The Concordian

Issue date: 9/11/07 Section: Arts

Ryan Wilner, MC for the night, and five time Just For Laughs comedian.

Fringe fest regular Terry Bowman.

Michael Lipchitz: catch him at Jillian's Laughs for a Change September 20th.

Ten-time Just For Laughs performer Joey Elias.

Local comedian DeAnne Smith, on death: "He died doing what he loved... Heroin.

Montreal's freshest new comedy show serves up raging wild laughter weekly on Les Trois Minots' stage on the Main (St-Laurent street). Comedy on St-Laurent's organizer, comedian David Schultz, promises to showcase a new lineup of hilarious comics each week, and audience members fullheartedly agreed that they fulfilled their mission last weekend.
"I was pleasantly surprised. I haven't been to a comedy show in a while and this one really hit the spot. I had such a great time," exclaimed Julian Gollner, an economics and accounting student at Concordia.
The show started off with Mexican band Los Incandescentes, playing house beats and classic pop rocks songs with energetic dynamism and a dash of grunge, going from the Beatles to the Pixies, giving the venue a fun, comfortable party atmosphere before cracking out the comedy. When asked why he had decided to take on this ambitious endeavor, Schultz replied "there was only one weekly comedy show on the Plateau - Comedy Off the Main - organized by local comedian DeAnne Smith and a few others. I just felt that because of the large amount of students in the city, there was the need and the room for another comedy show to grow." This past show was the project's fourth so far, and its lineup included Just For Laughs veterans as well as comic newbies. "I'm very happy about the show's success - the first one had a 50-people turnout, and the numbers are staying steady," said Schultz.
The chosen comedians are mostly local, and by giving them "10 minutes on stage instead of the usual six, it helps the comic become better that much faster." Schultz, being from Ottawa, is also planning an entire lineup of headliners from Ottawa for Oct. 14th.
The shows take place on Sundays particularly so that visiting comedians doing a Friday or Saturday night show at the Comedy Nest can stop by Comedy on St-Laurent to fit in a last-minute performance before heading home.
Next week's stage will include a must-see performance by Calgary's Derick Lengwenus, and Schulltz is also proud to be presenting Mike Ward in one of the upcoming shows.
What's the point of these shows? "To make McGill and Concordia students comedy crazy! Stand-up comedy is popular and watched on TV - people are always talking about Dave Chapelle or Seinfeld, but many have never attended a live show. I want to make comedy accessible by offering fun lineups for cheap rates" ($5 at the door, and there are discounts and fundraising opportunities for student groups of more than 20 people.)

Last week's lineup featured Ryan Wilner, Michael Lipchitz, Asaf Gerchak, Joey Elias, Terrence Bowman, DeAnne Smith and David Schultz. Check out the lineup ahead of time on Comedy on St-Laurent's Facebook group.

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