Home » Arts & Life » Hometown girl comes back for some laughs

Hometown girl comes back for some laughs

London native Laura Danowski realized at an early age that becoming an academic all-star was not on her to-do list. Discovering that her strongest subjects in school were phys-ed and drama, Danowski decided that becoming a comedian would be the best career choice for her.

“I loved Saturday Night Live growing up and I would re-enact sketches all the time,” she recalls. “I was the class clown—it’s the best feeling making people laugh by being you.”

It was only a few years ago when Danowski moved from London to Toronto to pursue her dreams. Although she admits to being scared and intimidated at first, the comedy writing and performance program at Humber College helped her unite with comedians while gaining valuable experience.

“Everyone was weird and very outgoing which made it easy to make friends,” she explains. “[During my] first year of college, I think I focused more on drinking and boys than focusing on comedy—we all do it, don’t say you don’t—[but] I met Kaitlyn Loftus during second year and we instantly hit it off.”

Danowski and Loftus make up the comedy sketch troupe Cheap Smokes, and have quickly moved from performing in small bars to being in the Just For Laughs showcase and the Toronto Sketch Fest, and opening for Canada’s The Impondrables, who won the Canadian Comedy Award for Best Sketch Troupe.

“We were pretty rough at the start, but the more comedy we watched, the better we became,” she says. “Jim Carey and Tina Fey weren’t amazing at first—it takes time, practice and patience. It sucks when a sketch bombs onstage, but when a sketch that you wrote and performed kills, there’s no better feeling. It’s the best high.”

Danowski is currently on her She’s Got A Shape Tour, which features six Humber comedy alumni comediennes. According to Danowski, the women wanted to do the all-girl comedy tour to prove that women are just as funny as men.”

“The only thing that woman can bring to humour that men can’t is that we have boobs, real boobs,” she laughs. “Maybe people think guys are funnier because they don’t expect girls to be funny, and that’s what we’re here to prove. Our comedy style is our own—some of us are sarcastic and witty, some of us are wacky, some of us are dirty—well, I think we are all a bit dirty!”

Being on the road with six comediennes doing seven shows in six cities in eight days may sound exhausting to most, but Danowski seems more thrilled than anything. Although she gets to visit London quite often for holidays and random visits, she’s still excited that her hometown is one of the stops on the tour.

“The most exciting part is definitely seeing everyone,” she says. “I’m going to see lots of family, old teachers and old boyfriends, which hopefully won’t be too awkward.”

Catch Danowski and fellow She’s Got A Shape Tour comediennes on stage at the London Music Club tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12 in advance, or $15 at the door.

Follow the Gazette on Facebook and Twitter.