The Second City's Next Comedy Legend - Episode 1
Less Talk, More Shredding
It began with a shiny black helicopter... that has nothing to do with this show. Sorry, this ain't The Apprentice. Second-City alumni Joe Flaherty, Elvira Kurt and Mick Napier had to use their air miles to travel across Canada in their hunt for the country's funniest new sketch comedian. Four cities later, they'll have eight finalists – two from each city.
The series premiere featured auditions in Vancouver and Calgary, which ranged from hilarious to hopeless. First: Vancouver, where folks line up to audition, each with three characters ready to, ideally, make the judges laugh. For a few too many, one of those characters is a lisping gay guy. After the day is over, Elvira Kurt feels very butch as the hatchet man, as they decide whose resume will go into the shredder. A lucky 18 escape the carnage in Vancouver, and get the call to come back the next day.
On Day 2, Mick leads the group through improv games and classic Second City sketches. At the end of the day, the judges cut the list down to four: Kayla, Dave, Pricilla and Sean. Only two of them will be heading to Toronto.
Next, it's Calgary, where apparently way too many think the secret to impressing the judges is to take off your shirt, pants, or both. Mick calls Calgary a "parade of tedium and the Grand Marshal wore a Speedo and a bathrobe." The shredder is busy. Still, the judges find 12 comics worth bringing back for the next day. After Day 2 of improv and sketches in Calgary, it's down to A.rae, Jeannie, Trevor and Justin. They head home, where they wait to find out which two the judges will choose.
Trish tracks down the lucky first four who will compete in Next Comedy Legend: A.rae, Jeannie, Kayla and Sean.
Next week: Can Halifax and Toronto match wits with Vancouver and Calgary?
Stills from show »source: cbc.ca/nextcomedylegend
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