Laughs are on the menu at The Rock Bar and Grill as it launches a free monthly comedy night starting on Tuesday (Sept. 27).
Chances Squamish Community Gaming Centre and Funny First Comedy host the ongoing stand-up nights, with comedians Erica Sigurdson and JP Mass kicking off the series.
Mass is a 16-year veteran of the Canadian stand-up comedy scene, who recently filmed his first Comedy Now special for the Comedy Network.
Born in Goderich, Ont., Sigurdson is a writer, television host and stand-up comic who is a two-time Canadian Comedy Award nominee, and a Leo Award-winning comedy writer. She's also well known for being a regular on C小蓝视频 Radio's The Debaters.
"I wanted to be a comedian ever since I was a little kid," said Sigurdson, who now lives in Vancouver. "But 12 years ago I told myself I had to go and try before it was too late. I think I had the epiphany when I was working as an assistant manager at McDonald's after finishing Hamburger University. I think I had just exhausted my French fry education."
Sigurdson hit the stage for the first time at a comedy club in New Westminster.
"I had about 50 friends and family in the place," she said. "That's pretty high risk. You'd think it would be better to not have anyone you know there - in case I sucked. Then I'd have to hear people say, 'Remember that time you did comedy and sucked?'"
But Sigurdson got encouragement that night, instead of scorn.
"A friend came up to me and earnestly told me to keep doing it," she said. "But I knew it already. As soon as I hit the stage and the lights hit me, I felt at home. I think it's like they say with falling in love. You just know."
Unlike many comics, though, Sigurdson doesn't like to write her material down, preferring to work spur-of-the-moment and more improvisational.
"Generally if I get an idea that I think is funny, I let it roll around in my head," she said. "I don't write it down I just blurt it out onstage, even if it doesn't work the first time. I hate writing jokes down. Thinking too much about it makes it less funny for me. But sometimes when you do television shows they want you to write down what you're going to say. But I don't like it."
Sigurdson finds she does have to think and write material down when appearing on C小蓝视频 Radio's The Debaters.
"It's flexing a bit of a different comedy muscle there," she said. "I do find I have to sit and think about jokes on whatever topic I'm debating."
The radio comedy on C小蓝视频 Radio One started in 2006 and consists of two 15-minute debates by stand-up comedians.
"I was invited to do the show during the first year, after the creator saw me at the Vancouver Comedy Festival," Sigurdson said. "He asked me to do one show. I guess it went well because I've now done 20 shows. I'm known as the veteran debater on the West Coast."
After her free show at The Rock Bar and Grill Sept. 27, Sigurdson hosts the Interior Design Awards in Vancouver on Sept. 30.
The Stand-Up Night gets underway at 8 p.m.
The next shows in the series are Oct. 25, Nov. 29 and Dec. 27. For more on the series go to squamishchances.com. For more on Sigurdson go to ericasigurdson.com.
