Darcy Michael’s foray into comedy began by accident.
“At my wedding I gave a really funny speech to my husband Jeremy. A week later he was still laughing about it and said you should do standup,” said Michael. “I didn’t know a whole lot about standup. It took time to learn the ropes.”
Now Michael has 10 years as a standup comic under his belt. He was nominated twice for a Canadian Comedy Award, performed numerous times at the Just For Laughs Festival, Comedy Network’s Match Game and the Winnipeg Comedy festival.
Michael has also enjoyed a career as an actor and starred in two seasons opposite Dave Foley on the TV series Spun Out. The show was about a struggling writer who works at a public relations firm.
Michael said just like musicians, comedians are presenting similar material night after night during tours. What changes up the repetition for Michael is the different audience members and their reactions to his material.
“I love the spontaneity of what can happen in a room,” said Michael, adding he creates jokes using material from his life.
Sometimes he comes up with an idea and will present it for the first time in front of a live audience.
“Comedians have this emergency switch in the brain. If you don’t know the punchline there is an emergency switch that lets you know,” said Michael.
Michael is performing during the Old City Laugh Lounge: Pride Edition Friday (June 16) at the Old City Station Pub. There are two shows: 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. The shows features guest artists Emma Cooper and Vikki Smudge.
Tickets are $15 available in advance at the pub or by visiting www.myshowpass.com.
Michael remembers when he was 16 years old living in North Vancouver and “sneaking down to watch the pride parade. At that time the parade was more of a protest, but now has turned into a celebration event.
“It’s a chance to really celebrate who we are and also celebrate our allies,” said Michael about pride events.
For more information about Michael, please visit http://darcymichael.com.