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| - Ah, the PC Comedy Festival. Just the type of event to make you get away from your humdrum life for a few hours and laugh at the absurdity of the daily grind.
(Full disclosure: my life is not humdrum by any means.)
It's a bit difficult to appreciate just how long the Comedy Festival has been in South Mississauga - for a point of reference, do you remember when they held this at the Army/Navy Club in Lakeview? I do - I was a volunteer there a decade ago. Now I just feel old, but at least I appreciate how far the festival has grown since then.
It was my first time seeing the festival in Clarke Hall, and I was definitely happy with the presentation. While I'm not sure they needed all the tables in the room (it cuts down on seating space), I understand that people complained about not having a place to set their wine/beer glasses, so I see where the compromise would be. I snagged free tickets from Yelp for the Friday night opening performance, though I was also surprised by someone else with opening night tickets to see the whole roster, which I wasn't expecting. As a result, I had a chance to see some of the same performers multiple times and can give a better viewpoint of the end result.
This is definitely an 18+ event. If jokes about yeast infections, group sex and vampires that get their pale complexion due to a certain sexual act aren't your forte, you're not going to be too impressed.
I had the chance to see the following performers:
Nathan MacIntosh: A very solid MC who had the audience in stitches at points. It took a bit for him to get to the punchlines at a couple points, but he was a great host and I hope he comes back for next year's festival. His jokes about dating and relationships had me busting out laughing at points.
Nick Nemeroff: "Weird" is the best way I explain his set. I wasn't too keen on the performance - his delivery (which can be best described as "extreme deadpan snarker") was way too slow and cerebral for the audience, and I found myself struggling to hear him, despite sitting fairly close to the stage (second row).
Courtney Gilmour: Self-deprecation about her physical disabilities aside, this was a great set. A couple of the jokes didn't hit (the one about a one-night stand with a disabled man that devolved into "Transformers bashing into each other" didn't quite work for me), but overall, she was very good and had a few good punchlines.
Amish Patel: Reminded me a lot of Russell Peters. A lot of jokes about growing up Middle Eastern in Brampton, though he went on the side of raunchy and awkward as opposed to focusing on straight stereotypes. His joke about going to a waxing clinic to fix his rampant body hair and walking with chest hair that looked like a halter top had me laughing out loud.
Sandra Battaglini: Easily the best performer of the night. A middle-aged Italian woman who cracks jokes about Canesta, snotty kids, and a half-dozen raunchy subjects while acting like an aunt you haven't seen for a couple years. She brought the house down at points and was easily a highlight of the evening.
Jon Dore: A very solid finishing set. I'm not sure if the "I don't know how to end my set" thing is part of his routine or just something he genuinely didn't know how to do, but it made the ending a bit strange and awkward. That said, there was lots of audience engagement, and he's a master at improv/off-the-cuff remarks when dealing with what he sees around him.
It was a very solid set of performances overall and one of the better comedy festivals I've been to. I look forward to coming back next year, because it will no doubt get better and better. If you're in the area and have a chance, check this one out.
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