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In my second year of university I applied for the job of Entertainment Programmer for the residence association at Carleton University. I didn’t get the job but as a consolation prize the board threw me a bone. I was appointed Assistant Entertainment Programmer, a brand new position that gave me a tantalizing glimpse at the booking game without the power to actually do any booking.
I vividly recall a meeting between myself and the Entertainment Programmer to discuss who we were gonna get for the Hallowe’en concert. I was really pushing for this new comedy troupe that was getting popular on campus, The Kids In the Hall. The asking price was only $500; I thought it was a steal and did everything I could to try and convince my superior to put in a bid.
No way, she just wasn’t having it. Who wants to watch a comedy show at a university mixer? was her reasoning, and there was this ‘great’ band* we could also get for $500…they had a song that was starting to get some radio play…
And so my one and only chance to see The Kids In The Hall went out the window, it was like a tasty cheeseburger had been pulled from my hands before I could take a bite.
And then, lo and behold, the boys decided to launch a reunion tour with a stop right here in Ottawa on May 24th, 2015. I hovered over my keyboard as the onsale time ticked ever closer and ended up with tickets in the 4th row.
The show was everything you could ask for: new stuff, old stuff, classic bits and fresh material; it was a laugh-riot from start to finish. And oh, so satisfying to take a big bite of a tasty treat that I thought had been lost forever.
I’m not sure if I would go to see them again – comedy is like that – but I sure am glad I was finally able to see The Kids In the Hall live.
*The band was called Roman Grey.
Todd Man Out 