The 34-year-old stand-up comic won the 2007 Just For Laughs “Home Grown” Competition and has performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
How do you come up with ideas?
“It really just comes to me. I see something and think, ‘that’s funny,’ and a joke kind of just cultivates itself in my head. For every 10 ideas I have, people might laugh at two of them.”
How do you prepare for the stage?
“In the beginning, I was nervous, so I went on stage with a deadpan character, an invulnerable character. After you get a few laughs under your belt, you gain some confidence. Comedy is constantly humbling. Even now, if I start to feel that I can’t have a bad show, then I have a bad show.”
Craziest stage experience?
“A drunk guy came up on stage, took his pants down and showed me his penis. And then he just went back and took his seat in the front row.”
With more than 10 years of improv experience, Amy Shostak is Rapid Fire Theatre‘s artistic director and has performed across Canada and Europe.
How do you come up with ideas?
“Before performing on stage, one of my improv partners and I talk about our week, what pissed us off and what was awesome. Even though we didn’t plan to, that stuff would just naturally come out.”
How do you prepare for the stage?
“In improv, the goal is not to plan ahead. But, I guarantee that, everyone is thinking, ‘I’m going to play this character tonight in this scene because I know we’re doing this scenario.’ If you play a certain game a lot, there are certain ‘handles’ you pick up that help you succeed in the game.”
Craziest stage experience?
“We had a bingo-ball set. Each number corresponded to a dare. The guest and I had to do hot sauce shots… I ruined my body. I was sick for two days.”
