Before they were stars
The 36th Just for Laughs festival kicks off Wednesday, and many will be tempted to check out the biggest names in the lineup — Kevin Hart, Trevor Noah, Tiffany Haddish et al. — at the galas or at the Bell Centre.
That’s understandable. But where do the hard-core comedy aficionados, talent scouts and TV producers head when they hit the fest?
Invariably, they take in the smaller shows in search of the next Hart, Noah or Haddish. Like the New Faces of Comedy, Nasty Show and Ethnic Show series, where burgeoning talents are discovered — and where tickets are more affordable.
Hart first made his mark in New Faces. And some may remember catching an up-and-coming Noah in the Ethnic Show, or Haddish out-blasting the boys at the Nasty Show.
In fact, the list of wits who got their start in these series is stunning.
The Ethnic Show: Gabriel Iglesias, Jo Koy, Sebastian Maniscalco, Trevor Noah, Maz Jobrani
The Nasty Show: Chris Rock, Bill Hicks, Eddie Griffin, Joe Rogan, Kathy Griffin, Gilbert Gottfried, Ron White, Dave Attell, Tiffany Haddish, Jimmy Carr, Artie Lange, Jim Jefferies, Jeff Ross, Anthony Jeselnik, Patton Oswalt
New Faces of Comedy: Michelle Wolf, Kevin Hart, Daniel Tosh, Amy Schumer, Hannibal Buress, Sugar Sammy, Roy Wood Jr., Tom Segura, Mike Birbiglia, Ali Wong, Kumail Nanjiani, Chris D’Elia, Colin Jost, Jerrod Carmichael, Pete Davidson, Hasan Minhaj