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I had the pleasure this week to interview one of the funniest, smartest ladies of comedy in Vancouver. Tova Fox is a student a Simon Fraser University; an amazing woman who has managed ( with a slight amount of perspiration) to balance comedy, school, work and a social life. One of Tova's upcoming gigs will be on March 18th at the Lotus where she will be opening for Judy Carter, a comedian / magician from California and successful author of "Stand Up Comedy :The Book." Tova Fox spoke to me about the politics of comedy and the benefits of laughter as a form of therapy.
Monique Harvey: What kind of comedian is Judy Carter?
Tova Fox: Judy's approach to comedy is to hit you on the gut level. Her comedy is not about airplane jokes or 7-11 jokes, it's about your life experiences. She takes what has happened in her life and turns them into jokes. She is also a magician, and one part of her show is her death-defying escape from her grandmother's girdle. She's really multi- talented.
MH: You said Judy draws from her own life experiences for her jokes, is that how you approach comedy too?
TF: Absolutely. First of all, one of the comics I admire the most is a man named Louie Anderson. The reason I admire Louie Anderson is because he talks about his life on stage and he makes his life funny. He talks about his dysfunctional family. He grew up with an alcoholic father, an abusive mother and twelve brothers and sisters. He basically tells it like it is but makes it really funny. And (Louie) has done enough healing in his life to the point where he can do that. One of the things that Louie says is that most of today's comedy is hate-based. And what Louie does is what he calls "love-based" comedy in terms of exposing things and trying to bring people together.
But what I would say, to even take the "hate-based" trend a step further, is that a lot of comedy today is "lie-based." I call my comedy "truth-based." For me, what comedy is telling secrets. For instance I'm a lesbian, and so I do talk about being a lesbian on stage and what my experience is like as a les. I have to be myself on stage.
Some people can go up on stage, and they can say "Yeah, my brother, y' know, he used to beat up all the little kids in high school," when, in reality, they don't even have a brother. And I don't have any problems with that at all, but I, personally, couldn't do (that kind of comedy) myself and talk about having a sister when I don't have a sister. Comedy has to be truth-based for me; it has to be about me and my life experiences.(My jokes) have to be authentic or, otherwise, I'm not committed to the joke. I've tried doing jokes that aren't truth based. At my last show, I told a joke about my budgie who died twenty years ago. And I went on this tangent about it that wasn't truthful and the joke did not work. It wasn't my style. My style is to be truthful, like Sandra Bernhart or Whoopi Goldberg.
MH: Does it help to laugh about the tough times? Is laughing a form of therapy for you?
TF: Oh, Totally. I've had different things happen to me that I have turned into jokes and it is so satisfying. To take an experience that could be fraught with a lot of pain and anger and turn it into something funny and have this whole crowd of people laughing with you takes the piss out of everything. It is very empowering. It is definitely therapy for me. When people ask me "What is it like doing comedy?" I say to them, "I've learned more about myself doing comedy in the last eight months than I have in all the years I had therapy." (Comedy) is about facing your fear and challenging yourself.
MH: I heard a story about how you opened for Robin Williams but you weren't aware of it at the time. Could you explain what happened to me?
TF: It's a great story and it has an even better ending. I used to take courses at "The Comedy Gym." It's a eight week course that takes place at Punchlines in Gastown. And the students have a chance to perform in front of an audience at the end of the course, and the teachers just pack the place and fill it with about 350 people. It's an absolutely thrilling experience. And all your friends and family are there and it is a very supportive audience. You can just be crazy.
And, (this story took place just a few weeks ago), my coach came up to me before the last showcase and said to me "Listen, I just want you to keep to your time (schedule) tonight." And I got all nervous, but my coach said to me, "Don't panic. Don't' worry. Just relax and have a good time." And I was all neurotic and I was thinking, "Oh my God. What have I done?" But I just went on stage and basically killed. I was right on. Everything just came together for me and it was one of my best shows. And when I came off stage my coach said to me, "I didn't want to tell you this before you got on, but Robin Williams is going to do a set at the end." And I all I could say was, "Thank you! Thank you so much for not telling me." When I went back stage I saw that Robin Williams was there. And I shook his hand and he said, "Oh, you were great! I don't know what I'm going to do." So, here I am reassuring Robin Williams, "Oh no. You'll be great. They'll love you!" And I could not believe this was happening. And when he went on stage he would refer to my material and talk about the "Lesbian in the house." It was great. And just last Thursday I saw Robin Williams again. He was performing at Punchlines. After the show, I went to where he was signing autographs and I shook his hand and he said, "I remember you." And I said, "Yeah, right. Like you're going to remember me." But he just laughed and said, "Are you kidding! I remember you! I told my wife all your jokes, she was killing herself laughing."
I also gave him a couple of tickets to Judy's show, and he said he will probably be able to make it to the show because he stops filming on March 20th. So, hopefully he will be there.
MH: How did you get your start in comedy?
TF: I've always loved performing and I've taken acting classes in the past. I think one of the prerequisites of comedy is that you have to love being the center of attention. You have to be an extrovert to some degree. Some people don't like to be focused on, or they like to be behind the scenes. But that's not the way with me. I got my start when my partner saw an ad in the newspaper for the Comedy Gym. I took the course and I was basically hooked. It was like having the best sex of my life.
But the very first time I performed on stage there were about twenty guys in the front row at a stag party. And I completely spaced out. I started with my last joke first, and almost forgot everything. That night was not my best night and it definitely wasn't the "best kind of sex" at all! But I went back the next week and I thought "I'm just going to take the bull by the horns" and I did a great show.
MH: Why is comedy "the best kind of sex?"
TF: Well, you're telling people your thoughts and what you've thought all your life. You get the spotlight. There is so much power involved and that is incredibly exhilarating. And when people laugh it's like this rush of energy. And then I feed off that energy and come back with more jokes. It's incredible.
MH: How do you handle hecklers?
TF: In comedy, when you get heckled by people, you have to acknowledge it. If a joke goes wrong or if a joke doesn't work right you have to acknowledge it. The audience is witnessing something that is taking place, right before their very eyes; they're witnessing the creative process. And you can't ignore (hecklers). If you do, they get louder and louder. You have to acknowledge hecklers and somehow incorporate the unexpected into your act. You also have to be very delicate with hecklers because you can't alienate them. You have to be nice about insulting them. The one thing that is loose about comedy is that you can use heckler's lines in your show. And they work really well. Hecklers are usually people who want to be in comedy but are too afraid to go out on stage. They want some attention and that can't stand sitting and listening.
MH: How difficult was it to get your start in comedy?
TF: (Comedy) is a very, very hard craft. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. What is really hard about comedy is the energy that it takes to go out on stage. It takes a lot of energy just to psyche yourself up. One good example is Johnny Carson. Every time he was about to go on stage, he would throw up. And this was years later in his career. The fear never really goes away. Once your out on stage, you're O.K., but just before you get on it's just terrifying.
But I think the hardest part is writing the material. It takes a really, really long time. And the only way to know if your material works in on stage. And the process is very time consuming. You might write 50 jokes and maybe half a joke will work. But you can't know (if a joke will work) unless you are on stage. And sometimes you think a joke is so hilarious, but when you tell it on stage people just sit there. Then (you know) the joke needs some work.
MH: What kind of politics exist in the comedy business?
TF: The politics in the business can be very taxing. There is sexism - all the dick jokes. It is a male dominated profession so it is even harder for women, hard for lesbians and even hard for people on the fringe who want to do different things to break into the industry. It's a really traditional business so that's why it is really important to find other venues.
But Rosie O'Donnell said, "When you get to the salad bar and there is no more black olives, you know they're going to put out more olives. So don't panic." This is true because, when you see other people getting gigs, and getting paid gigs and you're thinking "What about me?" Don't worry. You'll get your turn.
There is a lot of jealousy and competition (in comedy) and sometimes (the decisions made) are not based on talent but who you know. But I think it is really important to stay focused on oneself and still applaud other people for (his or her) success. But, again, I think the main thing is to be true to myself and even if I'm not doing the kind of humour that is getting me paid gigs every night at least I'm doing what is important to me. At least I still have my integrity as an artist.