Chilliwack comedian, Cliff Prang, will be baring it all in his special full-length live comedy taping next month.
His piece, Dad Body of Work, is a self-deprecating journey through marriage, parenting, self-employment and a body that just keeps quitting, he says.
The show takes place Thursday, Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at G.W. Graham Theatre.
“Everything I’m sharing on Sept. 7 are the jokes and the stories that are worth retelling — the things that I love to say, the things that I love sharing, and the things that I know audiences enjoy and laugh at,” he says.
Originally from Ontario, Prang moved to B.C. in 1999. He used to tour with an improv group, and is a Vancouver Theatre Sports alumnus. He has years of comedy and acting experience, but for a number of years he was a pastor (2007-2010) and later worked at the Abbotsford food bank (2011-2013).
In 2012, he ruptured his Achilles tendon. During his three-month recovery, he had a lot of time to think about what he really wanted to be doing with his life, and returning to comedy full-time was the answer.
He remembers his first laugh as a young teenager. He was in Grade 10 at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa with his school’s improv team. It was a full house, and his team was given the topic of a dental hygiene scene in a western setting — there was a horse toothbrush and its trusty sidekick, a tube of toothpaste. Prang decided the scene needed some form of conflict, so he came out on stage on his imaginary horse, dismounted and said “Hi, I’m plaque.”
“The audience laughed very hard, and I was hooked ever since,” he says. “Dental hygiene has been a very important part of my life ever since, and so has comedy.”
His favourite comedians and biggest inspirations are Mike Birbiglia, Ellen DeGeneres and Louis C.K.
Prang has been a full-time professional comedian for four years, but has decades of prior comedy and acting experience. He does corporate comedy, club/bar stand-up comedy, improv, TV and commercial acting, plus he emcees and speaks at events, and he’s not planning on stopping anytime soon.
“A lot of comics hate corporate because they have to conform to keeping it clean, catering to your audience, and keeping it PG. That’s my wheelhouse — my wheelhouse is accommodating and I enjoy being all-inclusive,” Prang says. “I can do the comedy club and I can do the bar, but I can also do the corporate and the church and the school. It’s more variety, and I think it’s more fun to be able to go into all those different rooms and win.”
People may have seen him perform in Chilliwack during some of the monthly shows put on by Fraser Valley Comedy. He was also one of the entertainment acts at TEDx Chilliwack in April.
Prang will be using the live filming so he can have a professional teaser of his work on hand — something he can use to advertise and promote himself, something he can send out to potential clients featuring all of his best jokes.
Topics for his Sept. 7 show include: child birth, his vasectomy, parenting, the trials of communicating with children, relationships, weight loss, and his “vintage metabolism.”
Though this performance is targeted towards a mature crowd, its adult themes are not paired with adult language, “but I still don’t want you to bring your kids. I’m leaving mine at home,” he says.
Dad Body of Work is about 90 minutes long, without an intermission. It’s hosted by Chris Coburn and will feature guest comedians Ed Hill and Jenny Toews. Prang will be onstage for about an hour.
“It’s a great feeling for people to feel that sense of relief and happiness. It’s a great feeling to know you’ve affected somebody in a positive way,” he says about being a comedian.
Dad Body of Work takes place Thursday, Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at G.W. Graham Theatre.
Tickets are $10 and available at Refinery House (102-5622 Vedder Rd.) or online at dadbody.eventbrite.ca.
For more, go to cliffprang.com.
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