Sweet Revenge by Jean-Sébastien Girard

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When Patrick Rosen asked him to do a show a few years ago, Jean-Sébastien Girard saw a lot of what he was going to write. “I said to myself: But what can I say that I haven’t already said the evening ? Or who hasn’t been told by a thousand comedians? And then this song Star Mania, A boy like no other, appeared in his mind. It was only when he decided to use this as the title of his show that he began to clean up his ideas and prune everything superfluous. “I know what I want to write from my title. It’s a blessing. »

The last thing he wanted to say was this: the story of this particular boy who loved showbiz stars, dressed up and put on fake shows, whom we knew. Evening is (still) young. “The search for comedians is mostly about character. Me, I’m one, I’ve been exploiting it for 10 years, I know all the nerves. That gave him enough material to create a pure stand-up show, which he broke in throughout the fall.

Important question: What is his favorite interpretation?A boy like no other ? “It’s by Celine Dion. I already know the song, but the album Dion Plamondon sings So important in my life, I’d be lying if I said my favorite version was anything other than that one. It remains mine. »

Evolution

When he wants to relax or find comfort, Jean-Sébastien Girard likes to watch old soap operas. A time of peace Or Human Earth. “Somewhat to the second degree, to the nostalgic side, but I still see qualities in it. I still really love it. These old shows that translated the ambient air into the show, with homophobia, racism and unrestrained sexuality, allow him to measure how much things have changed. “That’s good. »

“Inside Human Earth, there’s a scene where a mother says her biggest fear is that her son will “go wild.” I show things like this to illustrate that people build themselves into it. This TV was a clash for all the people who were different. It’s another era, yes, but it hasn’t been 100 years! »

Nostalgia

When he confirms that he doesn’t define himself as nostalgic, his friends “scream with laughter,” says Jean-Sébastien Girard. But he stands and symbolizes. “I am very happy now and completely attuned to my time. Being interested in the past does not mean that we want to live there, but at the age of 47, it is true that sometimes he was born in the wrong era.” A boy like no other, that’s right! It is a difference of interests. I was raised by my mother and my grandmother and it was very close. I loved what they wanted for a long time. »

He admits that, if he is more contemporary in his tastes in series, cinema or theater, in music he listens more to the “old stuff” – one sees it by choosing vinyls. ” JS Softness, it is not a posture. This is actually the music I listen to. I like it, Les Louanges, I recognize a lot of qualities in current music, I know what’s coming out, but it affects my sensibilities less. »

Difference

“My father hoped to normalize me with yellow tonka construction trucks,” Jean-Sébastien Girard says during his show. “I want Barbies,” she explains. I have a picture of me when I was 5 years old in a big truck, I don’t want it, I don’t know what to do with it! » The truck he called… Isabel.

This sense of inadequacy in the face of expectations is at the heart of his concept – his mother gave him a small tonga for Christmas to echo this. “The originals, I don’t have them. »

For a boy who lived with this daily feeling of not being meant to be, growing up with a sense of being different would have been fundamental. But what will he choose between his uniqueness and the ordinary life today? He thinks for a long time. “I will save the life that exists now. But next time, I might take one of the standard ones. I have a small life that excels at dodgeball. Yes, I should have had a more peaceful life. »

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In early adolescence, Jean-Sébastien Girard discovered a passion for theater. “I went from Pierre Margot to Moliere! » Enrolled in theater at UQAM, he soon became disillusioned – « I’m not good! – and, after his schooling, accidentally turned himself towards the job of cultural researcher at Radio-Canada.

“I did this for 15 years and loved it. Truly. The dream of being “in front” was on the verge, but fate wanted otherwise: humorous capsules allow him to be noticed by the director. the evening, who hired him. The rest fell out. So this first show comes after a very long detour, and today Jean-Sébastien Girard is in the right place, with breath, substance and perspective.

Seeing as how much he wants to be funny for the show – “I paid attention: if you feel at Jasmine Roy’s conference on bullying, it’s because I missed my shot! – it’s like retrieving his story. He takes a funny revenge in the form of an ode to difference.

“I would never have imagined it. “A beautiful course, yes. He bursts into laughter. “I can die, the circle is over! I can leave. »