A night of comedy tailored to a Shuswap crowd hits the stage at the Salmar Classic April 6.
Canadian stand-up comic Jeff Leeson is making a stop in Salmon Arm as a part of his upcoming cross-Canada Grandma Used to Heckle Me tour and, while he has never visited the Shuswap before, his improv style and attention to detail delivers comedy audiences can related to.
(Facebook/Jeff Leeson)
“I am really curious about people and really fascinated by them… If I see something that interests me, I want to know more about it and make it funny, so I take that curiosity and my comedic instinct and put them together,” he says. “I try to create a personalized show every night. No matter where I am, it’s never the same show twice and it really allows a personal connection with the crowd.”
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He wasn’t always an improv guy, but he says the interaction with the crowd and the act of crafting comedy in the moment creates a great shared experience with the audience.
“What I love is being able to, in the moment, craft something that makes people laugh. When you’re in that moment you get a lot from that and it can really make something memorable for everyone,” he says.
Leeson has been touring his comedy act for many years, and he says his first taste of the thrill of the stage came way back in high school.
“I started when I was 14 years old, and how it really started was I was voted valedictorian of the class and got to make a speech in front of my school. I got a standing ovation and it was one of the moments in your life when you get a crazy adrenaline rush, it was really from that moment that I wanted to chase that feeling and be on stage,” he says.
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The Salmon Arm show is a stop along the way as he travels from Ontario to the West Coast, stopping in at some familiar spots while also looking to give some laughs to new audiences.
“I have never been even remotely close to Salmon Arm, but a number of other comics I know have passed through there and spoke very highly of it,” he says.
The April 6 show in Salmon Arm also features Tige Wright as a special guest for a double feature of comedy. Tickets are available from the Salmar Classic box office or online
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