Fratwurst is made up of four homegrown Toronto talents. They perform around the city, are up for awards, and for Toronto Sketchfest, you can see them in two shows at the Comedy Bar: Nov. 11 and Nov 13, both at 7PM.
We asked Fratwurst to answer our profile questions, and they answered.
We did it last year and had one of the best sets we’ve ever had. The Toronto Sketch Fest is an event which we look forward to all year.
What other troupe’s show at this year’s Festival do you most want to see?
Peter and Chris, The Majors, Kerpatty and Jape. These four troupes, coincidentally are performing with us on the 11th and 13th at 7:00pm. We go way back with Jape and they’re fantastic geniuses. The Williamson Playboys are phenomenal and need to be seen to be believed. National Theatre of the World, 2 kids one hall, Falconpowder and the Imponderables are legends in Toronto. 3 Peters, Ladystache, Shoeless, Vest of Friends, Classy Affair, Cheap Smokes, Good Game, Shark Jump, Smells Like the 80′s, Touch my Stereotype and the Regulars. These are all troupes we have built a rapport with and would be pissed off if we didn’t mention them and go to their shows. Can’t burn bridges…
Why should we come to see your show?
We will be coming off of a streak of glory as we will have just performed at the Tim Sims Encouragement Fund show, Cream of Comedyon November 7th. Whether we win or not, it represents a level of prestige in the comedy community for up and coming performers. We’re doing that show with an amazing troupe who ironically have perfect teeth- British Teeth.
What is your favourite place on Ossington? If you haven’t been to Ossington, where do you most want to go?
The Lakeview holds a special place in our collective heart-By in our heart, we’re being literal- The collected greasy goodness from all the breakfasts. We used to perform at Opera Bob’s when a friend of ours ran a show there years ago, but we still swing by now and then. The Lower Ossington Theatre is rising as one of the best places to see a show. Rocky Horror, baby. Also the Caledonian because it has innis and gunn on tap- amazing.
We are continuing our series of profiles of the acts performing in the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival with The Templeton Philharmonic. As part of this year’s festival, Templeton Philharmonic perform on November 8 at 10PM at Lower Ossington Theatre.
Toronto actors Gwynne Phillips and Briana Templeton answered our questions:
How did you get involved with the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival?
We met at the U of T Drama Program and wanted to have more freedom in the characters we play (old men, middle-aged ladies, etc.) so we developed our first show for the Montreal Fringe Festival under the direction of the amazingly talented Kevin Matviw (Second City, The Sketchersons, The Really Good Show). We were first planning on making a heady, psychological drama about dreaming, but ended up with a pile of sketches about eating and people wearing shoulderpads instead.
What other troupe’s show at this year’s Festival do you most want to see?
Ourshow features rigorous dancing. Also, if you’d like to spend an evening watching a performance hosted by two off-putting ladies in ugly period costumes, we’re the show for you.
What is your favourite place on Ossington? If you haven’t been to Ossington, where do you most want to go?
I MISS YOU vintage shop, and THE GOLDEN TURTLE…best Pho in town!
The Toronto Sketch Comedy Fest starts next week – November 8 to be exact – and to prepare you for all the fun and funny troupes to hit our neighborhood, we are profiling as many of them as we can.
Next up: Touch My Stereotype. This large Toronto based troupe is performing on November 8 at 7PM at Comedy Bar. Check out one of their videos after the answers.
1. How did you get involved with the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival?
We have been patrons in the past! This year, we submitted an application!
2. What other troupe’s show at this year’s Festival do you most want to see?
Can we say all of them? There are so many great groups in this city! We’re fans of British Teeth, The Regulars, Falcon Powder and Uncalled For(to name a few).
3. Why should we come to see your show?
You’ll feel better afterwards. It’s like eating salad! We’ve got something for everyone.
4.What is your favourite place on Ossington? If you haven’t been to Ossington, where do you most want to go?
We often dance or see some comedy at The Ossington and when we have a case of the late night munchies, we head on over to the Lakeview.
If you were on Ossington north of Dundas last night or anytime today, you probably noticed loads of trucks and maybe you noticed some adults dressed up in period costume. This was not an extra-large Halloween party; rather, it was “Bomb Girls” shooting on location in the Dakota Tavern.
I stopped by this evening to see what I could see, which was: lots of trucks, lots of crew milling about in front of the Dakota, lots of gawkers “waiting for the bus,” and a few actors and/or extras dressed a little old-school and stuffy compared to the usual Dakota customer.
Bomb Girls is a Can-con production for Shaw Media starring Meg Tilly (no, I didn’t see her) and set at a munitions factory on the homefront during WWII. Word is the show will air next year on Global TV. So when it does air, don’t forget to look for scenes of the cast going drinking or to a show at The Dakota!
To continue our series of profiles of Sketchfest troupes, we now introduce to you, from Montreal, Uncalled For. The Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival runs at Lower Ossington Theatre and other venues from November 8 – 13, and Uncalled For is one of the featured performances of the festivals. Last summer, we saw their hilarious show, Hypnagogic Logic, which was one of the Audience Choice winners at Toronto Fringe. This November, you can see Uncalled For at Second City on November 10 at 11PM and Lower Ossington Theatre on the 11th at 10PM.
On behalf of the troupe, Matt responded to our questions:
How did you get involved with the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival?
As English Montrealers, we’re torn between two homes. We get to spend our weekdays in the warm maternal bosom of Montreal, and weekends and high holidays astride the stern but fair loins of Toronto. So when Toronto first told us there was a sketch fest, we were so eager to please that we dedicated our lives to writing hilarious sketch comedy.
What other troupe’s show at this year’s Festival do you most want to see?
“Charles” and “Peter ‘n Chris” are good friends of ours who are from the west coast, and don’t get to play here nearly often enough. Also, you’ve got to appreciated truth in advertising. You know what/who you’re getting. We also like troupes that aren’t just men’s names, like The Templeton Philharmonic.
Why should we come to see your show?
We’ve got two nights two ENTIRELY DIFFERENT SHOWS! First up, Hypnogogic Logic is our full-length, longest running sketch-play, which won the Just For Laughs Best Comedy award. On the next night, we have our sketch showcase which will premier ALL NEW, never-before-performed material.
What is your favourite place on Ossington? If you haven’t been to Ossington, where do you most want to go?
Toronto sketch troupe She Said What is the combination of talents of 4 Queen’s University graduates and friends who create and perform sketch comedy. They have been writing and performing together for over 3 years, and their show is at Lower Ossington Theatre on Wednesday, November 9 at 8PM.
As the Toronto Sketch Comedy Fest is coming to Ossington Nov 8-16, we’ll profile some of the troupes to display their variety and help you decide which shows to attend. As past attendees, we can attest that it’s a very good time. Megan, Marni, Carly and Emmy from She Said What agreed to answer our questions:
How did you get involved with the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival?
This will be our third year performing in the Toronto Sketch Fest. We got involved after being nominated for the Tim Sims Encouragement Fund and Cream of Comedy in the fall of 2009.
What other troupe’s show at this year’s Festival do you most want to see?
We’re really excited to support our fellow Toronto troupes, happy to see Picnicface is in town, one of our members is also in The Beautiful Losers, and we had a really fun show with Ninja Sex Party from New York last year, happy to see they’re coming back.
Why should we come to see your show?
Because no matter who you are, we’ve got something for you, and it’s a tight set with pretty faces and quite good hair.
What is your favourite place on Ossington? If you haven’t been to Ossington, where do you most want to go?
Sweaty Betty’s is a great little nook, there’s great vintage, art galleries, LVB and The Ossington, tequilla joint, pizza joint, everything! Also that flower-covered storage place looks interesting…
To see more of She Said What, check out their hilarious video, Wedding Present:
Lower Ossington Theatre again plays host to comedy talents from Toronto and beyond when the Toronto Sketch Comedy Fest returns from November 8th -13th. Audiences will be able to see live comedy for 6 nights at both LOT and Comedy Bar on Bloor.
Most shows offer the opportunity to see 3 different comedy troupes, from up-and-coming locals, to performers from across the U.S. and Canada. Headliners include Two Kids, One Hall, featuring Kevin McDonald and Scott Thompson from Kids in the Hall, on November 10 at Lower Ossington Theatre.
Tickets are available online and most shows are only $15, except for the 3 headline shows and the Second City performance. The best bet is the 4-show pass for $40 (save $5 per show!), which you can share with a friend and go to 2 shows together, or just use yourself 4 different times.
Ossington always celebrates Halloween in style, and this year is no exception. We already know about a few Halloween events and parties, so get your costume ready!
The Toronto Zombie Walk kicks Halloween off early when it returns to Trinity Bellwoods Park on Saturday, October 22. The 2011 9th Annual Zombie Walk is open to everybody who wants to dress up and participate, and if you have been there or read about it, you know people dress up! The walk begins at 3pm, but go early to see the crowd and enjoy the Zombie Wedding!
Reposado is planning a Halloween bash on Saturday, October 29 with prizes for best costume, live music and Duggan’s Beer.
Last year’s show must have been a success, because Lower Ossington Theatre is encoring the Rocky Horror Picture Show this October. The show runs Thursday, October 20 – Monday, October 31, with a sing-along edition on the 27th. Tickets here.
The Garrison is holding a Halloween House of Horrors on Saturday, October 29, with a $5 cover with costume, or $8 without. DJs Shit la Merde, Scott Cudmore and Jilly Botting will be entertaining party-goers starting at 9:30PM.
Also in the Halloween spirit, Crafted is running a “Best Costume Idea” contest and offering a pound of coffee free to the winner. Check into the shop for more information and/or to enter.
Additional parties announced: Levack Block is hosting a Halloween party weekend with DJs and costumes Friday and Saturday nights starting at 9PM. On Friday night, head over to Watusi for a Halloween Dance Party with DJs and a prize at midnight for the best costume. Opera Bob’s is having a party on Saturday night after 9:30PM and giving out some good prizes for costumes: $60 Opera Bob’s gift certificate for best group costume, $30 for best individual costume.
Please check our calendar for these and other upcoming events.
Next Wednesday, Jamie Angell of Angell Gallery and iYellow Wine Club are hosting an Art Crawl on Ossington. There are a lot of noteworthy galleries on our strip, so this sounds like a fun idea we wanted to mention.
Starting at Angell Gallery, the tour will make stops at XPace, MKG127 and O’born Contemporary. At each stop, participants will taste a featured wine chosen by Angela Aiello from iYellow Wine Club and inspired by the art on display. This sounds like an informative and fun way to experience the art of Ossington Village. Price is $30, or bring a friend at 2 for $25.
According to the notice posted on Bohmer’s door, filming will begin on Monday, August 8 at 7am at Bohmer Restaurant, followed by filming at Venezia Bakery on Tuesday, and explosives at Bohmer on Wednesday. The production notice mentions street closings on Wednesday, but the sign the city posted says the street will be closed on Monday. Be prepared for both.
Fratwurst is made up of four homegrown Toronto talents. They perform around the city, are up for awards, and for Toronto Sketchfest, you can see them in two shows at the Comedy Bar: Nov. 11 and Nov 13, both at 7PM.
We are continuing our 
Ossington always 
