Muslim comedian brings lessons to laughs
When Ali Hassan was a student at McGill University, he never thought he’d end up being something of a spokesman for Muslims.
“There was a point where I was trying to be accepted by the community at school,” the Montreal native says with a chuckle, “and someone would say ‘Oh, you don’t pray,’ or ‘You don’t fast.’ I’d just think ‘I don’t want to be part of your stupid club anyways.’ ”
The actor, comedian and host of CBC’s Laugh Out Loud has always been more bent on spinning snappy punchlines than working on religious duties. But his latest show, Muslim, Interrupted, adds something of an educational component to the mix. While he’d never claim to be the world’s most devout believer, Hassan does have a few things to say about growing up Muslim, spiced with the observational humour on which he’s made his reputation.
Hassan, recently named as the host of Canada Reads for 2017, spoke with Postmedia News about Muslim, Interrupted, which he brings to the Arts Commons on Friday for two shows — 7 and 9 p.m.
Q With a title like Muslim, Interrupted there’s really no mistaking what this show is about.
A That’s the hope. You’ve heard the story about Trump supporters getting angry at Amy Schumer at her show because of the political jokes she was telling, to which she responded “What are you doing at my show?” In their defence, if you looked at three or four clips online of Schumer just telling standard jokes about bald guys and vaginas, you might think that’s all she does. With my show there’s no mistaking it — it’s right in the title. Nobody is going to say, half an hour in, “Is this guy still talking about being a Muslim? That’s weird.”
Q Nobody’s expecting fart jokes.
A I have four kids, so I can definitely dip into that if I have to. The kids are the reason why I do this, actually. We have two girls and two boys and when they asked about Islam, I had no answers. I didn’t pay attention to spirituality in my life, and now I get questions like “How come we don’t go to the mosque?” This led me to explaining that I’m a cultural Muslim. I don’t know how they can use that in their lives, to be honest. It’s weird for a fiveyear-old to wave a piece of bacon in the air and say “Don’t worry guys, I’m a cultural Muslim, everything is cool.” This was the backdrop for the show. The kids had questions, I had no answers, but it was ripe for comedy.
Q It’s also a ripe time to be doing this particular show, especially after the recent American election.
A And this show was started pre-Trump! I don’t want to get into pointing fingers, because we’re also guilty of stereotyping when we throw in Trump supporters as a monolith. I recently listened to interviews with two people I respect, Jon Stewart and Ron Howard, and they were both saying that they have friends, neighbours, even family members who voted for Trump. They’re not all knuckle-draggers. Many of them are scared and concerned for the future and didn’t want a continuation of what they saw as bad governance. I understand that, because Muslims are always grouped together. I feel like it’s on me to some degree to get onstage and correct some misunderstandings people might have about Muslims.
Q Who is your audience?
A Predominately white folks. Lots of Jewish people. When I did the fringe (festival) this summer in Edinburgh, it was 20 to 30 per cent South Asian. But in Canada, when the lights come on, I see maybe a smattering of South Asians and Muslims. I know this isn’t Nobel Peace Prize-winning stuff, but if I make people laugh as well as educate, it’s helpful.