The Just For Laughs Comedy Tour! is set to return to Victoria for the first time since 2019. This year’s tour—the 19th edition—is called Just for Laughs Comedy Night in Canada; it will feature a lineup consisting of some of Canada’s top comics and is led once again by comedy legend Rick Mercer. This time around, Mercer will be joined by 2018 Juno winner Ivan Decker, Just for Laughs favourite Eman El-Husseini, and co-star of the Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated show Ramy, Dave Merheje.
Even though he was busy throughout the COVID lockdowns, Merheje says that it’s great to get back out on tour.
“After two years of lockdown you can just feel the energy, and everyone really wants to have a good time,” says Merheje. “You can feel that. It’s just making the shows great.”
Merheje says that this group of comedians is incredibly fun to work with, and says that we should expect to see a great show as they wrap up the tour on the island after hitting stages across the country.
“The show is super fun, man,” says Merheje. “Rick is amazing on and off the stage. Ivan Decker, Eman El-Husseini… It’s a great group and everyone connects.
We’re having fun on stage but off stage the crowds have been magnificent. Honestly, with no bullshit at all, they’ve been great in every city we’ve been to.”
Widely considered to be one of the most original comics on the scene these days, Merheje says that he just keeps it simple and tells his story.
“I grew up in Windsor in a Middle Eastern family; we’re Lebanese,” says Merheje. “That was different. I draw a lot from my experience. A lot of it is my family and my upbringing and I do a lot of storytelling from that.”
Merheje says that he’s benefited from the time he spent away from the stage during the lockdown and hopes that it shows in his act.
“I had a lot of time to think about my act and my delivery,” he says. “I’ve made some changes and realized that I really want to have more fun up there and not put so much pressure on myself to kill every night. It helped me a lot, just to sit with it and have some time.”
That time has served him well: Merheje says that he is bringing his A game every night right now. The comedians all want to deliver their best performance and have a great time, and Merheje says that, in turn, the crowd’s going to have a great time along with them.
“It feels great to finally get back on the road,” says Merheje. “I was supposed to do this tour back in 2019 but I was filming the second season of Ramy. Then we were supposed to go in November and it got postponed. I’m learning a lot from Rick. His storytelling is amazing. It’s been awesome to go across Canada and see places I’ve never been. It’s been so fun.”
Merheje says that he’s been coming to Victoria for years and always gets a great response from the audiences here.
“I always get a lot of love when I come out to Victoria,” says Merheje. “I’ve been going there since 2011, when I first went to Hecklers. It’s such a great environment for comedy. It’s one of the top places in the country for sure. You have a good scene out in Victoria.”
Just for Laughs Comedy Night in Canada
7pm and 10pm Sunday, May 22
$67.75 and up, Royal Theatre
rmts.bc.ca