At the 2009 Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival by accident I ended up seeing a troupe called Big Tease. Two girls and one guy performing sketches about mathematics and Mortal Kombat. There was obviously much more than that, but the point I want to make is that they made me laugh. Like belly laugh. Since last years performance Big Tease has kept busy and has started to get some well deserved attention within the comedy community here in Toronto. Read on…
Q. How did Big Tease come together as a sketch group?
A. Mary: Alicia and I started writing together in January 2009. We had written some sketches that required a third person and decided to let Steve sit in on some rehearsals but vowed to never let Steve join the troupe. Shortly after that we heard from one of Steve’s writing partners that he had written a sketch that was called “Ghost Nation: City of Ghouls” and that it was just “too weird”. Alicia and I immediately realized what he had to offer and after a brief bout of hazing, we accepted him into the troupe.
Q. What have you guys been up to since your performance at the Sketch Fest last year?
A. After all the hazing, we decided to actually start performing. Since last years Sketch Fest, we have produced several of their own shows at Comedy Bar, have performed many times and headlined at the Rivoli Sketch Comedy Lounge and were the recipients of the Entertainer Award at the Humber Arts Festival. Most recently we were nominated for the Fresh Meat competition and have been nominated to move on to the Cream of Comedy Showcase at The Second City on November 21st.
Q. There are quite a bit of sketch groups in Toronto. What do you guys bring to the stage and your material that sets you apart from everybody else?
A. Our show is kind of like one big sketch with a bunch of little sketches within. The overall theme is edutainment. To put it in simpler terms, we’re kind of like a travelling family band with a dark, sexy twist.
Q. At your Sketch Fest show this year, will you be doing any old sketches…like maybe Math Attack? Are you guys geeks?
A. We’re constantly rewriting and polishing our staples and about half of our set will be new to the Sketch Fest crowd. Will we be doing Math Attack? If x = yes, solve for x. Are we geeks? You tell me, does staying in, eating homemade nachos and watching The Dark Crystal make us geeks? F#$k the police*!
*The not very nice ones.
Q. Are you guys sex robots from the future?
A. Yes and we’ve come here with a very important message: You must go see Big Tease in Sketch Fest on November 2nd at 7PM at the Lower Ossington Theatre. The fate of the universe depends on it!
Catch Big Tease at the Sketch Fest here:
Tuesday, Nov.2, 7pm – Lower Ossington Theatre
- http://www.theshortsshow.com The Shorts Show