Beat caught up with Canadian John Hastings, who’s performing in MICF for the first time this year. He’s one of three comics performing in the Best of the Edinburgh Fest show with Jimmy McGhie and Chris Martin. How did the show come about? “We’ve been selected by Mary Tobin, to perform together,” he answers. “It’s a curated show. The show flows nicely. It’s a joy touring with Chris and Jimmy.”
Is there anything Hastings wouldn’t joke about? “I get that question a lot. I haven’t found a funny angle, if I did – but I don’t want to hear dead granny jokes if my granny has just died. If I can get a funny line in.”
What does Hastings think makes him funny? “I tell true to life silly stories. About my relationship, I was born three months premature, stuff like that. I’m long-winded, it might take me three minutes to tell a story, I paint a picture in that laconic Canadian way. It’s a combination of my funny face and my massive head; it’s a wonder my neck hasn’t collapsed. Comedy’s subjective. I talk about me a lot. It’s the niceness of my style. If you make a wrong choice with an audience, you can pinpoint it; you can feel the energy in a room.”
Who does he like to see? “I’m a huge fan of Sam Simmons, Hannah Gadsby, Mickey D, Carl Donnelly, Deanne Smith, Adam Hills. I’m diving deep into Australian comedy now, since I’m here.” Does he find himself thinking about the joke potential of any situation? “I don’t go into a situation thinking that at the end of this I want a joke out of it. I have a cool and interesting life. This year I went from Canada to London to Norway and Australia. Funny, weird things are going to happen.”
Has he Spocked a fiver? (Since Leonard Nimoy, Star Trek’s original Mr Spock, died, Canadian fans have been drawing his image on their five dollar bills) “No. There are economic ramifications to it! They’re not legal tender. The Canadian PM thinks we have nothing better to do and has told the country to stop doing it.” What would happen if Leonard Cohen died? “The whole country would occupy the Chelsea Hotel. It would be four years before we’re done singing all his songs.” (But Leonard Cohen won’t die cos he’s God and God doesn’t die).
Hastings tells Beat that comedy is so much part of the Canadian culture that there are comedy competitions in high schools. We didn’t know that – way cool. He acknowledges the start it gave him. “It gets the creative juices out; it took me on the path I’m on today.” What does his family think about his choice of career? ”My mom’s a professor and my dad’s a media specialist so I come from a whoop de doo white collar background. And they’re pleased as punch. They say ‘do whatever you want.” What did Hastings do before stand-up? “I was a struggling actor, barista, waiter, bar tender.” Believe it or not, Hastings decided to perform stand-up to earn money. “I’m one of the very few comedians who started with that in mind. I quickly learned that’s not the way to approach something involving creativity.”
BY LIZA DEZFOULI
