The 2012 Winnipeg Comedy Festival: Prepare to Have the Last Laugh!

“February 22, 2011 (Winnipeg) – As any expert on misinterpreted Mayan prophecies can tell you, the year 2012 marks the countdown until the end of the world — a time when the earth shall be devastated by great cosmic catastrophes, and all humanity shall be snuffed out in a giant ball of flames… or something like that. All we know is that from April 5-15, we’ll be gearing up for the End Days in the only way we know how — by launching one of our biggest, baddest, most world-beating festivals yet!

So while everyone else is busy battening down those hatches, we’ll be laughing in the face of whatever earthquakes, floods, and lakes of fire might lie ahead, not to mention the phantom planet that may or may not be hurtling towards the earth!

Since most of us will need a comforting presence to get us through all the destruction, we’ve enlisted one of TV’s most enduring dads to help kick off the festivities: Canadian icon Alan Thicke (Growing Pains, The Alan Thicke Show), who’ll serve as host for our telethon-themed Thursday evening gala. Fellow sitcom star and talk show host Caroline Rhea (Sabrina the Teenage Witch, The Caroline Rhea Show) will handle hosting duties for a “Women Who Kill” gala — featuring a lineup of devastating femmes fatales — while funnyman Harland Williams (Dumb and Dumber, Half Baked) will host a gala celebrating character-based comedy.

In addition to the hosts, we’re bringing back a number of longtime friends of the festival — including proven crowd-pleasers Sean Cullen, Elvira Kurt and Sherri D. Sutton; acid-tongued wits Nikki Payne, Scott Thompson and Debra DiGiovanni; and local faves Ryan McMahon, Dean Jenkinson and John B. Duff. Our friends at CBC Radio will be on hand to tape episodes of The Debaters, Definitely Not the Opera, and — a first for the Festival — not-necessarily-the-news series This Is That. (Speaking of The Debaters, host Steve Patterson will also perform his one-man show This Is Not Debatable.) And Kids in the Hall alum Kevin McDonald returns with his nightly film fest at the Cinematheque, where he’ll pay tribute to such classic comedy troupes as Laurel & Hardy, Monty Python, and the Marx Brothers.

Our days on Earth may be numbered, but we’re still committed to a brighter future, which is why we’re convening a “Make It Better” panel of experts on issues of bullying, gender and sexual orientation (among them, Nikki Payne, Scott Thompson, Elvira Kurt, and Debra DiGiovanni).

As always, the Winnipeg Comedy Festival is a work in progress, so stay tuned for additions or updates to the lineup. Tickets are available now at winnipegcomedyfestival.com, or by calling Ticketmaster (1-855-985-5000) or the Gas Station Arts Centre (204-284-9477).”

http://www.winnipegcomedyfestival.com/