act on the account when a pattern forms.
When someone behaves badly
Anyone can be reported, in either direction, for non-payment, harassment, scams, impersonation or inappropriate content. Reports are reviewed by a moderator, not by an automated score.
Accounts that keep generating upheld reports are removed from the platform. Removal is a human decision, and it applies to bookers and venues exactly as it applies to comics.
Safety at gigs
Being clear about the limit matters more than sounding reassuring: a gig happens in someone else's room, on a night we are not there, so what happens in the room is between you and the venue. If you are in immediate danger, contact your local emergency services first and tell us afterwards.
What we can do is act on the account. Harassment is a report category in its own right, blocking stops someone messaging you, and a booker who generates upheld reports loses the ability to advertise gigs here at all. Tell us even when you have already handled it on the night, because the pattern is what we act on.
How the directory is organised
By what a booker is actually choosing between: the room, the region, and the act.
By place
Country, city and town, so bookers see acts who can realistically play the room and comics see the work near them.
By comedic style
Clean, alternative, observational and the rest. Style is what a booker is matching to a room, so that is what we filter on.
What we are still building
Comics can report a venue today, and that report is reviewed. A public, performer-facing venue rating is on the roadmap. We would rather say so than imply a feature that is already there.
If something on the platform has not worked the way this page describes, tell us through the contact form and we will look at it.
Frequently asked questions
How do you screen comedians?
Every profile shows the work rather than a claim about it. Comics can attach a clip to an application, and the booker watches it before deciding. Alongside that, comics carry endorsements from bookers who have actually hired them, and Stagebook verifies that booking before an endorsement can exist. Bookers make the final call on every act they hire.
Do you verify that venues pay what they promised?
Fees are agreed on the listing before anyone applies, so the terms are written down rather than remembered. If a venue does not pay, the comic reports it directly from the venue or booker profile, choosing "Did not pay for a booked gig". Reports go to a moderation queue that we review and act on.
What happens when a comic or a venue behaves badly?
Reports are reviewed and resolved by a moderator, and the history stays attached to the account, so a pattern is visible rather than a single complaint. Accounts that keep generating upheld reports are removed from the platform.
Will the person I report find out it was me?
No. Reports are private. The person being reported is never shown who reported them, and your name stays confidential when we follow something up.
Do I need an account to report someone?
Yes, for the in-product report. Report and Block appear on a profile only when you are signed in and it is not your own profile. If you cannot sign in, or the person is not on the platform, use the contact form instead.
Do you account for regional differences?
Yes. Listings and comedians are browsable by country, city and town, so a booker sees the acts who can realistically play the room, and comics see the work near them. Fees are shown in the local currency of the gig.
Last reviewed: 27 August 2026. See also our terms of service and privacy policy.
See it for yourself
Every listing shows the fee before you apply, and every endorsement on a profile came from a booker who actually hired that act.