Montreal Comedy Festival 04

Montreal's Comedy Festival Just For Laughs ran for 10 days in July. London comedy doyenne Hils Jago was there...

It was unusually cool in Montreal this year. But that's pleasantly warm for us from the UK, and not much humidity. And Montreal's a lovely city (writes Hils Jago). It also has a great comedy festival.

This year's English-speaking section had about 150 performers (excluding special shows such as Evil Dead - The Musical). There wasn't a lot of novelty. But the French part was full of surprises - even the street performers.

Tommy Tiernan was on brilliant form - what a pity he won't be in Edinburgh. At the Gala he received a standing ovation - fantastic.

Omid Djalili rocked - and then he flew of to Venice for 19 weeks filming in a major role (probably Casanova).

I missed Adam Hills, Flight of the Conchords and Scott Capurro - except in the bar a fair bit, and in the industry minibuses between venues - but their shows went very well indeed. The TV networks are very keen on the Conchords.

Stand-up shows were nearly all composites. Those British ones that weren't - Dave Gorman in Googlewhack, James Campbell in Comedy 4 Kids - went down a storm, selling out a very large venue daily.

The problem with composite shows, which include the prestigious galas, is that, like in Kilkenny, the comedians are shuffled around all the time. So you see some people again and again and others you don't see at all - which can be frustrating. And the bills and running-orders change as the evenings progress - and some shows finish late.

Also the titles - like in Edinburgh - can be misleading.

There were New Faces showcases - known as the places to talent-spot - though the performers aren't really new.

There was one sponsored Award Show for new comedians with a well-known host and 'name' judges - with the winner getting a commission - that was the standard of a competition heat in the UK.

How the entrants were selected was unclear. The venue was like a party night at Islington's old Purple Turtle. But the winner did have charm and potential. So the best man - there were no women - won.

We saw Nina Conti a number of times, including her performance at a prestigious Gala Show. Though not really gig-fit, she coped well. Especially as they'd been told not to be rude at all - is it possible for the Monkey not to be rude? She was someone the industry was buzzing about. Whether intentionally or not, her set show-cased her acting skills which - from the point of view of eg sitcoms - are a big bonus.

Stan Stanley was at his charmingly-surreal best in his set in Britcom early in the week. As a result he was booked into some additional shows - the ultimate dream.

Ed Byrne and Boothby Graffoe were as excellent as ever - of course - and Simon Evans shone in has Gala appearance. As did Hal Cruttenden who got a great review - one of only a handful - in the Hollywood Reporter.

Neil Delamere from Ireland did a nice job and acquitted himself well - I'll be booking him after seeing him maybe three times. I saw one young American who I'll be trying to persuade to perform in London. Same goes for delightful Nikki Payne - her stage presence and demeanour would give Andrew Lawrence a run for his money. Now there's a commercial casting opportunity waiting to happen.

Mitch Hedberg was a name on everyone's lips. Do see him if you get a chance.

It's hard to stand out among so many very big name comedians - to Americans anyway - view www.hahaha.com for a list of names - but there were some gems.

They included Greg Morton - who played Jongleurs in the late 90s - and Freddie Roman, who compered three gigs on one night and is very much a senior citizen.

There were also some comedians who we felt barely deserved the title, but presumably they have a television following - maybe as presenters.

Sadly I missed seeing Eddie Brill, who has a great reputation. He also warms-up and books the comedians for David Letterman. But I did manage to have dinner with him.

Overall the comedy was much much better than I feared from a first look at the programme.

My heart had sunk at the thought of Improv. But - wow! - I was almost won over by the storming show from Greg Proops. He was just superb. He was very ably supported by the brilliant Improv All Stars. In particular Jeff Davis, who could be someone to watch out for - he really shone, plugging gaps very creatively and moving things along.

Costs from London? The pound is strong at the moment, but direct flights are expensive. It's possible to economise by not flying direct and by staying (as I did) immediately over the road from the main hotel - at a fraction of the price.

Worth going? Yes. It was memorable. There were great new people to meet. And some excellent comedy in a different comedy atmosphere and environment from London, New York or Edinburgh. And Montreal's a lovely city.

END

(c) Hils Jago 1 August 2004

Montreal - Just for laughs/Juste pour rire - 15-25 July 04