Touting itself as ‘a comedy show with the Breast of Intentions’, the 2014 Boob Tour will be stopping at the Cochrane Legion Jan. 24 for an 8 p.m. show in the name of fighting cancer.
Proceeds from the Cochrane Legion show will go toward Cochrane’s annual ‘Relay for Life’ event, which raised $24,000 in 2013 for the Canadian Cancer Society; the same event raised $36,000 in 2012.
Three comics will be staging their brand of funny at the local show, including Saskatchewan native-turned-Calgarian Cory Mack.
A sassy lass from the prairies, Mack has been on the scene for nearly 25 years. She’s also a promoter of the laugh industry, as the producer of the ‘YYComedy Festival’, which is slated for its third annual run this year from Sept. 29-Oct. 5 in Calgary.
For Mack, stepping out from her juggling act of producer to taking part in the Boob Tour is a great way to reconnect with comics new and old, while raising funds to fight cancer.
“It’s great fun meeting different pockets of comedians,” said Mack, whose brand of humour is ‘adult clean.’
“If you watch TV after 7 p.m., I’m pretty much good to be on it…nobody wants to feel awkward because of chosen language.”
She’s written for all ages and all stages of comedy. Her material has gone from the tales of a bright-eyed farmer’s daughter to, well, a farmer’s daughter who grew up, got married, took on a mortgage and had kids.
She pays little attention to stereotypes attached to women in comedy and is more mindful of making a connection with the audience at hand.
“Every once in a while somebody needs some attention, so they write an article that women aren’t as funny as men,” said Mack, adding that the notion of deeming ‘funny’ as being linked with gender is nothing short of ridiculous.
“I do think people crave connection…I’m like the girl next door who got a little cheeky.”
After years of taking her ‘mommy’ hat off before pulling up at a club for a night gig, Mack said she got into the habit of writing material in her car. This was propelled into high gear by participating in Calgary’s Red Carpet Comedy — open mic for professional comedians, which Mack said was “a great impetus to get us writing more and more frequently.”
Sometimes, there would be a gig that didn’t pan out, like the time Mack performed a corporate event (her mainstay is corporate gigs) where the bosses dressed up in full attire and the road construction crew employees were three sheets to the wind.
“If I said ‘boob’ it would be offensive to the owners’ wives. If I said breasts, the guys would be like come on…” laughed Mack, adding that you can’t win them all and that sometimes the atmosphere is off or the crowd feels like you ‘mailed it in’.
Mack has been on the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival, starred in her own Comedy Now special and is a regular guest on the “Unconventional Panel” on CBC Radio’s Calgary Eyeopener.
She was the first to receive the Roger Abbott Award for her contributions to the Canadian Comedy Awards and has earned two nominations at the Canadian Comedy Awards.
To learn more about Mack, visit corymack.ca.
To learn more about the Boob Tour, visit theboobtour.com.
Tickets are $25, available at the Cochrane Eagle office, Embellish Hair and Nails and the Cochrane Legion.
