If you haven't heard of the name Debra DiGiovanni, take five minutes right now and watch this YouTube clip.
Okay, back now? I had the pleasure of talking with Ms. DiGiovanni today in anticipation of the upcoming Bridgetown Comedy Festival and was smiling throughout the entire conversation. This is a woman who's very grounded, honest, articulate, kind and forthcoming, and I can't wait to see her in action (again) at Bridgetown. She's pretty excited about the festival, too. '(Bridgetown) is always one of the festivals you kind of, you know, revere- it's a hot festival. You kind of think, one day. And then a couple of weeks ago my people were like, "You've been invited to go to the Bridgetown Festival", so this is very, very exciting. I love the West Coast- I love performing in Vancouver. It's really easygoing, filled with easy laughers, and so I'm thinking, 'is ([Bridgetown] going to be like that? [With other cities], it's a little more, "May i come up and speak to you?" But I'm excited about Portland- everyone tells me how fabulous is and I'm just excited to be there.' But surely there have to be some cities that are comedic black holes? 'Yes,' she says immediately. 'I'm sure this is worldwide, but there are little spots where you're just like, "ehhh." London- fabulous. Edinburgh- fabulous. But the minute I went to anything named [Ed. Note: name withheld], it was rowdy, disrespectful, and I've never seen people heckle like in those kinds of towns- ever. But to be honest, silence is almost worse.' On the plus side, though, Halifax, Nova Scotia more than makes up for it. '(The Halifax Comedy Festival) is just dynamite. It's really one of my favourite festivals in Canada because East Coasters are there for fun, they are there for comedy, they are just there to enjoy themselves- a really good crowd.'
While an audience's attitude may be different from city to city, one thing that doesn't usually change is the gender divide. It's no secret that men make up far more of an audience that women do, and sometimes that can have adverse effects. 'I'll tell you a story,' begins Ms. DiGiovanni. 'I will tell you this, just a quick story that happened to me last night. I was at a comedy club- very glad to be there- and the manager came to me and said, "Can you not do a specific joke because it's too female?" The guy before me was talking about getting a prostate exam, and I can't say something because it talked about a uterus. You know, you pick your battles and you go, "This is a good club and I won't do that one joke, fine." But that is probably going to exist for the rest of my life as a comedian." Maybe there will be a day in my life and in my career where I will be able to go to that person and say, "No, I'll do what I want and how dare you say that to me." I think it's the best angle to not paint yourself into a corner.' However, there's one demographic she tries to seek out as often as possible. 'There's something about the homosexual crowd that is fabulous because you know anyone that's been persecuted is always going to understand the underdog- they're on the same page. And there's something about gay men- they just support me, they just like me. I think they have this ability to see beyond the wrapping and say, "We love this woman's heart, we love what she's talking about, and we think her truth is funny." I think there's just something about ever having been an underdog that gay community really embraces.'
Life hasn't been without its ups and downs, such as when a PhD student included Ms. DiGiovanni quite often- 'Yeah,' said the comedian. 'Quite. A. Bit.' -in her dissertation...and without contacting the comedian at all. 'That whole experience? I'll tell you, that was a bit of a shock to my head. I had no idea they were talking about me. Apparently there was a symposium, and I was a workshop.' And there have been lean times when making the jump from part-time to full-time comic. 'The Humber program came by and it was really good and I was like, "Okay, I can quit my job and go to Humber, and my mom and dad won't have a heart attack because it was school. It felt very right to me. And maybe five or six years in, there was this one sort of magical summer where I was at a Just for Laughs festival. I met Russell Peters and he asked me to open for him on tour, and that was when I was able to quit my job and haven't had a day job since. Truly, taking that leap- it comes. And there are scary times, and there are lean times, but it's like those cheesy expressions: Take a step, and the bridge will appear. But you do have to take that chance at some point, because your focus can't be spread too thin; you just can't split your focus.'
As good as life has been since then, life on the road can still be tough. 'It's hard [being on the road],' she says. 'It really is. I know it sounds a little trite because you're alone a lot. You go to fun cities, but you're working. My mom asks me, "Do you get out and sightsee?" No! You really don't because you fly in and then you usually do press during the day one or two of the days, and then you do your shows late at night and you get up and you're jet-lagged...you've got three or four hours during the day where you're like, "Alright, let's walk around the block or whatever." But it's a little quiet, it's a little lonely. I find that after day seven or eight, I'm like, "Yeah...I want to go home." I don't drink which, first of all, is an oddity in the world of comedy, so I don't hang out after the shows and get drunk. [After socialising] I go back to my hotel room and watch Three's Company until 3:00 in the morning.' Sometimes, gigs can get really time-consuming and this comedian craves her downtime. 'The Just for Laughs festival is one of those things where you need four or five days to recuperate after. You go to bed every night at 4:30 in the morning and then you get up at 9am- I call it "comedy camp." Basically, you just get together with all these people you get to see and everyone's having a good time- it is just no sleep, just no sleep. By the end of it I always lose my voice!' she laughs.
Near the end of the conversation, the topic drifts back to Bridgetown. 'I think it'll be fun doing that "back-to-back, back-to-back." It just keeps you jazzed, you know?' she describes excitedly. With her speech getting faster, she continues: 'Going from show to show, you feel sort of like a superstar. "Okay, the car's here!" You put sunglasses on, you rush out, and it's a lot of fun.'
All too soon, time's up and I say goodbye, counting down the days (eleven) until the comedy festival. If you're in the Portland area, check her out for a truly unforgettable show.
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