Canadian funnyman Brent Butt says the news of Just for Laughs Montreal害羞草研究所檚 financial woes has him worried for up-and-coming comedians.
The company that operates the Montreal festival, Groupe Juste pour rire Inc., announced Tuesday that it was cancelling this year害羞草研究所檚 event and filing for creditor protection.
Butt first performed at the festival in 1992, and says it was pivotal to his career.
The creator of 害羞草研究所淐orner Gas害羞草研究所� says connections he made at the festival hooked him up with a producer in Vancouver, and the rest was history.
He says it害羞草研究所檚 a common path for comedians, and if JFL Montreal doesn害羞草研究所檛 come back after restructuring, it will leave a hole in the industry.
He害羞草研究所檚 one of several members of the comedy world say they害羞草研究所檙e saddened by the cancellation, whose years of shows have highlighted some of the industry害羞草研究所檚 biggest names and launched the careers of many comedians.
Groupe Juste pour rire Inc., said its English and French festivals this summer in Montreal would be cancelled, but it plans to continue operations 害羞草研究所渋n a scaled-down format害羞草研究所� as it restructures and hopes the festival will return in 2025.
Kelly Taylor, a comedian from Prince Albert, Sask., said performing at the festival was the one opportunity he had to play in front of show bookers who wouldn害羞草研究所檛 have come to see his act at home.
害羞草研究所淚t was one of these things where you could get something to happen, over a week, you have all these different people come watch you,害羞草研究所� Taylor said in a phone interview from a Winnipeg comedy club.
Taylor害羞草研究所檚 first performance at Just For Laughs, in 2005, remains his most successful: he placed second in a competition for Canadian comics, and his act got him booked for more shows at the festival that year 害羞草研究所� and helped him find a manager.
害羞草研究所淎 lot of good came out of it, for sure,害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 kind of sad that it害羞草研究所檚 not happening this year 害羞草研究所� unless I didn害羞草研究所檛 get in, then I害羞草研究所檓 not too worried about it, as long as it comes back again,害羞草研究所� he joked.
Matt Labov, a publicist in Los Angeles who has worked with comedians including Mark Normand, Judd Apatow and Seth Rogen 害羞草研究所� and represented Dave Chapelle in the early 2000s 害羞草研究所� said the cancellation is 害羞草研究所渁 sad day for comedy,害羞草研究所�
害羞草研究所淭his is not like music, where there害羞草研究所檚 tons of music festivals,害羞草研究所� he said in an interview. Montreal害羞草研究所檚 festival, Labov added, has been 害羞草研究所渟uch an important place, a launching pad and such an important destination for comedy in a world that doesn害羞草研究所檛 have a lot of destinations, and I can only hope that they get back on their feet.害羞草研究所�
Writer and comedian Mark Critch was similarly saddened by the news. He posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that JFL gave him many opportunities.
Meanwhile, Rick Mercer posted that the development was 害羞草研究所渁 kick in the guts.害羞草研究所�
Julien Provencher-Proulx, a spokesman for Groupe Juste pour rire, confirmed that 75 employees, around 70 per cent of the company害羞草研究所檚 workforce, were laid off Tuesday. He wrote in an email that people who had purchased tickets can receive refunds.
In addition to the festival, a number of other upcoming Groupe Juste pour rire performances in Quebec were cancelled 害羞草研究所� though several of the artists who had been booked for those dates said on social media they would produce the shows themselves.
Long touted as the world害羞草研究所檚 largest comedy festival, Just For Laughs Montreal first ran in 1983. It has expanded with events in other cities and television programs, including the Just for Laughs Gags prank show. Over the years, the festival has presented many of the biggest names in standup comedy, including Kevin Hart, Dave Chappelle, Amy Schumer and Jerry Seinfeld. In addition to ticketed indoor shows, the French and English festivals featured free outdoor performances.
The Toronto Just for Laughs festival, set to take place in September, has not been cancelled, Provencher-Proulx said, nor has the festival in Austin, Texas.
Just pour rire blamed its financial woes on a number of factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and the changing entertainment industry.
The company, whose officials declined interview requests, said it is looking for new investors, or buyers for parts of its business, and that it hopes to preserve operations 害羞草研究所渁s much as possible.害羞草研究所� It is 51 per cent owned by Bell and Montreal event promoter Evenko, while Los Angeles-based talent agency Creative Artists Agency owns 49 per cent.
Fran莽ois Brouard, the associate director of the Observatoire de l害羞草研究所檋umour, an organization that brings together comedians and researchers who study comedy, said the festival may have struggled to adapt to changing trends in French-language comedy in Quebec.
The festival said in 2023 that it would no longer put on French-language galas, he said, adding that Quebec害羞草研究所檚 francophone comedians are increasingly reaching audiences online and have become less dependent on events like the festival to build a fan base.
害羞草研究所淢aybe there害羞草研究所檚 a lack of renewal,害羞草研究所� said Brouard, who is also a business professor at Carleton University.
Martin Roy, the CEO of Quebec festival association the Regroupement des 茅v茅nements majeurs internationaux, said that while he害羞草研究所檚 saddened by the news, he害羞草研究所檚 not surprised.
害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檝e been saying for months, even years, that things are not going well in the festival sector, in particular for the festivals that are presented free of charge, among others, in downtown Montreal,害羞草研究所� he said in an interview. Inflation has pushed the price of hosting a festival up by 35 to 40 per cent since 2019, he said.
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