On the second week of November, I had the opportunity to attend a Just for Laugh’s Comedy Tour sponsored by Capital One at the National Arts Centre in Downtown Ottawa. Headliners of the night included Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, Martin Moreno, Dom Irrera, and Godfrey.
Some background information on the comedians: Martin Moreno started his career as a comedian at a very late age. He is now in his early 40’s and slowly making a name for himself. Most of his jokes are R-rated so he does give a warning before any of his shows that if there are kids in the audience that they be escorted out or they can stay for the show and the parents will just have to end up answering awkward questions that the kids might ask at the end of the night.
Dom Irrera is a veteran comedian; he has made guest appearances in a variety of television shows we all know and love such as; Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, and King and Queens. As well Irrera has had some amazing opportunities by being a guest star on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Tosh.O, The Tonight Show, and Late night with David Letterman. Irrera’s jokes fluctuate from R-rated to PG-13. Some are appropriate while othera may make some people uncomfortable as he does tend to make jokes towards race and religion. With that said, for a comedian who is in his mid 60’s, he sure knows how to get the crowd laughing out loud!
Godfrey is a comedian from the Bronx, New York. He can be seen in both movies and TV shows by being featured in movies such as Zoolander, making appearances in 30 Rock, and having a recurring role in Louie. Godfrey even stars alongside Shaquille O’Neal on the TruTV series Upload!
Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias is the reason why the National Arts Centre had a full house for the comedy show night in Ottawa! Iglesias is America’s most successful stand-up comedian who performs in sold-out concerts, all over the world, 46 weeks a year! He is known to be one of the most hard working comedians out there and recently with his new comedy movie that was released during the third week of November, many are claiming he has booted Kevin Hart from winning the title of best comedic movie and took first place for himself. Many praise Iglesias for the comedian that he is because they never really saw him as a huge superstar making fame and money but merely a family member, an uncle, or even a neighbor that makes you laugh constantly and brightens the mood of people in a large room. Iglesias got his nickname “Fluffy” from a joke that he made during one of his shows where he claims he is not fat but merely fluffy, thereafter he was coined the famous nickname Fluffy.
During the Ottawa comedy show he strictly kept his jokes PG-13 and tries to stay with that rating of jokes throughout all his shows, as he understands that he is a huge role model amongst the younger generation, therefore he chooses to make jokes that are family friendly and can be enjoyed amongst a variety of ages. Of course, sometimes there may be a few jokes with minor profanity, but either way Iglesias is a pro at making people laugh and giving the audience a smile for the whole night.
I will admit that I went into the Just for Laughs show knowing only one comedian and had low expectations for the entirety of the show due to not knowing the other comedians very well. However, once the night was underway I was so impressed with the whole show that I was able to leave the NAC being fans of even more comedians! The organization of the show was wonderful, and the comedians had so much energy and enthusiasm, I don’t think there was a moment of silence the entire night. It was a consistent two and a half hours of hilarious jokes with a room full of people smiling and laughing. I think that when you go into a comedy show for the first time, you need to be open minded and you should try to not take jokes personally or feel uncomfortable about them. It’s a genre of comedy for a reason, when comedians can take serious concepts and make them humorous. And it’s in this kind of environment where people should not be offended but rather let themselves laugh at the genius things some of these comedians can come up with. Try to leave judgement outside of the event and enjoy the show full of ridiculous jokes and tons of laughter for a night that will leave you smiling for days!
I want to thank Capital One for presenting Ottawa with such a wonderful show that the city will always remember. It was an honour for me to attend!
“Comedy is real because it’s an art form that expresses pain through laughter”
Picture Credits
1, Anjali Fuentes