By: Steven Chmielash
Comedian, Colin Mochrie, best known for his work on the television show, Whose Line Is It Anyways, brought his talents to Algonquin by hosting the Improv Games: Youth Comedy Evening on Feb.7.
As part of the Cracking-Up the Capital comedy festival, the evening featured a friendly competition between the Carleton and University of Ottawa improvisation teams.
Before the show, Mochrie said that “we’ll be pulling out all the stops tonight…who knows pants may come off. I don’t want to promise anything in case it doesn’t happen.”
Luckily, for the audience, there was no nudity, only non-stop laughter.
Even though scores were being tallied by the guest judges, “It’s all for fun, it’s all for the audience,” said AJ Comeau, president of the Carleton improvisation association.
Kristine Shadid, a member of the University of Ottawa improvisation club, was nervous on the day leading up to the event. Ultimately, she said it was all worth it.
“To look down and see my parents looking at me, friends who I haven’t seen in a long time were in the audience and people I work with… it was amazing”
It wasn’t just sharing the stage with a comedic talent that many of the performers were excited about; Mochrie also advised these aspiring actors on the entertainment industry.
He told them that they “can’t be in this business, because you want to be famous and rich. You have to be in it because you have to be in it.”
“I never wanted to be star, and I think I worked that out quite nicely,” admits Mochrie. “I just wanted to work, I always to have, be able to work forever, for as long as I could.”
Mochrie never planned on being a successful actor and comedian. There was a key element that played a vital part in his fame.
“I always say luck does play a big part. Certainly, you can get somewhere through hard work but you also need a bit of luck and when that luck happens, you have to be able to exploit that luck, to use it to your advantage.”
Wendy Liao, a member of the Carleton improvisation team, described the evening as a once in a lifetime opportunity and something she’d never forget.
“I feel like if I died tomorrow, I’d be cool.”