Hello all in internet land, Jon here, just a fan writing about his Just for laughs experiences this year. Since 2010 I've been really getting into Just For Laughs Montreal, specifically due to their Comicpro initiative. There's a pass you can buy (this year it's 70 CAD) that will get you into a bunch of shows during the major Anglo part of the festival (traditionally the last week of July). It's a great deal as tickets for most of the eligible shows (Sorry, no galas' here) come out to about 20$ a ticket. So if you've Seen at least 4 shows you've paid off your ticket. There's also the Comedy conference portion of the festival Where Panels are put together do discuss various comedy related topics (like alternative comedy on tv, the top 10 comedians to watch, etc.). This Year's Keynote Speaker is Patton Oswalt (following in the footsteps of Levis Black and Marc Maron) so you know things will be off to a good start. In terms of the conference itself it all begins on Thursday at 1:00 PM. Don't miss it!
So Why did I title this post day )? Well the pass goes into effect on Monday then 23d so I would consider that Day 1 officially but I did see a show ahead of that time. I decided with some friends of mine to see Dave Gorman's Power Point Presentation on Saturday the 21st. Now Dave Gorman (for the uninitiated) is a British funnyman who apart from being a great stand up has really made a name for himself from his multimedia presentations. It all goes back (well for his work on TV that is) to "The Dave Gorman Collection" which aired on the BBC. It was an adaptation of his "Are you Dave Gorman?" Stand up show where he went around finding other people named Dave Gorman that all came about through a bet with his then roommate. This was followed up by "Dave Gorman's Important Astrology Experiment" (also airing on the BBC) where Dave quested to find the truth about Astrology. Is it a guiding force or just plain Rubbish?. Following this was probably one of his more well known endeavours: Googlewhack Adventure. Now a Googlewhack (much more difficult to find on the internet these days) is when you search for two separate actual words in Google and end up with one search result. Dave was informed via e-mail that he himself (or rather his web page was a Googlewhack) so he was off on a quest to find other Googlewhacks and the people that represent them. This show is probably where most people know Dave from as it toured quite a bit and was even released on DVD. I had been following Dave Gorman along with my friends for many years and having the chance to see him in person was one that I just jumped at.
In the case of the Power Point Presentation the topic is Dave himself which The presentation itself let's us know all about Dave's origins, a brief advertising lesson and he lets us in on a lot of the fun he's been having on the internet. The show definitely did not disappoint and was a great way to kick of the festival for me. Dave comes out full of energy (and looking more handsome than on TV one of my friends remarked) and uses the power point to his advantage as it's a tool that he's come to master.
The show runs about an hour and I can say with almost certainty that you'll leave the venue with a new friend. The Show Runs 'til July 26 at underworld. More info can be found at Zoofest.com.
Dave Gorman's website is davegorman.com
More Reviews coming in the next little while letting you know what was for me but what could next for you.
