Mark Normand Closes Out His T.O. Run as Judah Friedlander Starts His at the Royal Theatre Monday Night

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The JFL42 Comedy festival is in full swing in Toronto and every day of the week is a Saturday for comedy fans. Last night, both Mark Normand and Judah Friedlander headlined at the Royal Theatre in two separate fan thrilled shows. Both continued the unintended theme of the festival this year- things are kind of fucked down in the States these days.

The Royal Theatre was the scene for both shows- and its a great venue for comedy. You know the kind of place you can order popcorn and wash it down with a nice cold beer. It’s the perfect size where every seat is a great seat, but you can pack enough fans in to really make some noise. Both shows were completely packed out and both were shows that anyone who missed, will be regretting it all week.

Particularly Normand who closed out his last of six shows in five days in T.O. This was the biggest venue Normand played and he let everyone know that he’s put some time in to the city visiting some of Toronto’s known visitor favorites. After five days here, he perfectly articulated my opinion of Toronto– it’s what would happen if L.A. raped New York — and that’s how you get Toronto. He filled in the crowd on how he felt about his visit to our famed Kensington Market, (and it went exactly how you would think it went down if you’ve ever been). And he talked about the States as well- explaining how America is suffering from a “word prohibition” so much so that they need free speech speakeasies.

Overall, he was raunchy and the crowd loved it, but even more than that, they were leaving the theater talking about the issues raised during Normand’s hour. After the show, Normand hung around to meet fans and apparently provide some legal services. If you missed the show, you’re too late to catch Normand at the Festival- that’s done- but you can follow him on Twitter or Instagram to see where he’s heading next.

Later that night, World Champion Judah Friedlander took over the Royal for his first of three shows in the city.

He was prime Judah (as he always is). He rolled with the crowd and allowed a boatload of questions. Like many of the American comics in Toronto this week, he covered the topic of the current state of affairs in America, but you could count on him to put that Judah twist on it, and the crowd loved it. The laughs were gigantic as Judah was earnestly asking audience members what they did for a living, and dude bro after dude bro kept saying they were unemployed. It was truly shocking how many unemployed dudes were at this show! Judah talked about World War 3 (it’s his favorite in the trilogy) and speculated what the world would be like if he were the President, and he kept the crowd howling all night. You can always count on Judah for an absurd laugh, and a smart laugh– he’s always taking comedy to a place you can’t see or hear anywhere else.

You can catch Judah Friedlander back in action at the Royal Theatre tonight and tomorrow night as well. Go to JFL42 for tickets and information.

Interrobang Staff

Interrobang Staff