Had a great week in Toronto, spending time w family, dancing and meditating w the Chocolate Groove Collective – seeing friends, eating delicious food- of course performing on my own shows & to my own fans
But really and truly as good as the booked, ticketed, profitable shows can get (& don’t get it twisted they often go sideways and end up costing money and being brutal- mote on that another time)
Nothing ever really beats the energy, love, pure passion and dreams on display (sometimes nightmares ) of OPEN MIC STANDUP COMEDY.
Those that know me know I made my bones experimenting, making mistakes, burning both the midnight oil and bridges but also forging decade long working loving relationships at my first production a true show up go up open mic in Toronto. Some (Marc Hallworth) say I was the first in the city, I remember there being similar ones before me – I may have been the only to do it for 8 hrs and weekly- solo hosting but.. that’s nothing to be proud of you should be worried if someone does that lol
So on Sunday, after a week of being here, I managed to talk my way into meeting a really cool lady on a.. date but we don’t gotta put labels on it (pretty much a date) it went OK, to be honest she’s a fantastic person I just don’t think the chemistry translated from how we texted on IG to how we flowed when we met, that’s fine we still had coffee, smoked a J, walked around Kensington (my idea, last day in town and all) it was going decent but sort of winding down anyways, maybe we would have gotten dinner maybe not- suddenly I see my good friend and hilarious comedian George Rivard, ask him where he’s going.. he said he’s gonna do the show up go up at Nothing Fancy I immediately decide I am too, tell the date I’m going she can come if she wants.. but I’m going. I couldn’t have ran there fast enough- I hadent been yet, and last time I was here I wanted to do this mic but that was also my last night in town w a 5am train ride so I just pussied out. This time (I’m on my 315 train to mtl right now) I could sleep in. So fuck it, time to go back to my roots! Marc Hallworth has been grinding since my first days, originally from Calgary nobody had given me more undeserving praise about the chaos of the Skin of My Nuts Comedy “Show” days and I’m glad to see him in his element, he ran the night from 730 to 1130, 4 min sets and NO BUMPS ,not for friends, pros, minorities, I gotta wake up early, I gotta work, I wanna see a movie, my girlfriend is tired WHO CARES NO BUMPS and I think that’s insane but I respect him for sticking to it! Nothing Fancy is absolutely gorgeous the room was alive with energy and filled with so many new comedians just hoping to find glory in those 4 mins (5 if you got a drink) I explained to the date, look, I’m 37th on the list and they are on number 3, I’m not leaving and if you want by all means stay, but she kept not only talking to me (disrupting the show) she kept going on about how her knees hurt (did apparently she did a photo shoot earlier that day anyways it looked like a small scratch) I feel kinda bad now the next day but what came over me was such an excitement to see and be part of the mic that I couldn’t care less I literally told her if she needs and uber or w.e let me know- but in general it’s just best she leave, I literally in that moment just needed her to leave asap because every second of her and her knee issues, talking in the halls, not being in any way part of comedy meant she was taking away from the moment, she wanted to like hug, maybe she expected a walk to the streetcar? Stuff I’d do normally, but NOPE I politely pushed her out the door & grabbed a menu on my way down- OPEN MIC OVER EVERYTHING was the new order of the moment & that did not include her! It did luckily enough involve spare ribs!
Joey M.F Harlem runs the kitchen partnership of Titos BBQ Cookout & I’m telling you right now the short ribs are literally to die for. I felt amazingly nostalgic and excited I easily waited 4 hrs and did not give one fuck, I only knew like 3 people other than Marc and they left 2.5 hrs ago, it was fantastic to just be deep in the middle of all of it, a fly on the wall, willing loving comedy fan & supporter ! I sat up front watched laughed loved every good joke, every bad joke, every example of natural stage presence & every example of zero confidence on stage – the good the bad the ugly I just took it all in, by the time I got up there were like 10 people which sure sounds kinda bad, but me and hallworth both did endless nights of 2 people this was a REAL SHOW! I had fun, I got a few laughs, Marc’s literally 4 mentions of me during the show before I got up, about me being a pioneer or someshit and changing the scene forever made me uncharacteristically self conscious so when I got up, I threw out and semblance of material and just talked about how dead end the industry is and how none of us will own houses- then I tried and actually brand new joke (not a joke that was already in circulation but then bombs then you cop out like a fuckint dork and go “just trying new stuff guys”) no an actual brand new never done before joke, it got a few chuckles, and just like that 5 mins in the limelight gone into the ether. I’d do this every night if I could- before or after any “real” show. It was great to see the scene so vibrant & I couldn’t sleep all night – classic open mic – foreverrrrrr
Here’s pics from the night- first one is me & Marc ill get all their names later – check out the list!!!
Go to Nothing Fancy for all sorts of shows – some are pretty fancy! Their Sunday open mic is free to watch & enjoy titos BBQ because dam thats good shit.
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Standup Comedy & More! Canada & Beyond! 