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I try to spend the bulk of my existence laughing or making others laugh. It feels good, it feels right. Sometimes it’s mean-spirited, but trust, THEY DESERVE IT! I’ve digressed and I apologize. Seeing great comedy and improv is a slippery slope for me; it’s so difficult to reign in my impending attraction to those who perform it. It’s a turrible sickness and I have no idea how to get rid of it or if I really want to. If you’re funny, I want to know you in the biblical sense (or you become my girl crush and we’ll be BFFs! Sorry ladies, shorty (me) will never swing that way but I love ya. *single blink*) I think it shows in the celebrity funny men I love: Seth MacFarlane, Chris O’Dowd, Donald Glover, Louis C.K. etc. Their humour is where my love completely stems from and then an all-consuming crush surrounds me. Same goes for the funny ladies: Sarah Silverman, Kristen Wiig, Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph. I think getting together for Sunday mimosas with them would be my favourite thing in the world.
And so this begins my week-long focus on my favourite comedians in the great city of Toronto and why you should love/swoon over them too. I would never steer you wrong. I promise you.
MARK LITTLE
You may recognize Mark Little from CBC’s Mr. D., he plays Mr. Simon Hunt. He’s also a member of the Halifax-based sketch comedy group, Picnicface (If you haven’t seen Roller Town, seek that isht out and peep it with your peepers). You know me and my love for voice actors, so you’ve probably heard him at one point or another. What you need to know is THIS dude is one of the funniest dudes in the game, definitely in my top 10. I have seen his stand-up specials and tv shows but it wasn’t until JFL42 this year that I was privileged enough to see his stand-up live.
PICTURE THIS: Toronto. The Rivoli. 2012. I’m in the 2nd row from the front of the stage full of anticipatory glee. On his way to the stage, Mark speaks to the cute blonde in front of me and asks her to hold something (which is revealed to a be a prop once the show begins). Andrew Bush takes the stage to warm us up and Mark comes in to knock us down. He has this endearing quality about him, he just. looks. so. harmless. He’s so unassuming. Then he spits a gangsta rap that peels your face off at the same time you can’t stop laughing. Plus…he does wear glasses. Can you swoon with me, ladies? Trust me – you need to see him live. Please catch Mark headlining at COMICAL: Stand Up Comedy Volume 5 on Thursday, Oct. 11th. He may do his Jamaican accent, but after our chat, he WILL 100% do his Jamaican accent.
Visit Mark Little’s website here!
HEIDI BRANDER
Photo by Sylvia Pereira, Wardrobe styling by yours truly.
Heidi Brander, is not just the ginger-haired beauty you see above. Oh no…she’s much, MUCH more. Most recently nominated for Best Stand-Up Newcomer at the 2012 Canadian Comedy Awards, she rounds out my unintentional spotlight of East Coastian comedians (this was not planned). She was born and raised in PEI but now calls Toronto her home. She’s a genius at using 140 characters to throw shade at celebrities and makes me guffaw on a regular basis with her pop-culture referenced puns of glory.
She’s written for MTV Live, YTV and she’s a 1/3 of the drag supergroup, The Cheeto Girls. If you were to ask her what her biggest accomplishment has been in her life, she would not hesitate to tell you it was her 1994 win over Ryan Gosling in the Gladstone Public School’s annual lip-sync competition. I know this sounds like a joke, but it’s the legit truth.
Heidi will be doing stand-up at Egg Zeppelin with SPOOKEY RUBEN on Wednesday, Oct. 3rd, that’s THIS Wednesday. Go to there.
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