When Just for Laughs announced last week it was cancelling its comedy festivals in Montreal and Toronto this summer for financial reasons, some comedians were so shocked they thought it was a prank – a JFL gag to outshine them all.
Who could blame them? Since it was founded in 1983, the festival has become the biggest game in town – the biggest international festival of its kind and a juggernaut in Canadian comedy that has played a vital role in countless careers.
And now it’s just not happening? You’re kidding, right?
But this was no joke.
“JPR’s board of directors, after having extensively considered all available alternatives, came to the conclusion that the financial situation of the organization left no other choice than to initiate formal restructuring proceedings,” Groupe Juste pour rire inc. said in a statement. It went on to say, “we hope that the festival will take place in 2025.”
Comedians certainly hope so.
The Globe and Mail spoke to seven stand-up comics who have all played the festival at one time or another about the role it has played in their careers, what it has meant for Canadian comics and how comedy has changed, among other subjects. All of them were taken aback by the news.
MARK CRITCH, a cast member on This Hour Has 22 Minutes and the co-creator of Son of a Critch, the show based on his memoir of the same name.
Mark Critch.Supplied
IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE The shows are great. But what it is is kind of a convention. You get all these comedians in there and you get a sense of what’s happening. You get a sense of what’s “now” and what people are doing – what’s really new and exciting. There’s a great sense of camaraderie. You meet all these different people and some of those connections will end up becoming comedy teams or people who are going to work and write together. I look back and see great shows, but what I remember is getting together in a hotel room and talking to other comics.
BRENT BUTT, winner of four Canadian Comedy Awards, including best male stand-up, and the star and creator of Corner Gas.
Brent Butt.Supplied
IT PROVIDES A GOAL Comedians need things to shoot for. Whatever industry you’re in, you need things to shoot for. What’s the next step? How do I move forward? Once you’re headlining comedy clubs in this country there’s not much else to shoot for. Just for Laughs was the big thing where you could go. There are other festivals but not festivals with the same international clout. It offered an opportunity to network and make connections you would never otherwise have. I’m really hoping this restructuring allows them to find their feet and get back to doing what they were doing, because I think it’s important.
ALI HASSAN, host of the CBC stand-up comedy show Laugh Out Loud and Canada Reads. He was one of the stars of the Just for Laughs Comedy Night in Canada tour in 2019.
Ali Hassan.Riaz Khan/Supplied
THE ALGORITHM WINS I’m not sure what the future holds. I think what we’re probably going to see is the same thing you see in other forms of entertainment, where you’re just going to focus on comedians who have massive social-media followings. You’re not really fostering or nurturing talent or helping to discover talent. You’re just like, I want bums in seats and this person has 200,000 followers, they’re going to put bums in seats. It’s unfortunate. You want comedy to be like, hey, you can discover some stars and you can nurture talent.
DEBRA DIGIOVANNI, a frequent guest on the CBC radio show The Debaters. She won the Canadian Comedy Award for Best Stand-Up Newcomer in 2002.
Debra DiGiovanni.Supplied
THE HOLY GRAIL Of course we know it’s an international festival, but especially for Canadians it’s huge in their careers. It’s just truly like, if I can use the expression, the Holy Grail. That’s a bit dramatic, but it’s true. It’s the thing everyone is striving for because it’s so international and so renowned. It’s often a comic’s first spot on television. Doing a gala is often a comic’s first six or seven minutes on television. It just holds such weight. In the world of comedy it was always a celebration because it’s a milestone. It’s huge.
JOEY ELIAS was born in Montreal and has done 17 shows with Just for Laughs, including galas and smaller shows.
Joey Elias.Supplied
The CAREER-MAKER Prior to social media Just for Laughs was the credit everybody wanted. That was your ticket to open up doors everywhere. When I got my first gala, all of a sudden I got work papers for the States and I’m headlining clubs in the Southern U.S. I’m going to the U.K. And that’s all because I had the credit of the Montreal show and the gala. Everybody in North America, this was the goal, this was the juggernaut that everybody wanted to get to. The name Just for Laughs definitely holds a lot of leverage.
DAVE MERHEJE has performed at comedy festivals around the world, and his comedy album Good Friend Bad Grammar won the Juno Award for Comedy Album of the Year in 2019.
Dave Merheje.Supplied
DOORS OPEN WIDE I did Just for Laughs in 2011. That was my first time there. It was years of auditioning – eight or 10 years of auditioning. I was part of the Homegrown competition. I won that year. It got me a U.S. agent. I remember coming out into the street and I started crying. I had been really grinding as hard as I could. I just felt this relief off my chest and an agent giving me his card. That was big for me. It was huge. I owe Just for Laughs so much. The news is sad. I’m very thankful and grateful for the opportunity the festival has given me. It’s given me an opportunity to have a career and flourish.
MARTHA CHAVES starred in the TV special Something About Martha on CTV and the Comedy Network and frequently performs on The Debaters and Laugh Out Loud on CBC Radio.
Martha Chaves.Supplied
AN EDUCATION IN COMEDY What I loved about the festival was that it’s like Mardi Gras. There was this atmosphere of a festival in the streets of Montreal. I have a lot of friends in the restaurant industry that were always waiting for the festival because they made a lot of money. And for the fans, the festival was one of the prides of Montreal. Even when I was not invited to participate in the festival I bought my pass. I went to watch all of these shows, like an education to see what was going on in comedy, because the people that came were the best.
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