Comedian Ed Hill is set to take the stage at the 91大黄鸭 Fringe festival in September.
Hill was born in Taiwan, but grew up in Vancouver, B.C. He鈥檚 the first Taiwanese-Canadian comedian to get a full-length comedy special with Comedy Dynamics. The special 鈥揅andy and Smiley鈥� received critical acclaim, making the top 15 comedy specials of 2021 by Paste Magazine, and NPR radio鈥檚 鈥淏est of 2021鈥� list. The special can be found online or streaming on Apple TV and Amazon Prime. Hill鈥檚 performance in 91大黄鸭 will be part of his new special Stupid Ed.
鈥淚 am not a blue comic; I am not a setup鈥損unch type of guy. I鈥檓 not a storyteller. I don鈥檛 fit into those categories. But what I am is very introspective,鈥� said Hill.
Hill鈥檚 comedy is unlike most comedians that are performing. He goes 鈥渋nside rather than outside,鈥� which was a decision he made early in his career following the advice of his late-great mentor, Louie Anderson.
鈥淸Louie] came to me early on and let me know 鈥渢alk about you鈥攖alk about your family. These are the things that will transcend time and barriers because we all have families and we all have struggles,鈥� said Hill.
Hill measures his crowd not strictly by their laughs, but by their silence, too. He reflected on a time when he watched a colleague who had a successful set in New York City. The comic made the audience laugh, but the comic was also able to get them to go quiet again, so they wouldn鈥檛 miss a word.
He also measures his success in how people interact with him.
鈥淧eople coming up to you, letting you know they have similar experiences in their lives, or people walking away just remembering what the moment felt like for them. That鈥檚 the essence I鈥檓 trying to give to people,鈥� said hill.
The festival won鈥檛 be Hill鈥檚 first outing in 91大黄鸭. In fact, the comic often comes through every six months or so, but he expects this time to be different.
鈥淎 comedy club performance can be different than the theater performance, because they only give you 45 minutes compared to an hour,鈥� said Hill.
The title of Ed鈥檚 show 鈥揝tupid Ed鈥� is also introspective. Hill recalled how the name came to him based on a comment from his dad. While perusing family photo albums of Hill as a kid, his dad glanced over his shoulder.
鈥淎nd he just goes 鈥渟tupid kid鈥� and walks away,鈥� said Hill with a laugh.
Rather than take offence at the comment, Hill heard it differently.
鈥淚 know the reason why that was such a touching moment for me, because I think that was acceptance,鈥� said Hill.
The comic鈥檚 set is filled with humorous introspective insights into his own life.
Hill will perform on Sep. 1鈥�3 at the Mary Irwin Theatre in 91大黄鸭. For tickets and showtimes, visit the festival鈥檚 website.
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zach.delaney@revelstkokereview.com
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