Once again, Smithers has been the host to a very special event. One of the largest comedy tours in Canada, the Snowed in Comedy Tour arrived in town in what could not have been a more appropriate time as we suffered one of the bigger snowfalls this year.
We could not have been more fortunate. For those of us not able to head south, it was a great opportunity to get a few chuckles. I’ll have to adjust that a little — more than a few chuckles — an evening full of chuckles, sniggers and belly laughs.
According to one viewer, some people have been coming to the show since it started – up to six times.
“I’ve been coming five or six times, since it started,” said Tara Warren.
Kyle Brown said that he liked the variety.
“They have new material, they are a riot. They are a live show here in Smithers. When we get live stuff it’s really good so you have to make sure you go see it.
“It’s really cool to have live people come up from places like Los Angeles. It seems like they like to come up here. They never get to see this kind of climate. They pre-sold 350 tickets the first day. You can tell that the people in the community like it as much as the comedians like it,” he said.
While some of the material may have been a bit raw, the crowd did not seem to mind. The humour was not designed for young children and the response from those in attendance was more than positive.
“People here are tapped into social media a lot more than some of the other places around and they recognize big artists like these guys. It’s good to see that they keep coming back. If they didn’t like it, they wouldn’t keep coming back. They sell out, they have fun,” commented an audience member who wished to remain nameless.
Many of the larger acts go only as far as Prince George but here may locals who go to see these shows spread the word and as a result, quality performances such as this are quickly sold out.
Another aspect of the show that makes a great impact upon filling the seats is the way in which the performers made reference to the community. In particular, Jay from Local Supply Co was referred to by a number of the performers in jokes. It’s quite good if you are able to touch upon the community in such a way.
Four international comedians came together to give us a little light hearted relief from the winter mood.
$25,000 great Canadian laugh off winner Paul Myrehaug took on the role of MC and did and admirable job. He got the show off to a rocking start and injected some great local flavour.
Next up was three-time female comedian of the year Debra Digiovanni. She had some racy material but the crowd lapped it up.
Following her was Just for Laughs winner Dan Quinn and last up was five-time Canadian Comedian of the Year nominee Pete Zedlacher. The time for the entire show flew by very quickly and the show was over almost too soon.
We have to thank those who bring us this great kind of entertainment. Most small communities in the North don’t get such high-quality performers and have to travel quite out of the way in order to see such acts live.
