Friday night's New Faces of Comedy set was a brilliant whirlwind of talent and funny all squeezed into a roughly hour show at the fiercely intimate Katacombes. As with most showcases at Just for Laughs, it is difficult to give everyone the shout-out that they deserve.
Before regarding the wave of guests entering and exiting the stage, let it be said that Lil Rel Howery was a brilliant host. He began the showcase with cracks about parenthood, the suspect nature to which we should subject all "fit dads" and the upsides of aging that were fresh, funny and kept the audience on their heels.
Danny Jolles was the first comic to hit the stage and — were it not for the rest — would have been considered a difficult act to follow. By most descriptions not a "bro", he made a plea to send brogressives (progressive bros) to Middle America at once in order to stop the madness that currently eats up that particular region, and noted that bros are the dogs of humans.
American Rae Sanni's defense of women dressing or acting provocatively — whatever their motives — stuck with the audience long after they left. Blaming it on men and saying "I never bought a pretty bitch anything" was probably the most memorable line of the evening. Sanni's comedy was personal, genuine and hilarious.
Jared Freid, a self-proclaimed "Jew-bro" was the perfect counterpoint to Danny Jolles — if not anti-bro, then leering suspiciously at bros from behind a two-way mirror — set. Standing out most was his tirade on giving food fancy names purely so that we can order food in a more bourgeois fashion. He proclaimed aioli's true name as "gay mayo." His honest texting acronyms were also a highlight, one being "TITTTITAWSD," meaning "This is the third time I've texted, are we still dating?"
Taylor Tomlinson was also very promising. Her stories about growing up religious were a riot. "If there's no god, I've told the wind a lot of secrets," will doubtlessly stay with some audience members for a long time.
There are few words that could adequately describe seeing Preacher Lawson — animated, brilliant, never at a loss for words, charismatic and funny as all get out. If one had to pick a small part of his particularly full set, his anecdotes about the "dangers" of motorcycles was amazing.
Before regarding the wave of guests entering and exiting the stage, let it be said that Lil Rel Howery was a brilliant host. He began the showcase with cracks about parenthood, the suspect nature to which we should subject all "fit dads" and the upsides of aging that were fresh, funny and kept the audience on their heels.
Danny Jolles was the first comic to hit the stage and — were it not for the rest — would have been considered a difficult act to follow. By most descriptions not a "bro", he made a plea to send brogressives (progressive bros) to Middle America at once in order to stop the madness that currently eats up that particular region, and noted that bros are the dogs of humans.
American Rae Sanni's defense of women dressing or acting provocatively — whatever their motives — stuck with the audience long after they left. Blaming it on men and saying "I never bought a pretty bitch anything" was probably the most memorable line of the evening. Sanni's comedy was personal, genuine and hilarious.
Jared Freid, a self-proclaimed "Jew-bro" was the perfect counterpoint to Danny Jolles — if not anti-bro, then leering suspiciously at bros from behind a two-way mirror — set. Standing out most was his tirade on giving food fancy names purely so that we can order food in a more bourgeois fashion. He proclaimed aioli's true name as "gay mayo." His honest texting acronyms were also a highlight, one being "TITTTITAWSD," meaning "This is the third time I've texted, are we still dating?"
Taylor Tomlinson was also very promising. Her stories about growing up religious were a riot. "If there's no god, I've told the wind a lot of secrets," will doubtlessly stay with some audience members for a long time.
There are few words that could adequately describe seeing Preacher Lawson — animated, brilliant, never at a loss for words, charismatic and funny as all get out. If one had to pick a small part of his particularly full set, his anecdotes about the "dangers" of motorcycles was amazing.