Edmonton Comedy Fest lands in St. Albert

This weekend the hottest entertainment tickets will be floated at the 6th annual Edmonton Comedy Festival running Oct. 5 to 8.

Organizers continue to expand the laugh fest. This year Tom Arnold, one of North America’s biggest comedy stars is touching down at St. Albert’s Arden Theatre for two back-to-back shows on Saturday.

“Tom has been a dream to work with,” said Andrew Grose, CHED radio talk show host and one of Canada’s top comics.

Grose along with his wife, Carole McIlvride lead the powerhouse team behind the festival. He makes the deals. She handles paperwork and logistics.

This year the couple focused on creating a festival that brought back the best comics from the past five years.

“Not only that the audience loved, but that we loved being with,” Grose said.

That was the easy part. Finding the festival headliner was a bit more work.

“I wanted someone who was not a you-know-what to work with. I didn’t want to have to spend the whole festival babysitting a crybaby.”

Trusting his instincts, Grose approached Calgary’s Laugh Shop for referrals. One of the first names that popped up was Tom Arnold. And Grose can’t say enough about Arnold’s professionalism and generosity.

“He’s a father and family man. He can talk about anything – politics, sports and he’s very observant about where he’s at. I had him on a radio talk show and I was told I had seven minutes with him. He ended up giving me 20 minutes.”

“He’s very honest. Sometimes he’s off the wall. You can’t contain him. But he’s just so honest. I asked him about the Oilers and the NHL. And he went through the last eight years talking accurately and honestly about the trades and the players. He’s a very common sense, slice-of-life times 10 kind of guy,” Grose said.

Known for his everyman mix of winning charm, witty bites and quick uptakes, Arnold became a household name as a writer and later cast member of Roseanne, the ABC family television series aired from 1988 to 1997.

“It was implicated that Roseanne made his career. But it was the other way around. People are surprised by his talent,” Grose noted.

“Originally Roseanne got a sitcom pilot. She didn’t like it and demanded they find better writers. When they couldn’t find any, she went to comedy clubs. She saw Tom and hired him to rewrite the pilot. She picked a stranger and it was a success. He eventually wrote himself into the sitcom and his acting career was launched from there.”

After the series ended, Arnold continued playing the comic relief transitioning to the big screen in major box office hits including True Lies with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nine Months with Hugh Grant and Hero with Dustin Hoffman.

A hard-working actor with a diverse range of roles, Arnold performed in more than 16 movies and hosted a wide range of television programs.

Last week he guest appeared on NCIS: New Orleans as a brilliant Navy intelligence analyst turned rogue hacker on the run from authorities. According to TV Insider, Arnold is scheduled as a recurring guest throughout the season.

Opening for Arnold are Grose, considered the premiere relationship stand-up comic in Canada; the award winning Kristeen Von Hagen, a frequent favourite at comedy festivals and currently opening for Puppetry of the Penis in Las Vegas; and Kerry Unger, and head writer and cast member of Gutterball Alley and Comedy Now.

Last year the comedy festival sold out at the 200-seat Kinsmen Banquet Hall.

“Moving to the Arden is an experiment. We’re taking a chance,” said Grose noting the Arden Theatre is a 500-seat venue.

“If St. Albert supports the festival, we’ll bring another big name. If I don’t sell tickets, we’ll just have to rethink things.”

Several changes were made to the festival as whole this year. An important difference is the addition of a free show on Wednesday night at the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel.

“Comedians usually arrive the day before and they look to perform their set at an open mike. In the past they had nowhere to perform. We set up the free show on Wednesday so they can test out their material and as an acknowledgment of the economic times. Some people might not be able to afford a show.”

This year men are welcome to attend Ladies Night on Thursday at the ATB Financial Arts Barns.

“Last year men were barred from attending and some people complained. But last year we invited women from shelters and we wanted a safe place for them to enjoy the show,” explained Grose.

“This year, men can go to Ladies Night. I’ll be the MC and I can tell you, women can dish it out. They’re hilarious. They say some things and the women break out laughing and the men go ‘huh?”

Other sought after comics are Monique Marvez’s stop-watch wit, Rondell Sheridan (That’s So Raven), America’s Got Talent semi-finalist John Wing, NBC’s Last Comic Standing Louis Ramey and Tonight Show regular Mitch Fatel.

A media challenge helps launch the festival as local celebrities and Atomic Improv fall over themselves outcompeting each other tonight at the Arts Barns.

For the youngest of gigglers, there is a free kids show on Saturday at the Arts Barns. For information on all shows, comedians and ticket information visit atbcomedy.com