Outdoor Programming | Just for Laughs gets paid for his 40th birthday

Rosalie Vaillancourt, Erich Preach, Pierre-Yves Roy-Desmarais and Kevin Hart are headlining the upcoming Just for Laughs and Just for Laughs festivals. for his 40^me anniversary, from July 13 to 31, the big comedy event is doing things in a big way and expanding its territory.

marissa groguhe
Press

While the indoor shows have been unveiled in recent weeks, the Just for Laughs (JPR) family met Wednesday to announce the outdoor lineup. More than 250 shows will be offered to Montrealers and visitors this summer, including dozens of free ones on the streets of the city.

Just for Laughs spreads its tentacles, and this year’s festivities will stretch from the Quartier des spectacles to the Esplanade PVM to Place Ville Marie and rue Saint-Denis.

Outdoor shows will also be inaugurated with the evening Rage, presented by Elyse Marquis. Matthieu Pepper, Silvi Tourigny, Stéphane Fallu, Ève Côté, Jean-Thomas Jobin, Pierre-Luc Pomerleau, Michelle Desrochers, Christine Morency and Barbada will play the match.

The Fabulous Fate of Erich Preach, an evening presented by the latter, will bring together Mike Beaudoin, Rachelle Elie, Garihanna, Jean-Louis, Imposs, Dave Morgan, Daniel Tirado and the Urban Science Brass Band. To highlight its four decades of activity, JPR will offer the tribute show 40 years of real fun! The show directed by Alex Perron, with dancers and performers, will take place every night from July 21 to 30.

More than ever, Just for Laughs presents “exclusive shows,” recalled Patrick Rozon, vice president of French-language content for the Just for Laughs Group. Festival content is often found nowhere else. If there were “two or three exclusive creations in recent years”, the programs are “100% original”, said the great head of programming Press.

Also in the program, the questionnaire Do you know your comic?presented by Maxim Martin, as well as campers christmas by Philippe Laprise. International artists, including Frenchman Panayotis Pascot, are expected in Montreal. As previously announced, the traditional Just for Laughs Galas will also be on the menu. Featured this year: Pierre-Yves Roy-Desmarais, Rosalie Vaillancourt, Richardson Zéphir, Eddy King, Phil Roy and Roxane Bruneau.

Rosalie Vaillancourt, who presented her first gala last year, knows that “it is rare that Just for Laughs chooses the same person two years in a row”. “It was offered to me very quickly and I was very, very happy,” she said. Press. For this second presence, it will be a matter of being a new mother (she who spoke of her pregnancy at the previous gala) and the pressure of wanting to please, explained the comedian.

He took advantage of Wednesday’s event to talk about his connection to Just for Laughs, with whom he has been collaborating for about three years. “I had never wanted to do Just for Laughs before Patrick came along. [Rozon], she says. She is someone I really trust. Also, she put a lot of emphasis on creation, something we hadn’t seen before from him. »

the true return

We had to cross the Saint-James church to get to the room where the Just for Laughs press conference was held. The place was decorated in the colors of the event, mimosas were served, music welcomed the guests. It was a day of celebration and reunion. We do not skimp on resources for this celebration of the 40th anniversary of the festival.

“For the 40^meJust for Laughs doesn’t do things by halves”, summed up Mona de Grenoble, “drag queen, comedian and proud puppet of Just for Laughs”, who officially announced “the great comeback of the festival”.

The Just for Laughs group has also learned lessons from the pandemic, such as the imperative to prepare well in advance.

Patrick Rozon announced that this year the festival will support the Mission Bon Accueil organization throughout the event. Terminals will be installed on the premises to collect donations from those attending the festival.

To pay tribute to the masters of Quebec, Julie Ringuette and Debbie Lynch-White will take the helm of the pedagogyparade in which Charles Beauchesne, Coco Belliveau, Jade Charbonneau, Mélanie Couture, Sara Dufour, Pierre Hébert and Barbada will also participate. only for teenagers, an evening aimed at the youngest, will also return to the Place des Festivals. Jay Scott, Claudia Bouvette, William Cloutier and Maoly Martel Dumais will be part of the event.

just to laugh

On the English side, Kevin Hart and Bill Burr, “two of the biggest stars in the world”, will be eagerly awaited for the Just for Laughs festival.

Amy Schumer, John Mulaney, Chelsea Handler, Russell Peters, Ronny Chieng and Rick Mercer will also be in attendance, Bruce Hills, president of Just for Laughs, announced Wednesday. Dozens of international comedians are expected for the occasion.

If recent years have forced the Just for Laughs Group to adapt to stay active, the return is being made with great fanfare. “We are coming out of this pandemic in great health, creatively and financially,” said Charles Décarie, chairman and CEO of Just for Laughs Group. This announced the export of JPR to London in 2023, after the success of the festival launched in the United States.