By c Cakes
The Just for Laughs Festival is now on in Montreal, with the Ethnic Show playing Tuesday-Thursday and Nasty Show Tuesday-Saturday this week at Metropolis.
The Lineup is Stacked
First Alonzo Bodden hosts the Ethnic Show, which features performances by Jessica Kirson (whose solo show last year incited uproarious laughter), Steve Byrne, the Doo Wops, Mike Rita, and Vladimir Caamaño.
Then Ari Shaffir brings the Nasty Show to the stage, where Big Jay Oakerson, Yamaneika Saunders, Robert Kelly, Godfrey, and Jimmy Carr use their combined comedic superpowers to gross you the fuck out (must be 18+).
That’s a lot of talent.
And on Thursday, July 20 I had the privilege of excusing myself from work to go downtown to interview and photograph the talent.
I was nervous to meet these raunchy comics. Would they heckle me as i took their photo, or tell me how they shat themselves on the flight to Montreal?
My fears proved unfounded for I met Ari, who I thought would be taller in real life. Who I thought would be a dirtbag in real life. Have you seen his stuff? It’s disgusting. But in fact, Mr Shaffir was most kind and amiable. We had a wide ranging conversation on the meaning of nasty (the sexual, the scatological, and the culturally offensive feeding our festering, rotting baseness), and camping in the Laurentians. I was surprised, I didn’t know Jews went camping (which is why it’s always good to have your assumptions challenged, you feel less ignorant in future situations). Besides hosting the Nasty Show five times this week, Ari will be performing the Ari Shaffir’s Renamed Storytelling Show at the Mainline Theatre on Wednesday, July 25th and will also record an episode of his podcast the Skeptic Tank at the Hyatt on Saturday, July 29th. So check him out, he’s a sweet dude.
Michael the handsome publicist then whisked Ari away to bring me the lovely Vladimir Caamaño (it was a good day). Of Dominican descent from the Bronx, Vlad performs in the Ethnic Show, a nightly showcase where comedians explore the contradictions inherent when living between an old world and the new. That sounded too academic. What i mean to say is, they tell jokes about their cultural identities. Energetic, charismatic, urban and young, vlad has been traveling the continent making the masses laugh. Named one of the top 10 comics to watch by Variety in 2016, see him now so you can say you saw him before he was famous. Catch his solo show at the Theatre Sainte Catherine on Monday, July 24.
Next is Big Jay Oakerson. He is from Philly and lives in New York and if i had to guess i’d say he is white (though you never know and should stop assuming), which is irrelevant because he’s in the Nasty Show. Again I expected someone crude and intimidating, but Big Jay was all-heart, almost docile (I think he’d just woken up). By the third interview I mastered the audio recorder, though upon review it’s mostly us complaining about the service in Montreal for four minutes. Big Jay went into a restaurant, ordered a strawberry milkshake and the person working there said they might do it, if they felt like it. Can you believe it? The French are snobs, etc. He was thrilled to sign my model release form and to be referred to as ‘the model’. Big Jay, you were a great model and it was a pleasure to meet you. Go see him at What’s Your F@#king Deal, a crowd work only show at Cafe Cleopatra Tuesday through Saturday if you enjoy verbal abuse.
Yamaneika Saunders is gorgeous and nasty. A comedian from age 16, she couldn’t imagine doing anything else, though she says her grandparents were ministers so they would probably would have wanted her to go into the ministry. I was the cowardly journalist and didn’t hit back with that hard hitting question “What would your grandparents think if they heard you talking about shoving a midget up your vagina?” Because again, that’s irrelevant. Most of us are nasty, we just filter our depravity. The comedian lets the audience laugh at how disgusting and weird it is to be human. By the way, I hear Yamaneika has a killer Weight Watchers joke. I will be checking her out at the Nasty Show this week (as should you). She is also performing at Kevin Hart’s LOL Live on Wednesday, Juy 26th at Theatre Berri, Howie Mandel’s Dub Wars Saturday, July 29th at La Chapelle and live recording her podcast Friday, July 28th from the Hyatt Hotel.
As a bonus, I had the opportunity to interview Mike Rita. All the way from Toronto, Mike’s comedy focuses on what it is like growing up in an immigrant family, walking the borderline where old school values meet new. For example, he ponders why is it okay to make backyard hooch but not to smoke weed? His parents may not understand, but they would be proud to see him perform at the Ethnic Show, where the diversity in comedy reflects the diversity of the world. So let’s all laugh at each other and be merry. Mr Rita is also performing at Mike Birbigila’s All Access Live show on Wednesday, July 26th at Club Soda and Best of the Fest this week at Comedyworks.
*the Ethnic Show is running every night through Thursday, July 27 at 7 pm. The Nasty Show resumes this Tuesday, July 25th through Saturday, July 29th at 9:30 pm.
Special thanks to Emily the PR intern.
Editor’s note: this text has been altered since original publication. “Shat would your grandparents think….” was an unfortunate typographical error.
