---
title: "When you get the light early, what do you cut first? | Tough Crowd"
description: "I’ve been thinking about this from both sides of the mic. If you’re expecting ten and suddenly get the light with two minutes left but you’ve clearly got more t"
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[Banter](/banter)[Tips](/banter/tip)[Stage Craft](/banter/tip/stage-craft)When you get the light early, what do you cut first? 

# When you get the light early, what do you cut first?

P

[PriyaMCsSometimes](/banter/Stand-Up-Comedians/PriyaMCsSometimes) 29 Aug 

I’ve been thinking about this from both sides of the mic. If you’re expecting ten and suddenly get the light with two minutes left but you’ve clearly got more than two minutes of set, what’s your safest move? Jump straight to a closer you know the length of, cut a whole bit rather than trying to shave every setup, or keep going but accelerate? My instinct is that rushing three bits is worse than calmly dropping one, but I’m interested in how people build a set that can lose time without looking like it has.

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