Victor, the Just For Laughs official mascot
MONTREAL — Hey, comedy fans. I just arrived in this great city to check out the 2010 installment of Just For Laughs, the longest running comedy festival in the world. Most comedy elite would also call it the most important of the fests, since it has been known for decades to give great pushes to comedians’ careers.
To that end, the plan is to check out two New Faces shows tonight. The title says it all. These are the group of comedians that the fest deems young and worth taking a second look at. So we’ll see.
After that, I’m planning on checking out Jamie Kilstein’s one-man show No God, No War, No Nickleback. In 2008, we actually singled Jamie out (scroll down once you’re at the page) as the comic to watch the following year. So I’m not surprised he’s here this year headlining his own show. Looking forward to it.
One of my favorite things about the festival here in Montreal is that most of the comics stay at the same hotel, and when you walk through the lobby at any given time, it’s like walking through comedy fantasy camp. In the first 10 minutes of my arriving, I’ve already spotted Bo Burnham, Reggie Watts, Paul Provenza and had quick chats with Hannibal Buress and Michael Ian Black.
I also got a free bottle of water just for standing around the lobby. Thank you, Hyatt!
That’s all for now. Keep checking Punchline Magazine‘s Twitter feed (@punchlinemag) as I’ll be posting for the next four days. And for longer, more analytical coverage of the shows, come back here.
