It's been a rite of passage for Kiwi comedians for the past 25 years.
And now finally Dunedin's up and coming comedians have the chance to test their talent in front of a local crowd as part of the Raw Comedy Quest.
Heats have already been held in the city as well as Wanaka and Queenstown, with Dunedin's semi-final being held at the New Athenaeum Theatre tomorrow night.
Dunedin Comedy's Reuben Crisp says the comedy scene in the city has been growing and developing in the past few years and the local talent was ready to show what it was all about.
"There's a lot of grassroots, budding talent here in Dunedin and the wider Otago region and it's very good to give them a stage to perform on and an audience to listen to especially of this calibre."
The competition is all about bringing the New Zealand comedy community together as well as providing amateur comedians with an opportunity to progress their careers, Mr Crisp says
Those who have gone on to bigger and better things after first trying out their material at the comedy quest include comedians like Guy Williams, Urzila Carlson and Cori Gonzalez-Macuer.
"There are a lot of talented performers entering after a year or two of honing their craft, but there's also every chance someone could step on stage for the first time and blow the audience (and the judges) away."
An Otago-wide final will be held in Dunedin on March 28 as part of the Dunedin Fringe Festival with the winner going through to the grand final in Auckland later this year.
Tickets are still available for both the Dunedin semi and Otago final.
