Due to a resounding success at the 24 Edition, the organization of the ComediHa! Fest Quebec promises a 25th History, both for the humorous variety and for the festival-goers’ experience on the site.
Meeting with Le Journal, the General Manager of ComediHa! Fest-Québec, Josée Charland, points out that the goal in celebrating the festival’s quarter-century is to pick up where the pandemic left the event in 2019 and push even further.
“In 2019, for the 20th anniversary of the festival, we had five outdoor locations, 350 shows and about sixty hours of television filming; “This issue has the story of ComediHa! shaped,” notes Ms. Charland. “There will be more on the 25th,” she says.
With a view to the current issue, the managing director says that despite the changeable weather throughout the ComediHa! was still impressed by the participation of the fans.
“We saw spectators with blankets, even with sleeping bags,” says Ms. Charland. “People really wanted to be there,” she says happily.
Not just comedians on stage
One difference from previous editions was that not only guests from the world of humor were present on the evenings of the Grand bien-cuit.
“We wanted the actors, comedians and singers to say, ‘I’m not a comedian, but I can do it for fun,'” explains Ms. Charland.
Among them, Guylaine Tremblay and Michel Charette, among others, took the stage as the main targets of their respective evenings, and their colleagues did not hesitate to accept positions as roasters.
It is the actor and comedian Vincent-Guillaume Otis who won the festival’s favorite prize for his performance in Michel Charette’s Grand bien-cuit.
Goal: $20,000 for the Antoine Fund
The Antoine Fund organized for the first time half a year in favor of the foundation. The organization was founded to help young people with multiple disabilities and their families. She bears the first name of the son of the President of ComediHa!, Sylvain Parent-Bédard, who himself lives with autism 3 and an intellectual disability as in epilepsy.
Halftime ends on September 5th and more than $16,000 has already been raised.
“It’s heartwarming to see all the money we’ve raised, especially for the first time,” Ms Charland said in an interview with Le Journal.
Antoine attended some events during the festival with his parents. Director General Josée Charland believes he was very satisfied with his experience, even if he finds it difficult to express himself.
“Antoine reacts very often when there are stimuli around him; He was very happy with the events he attended,” she notes.
Looking to 2024
Outdoor shows returned that year. For the occasion, Place Georges-V received several high profile guests including the special podcast “La Poche Bleue” which celebrated the 25th anniversary of the first film in the “Les Boys” series.
In addition to open-air stages and other parallel activities, we are also planning to recruit international staff for the programming of the 2024 edition.
“[L’an prochain]”There’s a risk of a pretty impressive international component,” he said with a smile about Ms. Charland.