Few comedy promoters can say that they’re a stand-up comic themselves – all while finding time to go to college, produce their own content and shows, and be a firefighter in their local community.
Steve McGovern is a comedy promoter of Whitehorse: “I wanted to build on the local scene and get the word out to headliners across North America that Whitehorse has a viable comedy scene,” McGovern says. He is passionate about the craft and about his own standup comedy, which he started about 13 years ago.
“Being a comedian is a lot like being a substitute teacher. Every time, you have to win over a whole new group of people,” McGovern says.
The comedian is driven to make Whitehorse, Yukon a permanent comedy destination. Looking back to those first gigs, “I looked at the room size, figured out a budget and eventually moved to doing 3 and sometimes 4 shows, depending on the popularity of the show,” McGovern says. The first Boiler Room shows were in April of 2022 and June of 2022. In September of 2022, he started doing them monthly for the winter months (September to May), taking a break in the summer because the shows slow down and he is gone for the fire season.
“When I first started promoting these shows, I thought it would be a problem getting comics up here. But I actually had headliners reach out to me,” he adds.
McGovern started producing shows in Edmonton in 2015, marketing the shows and booking headliners. By the time he left Edmonton in March of 2020, he was booking, running and hosting 3 shows in the city (2 monthly and 1 weekly).
He is excited about the fall series, which launched with Brittany Lyseng and continues with Jarrett Campbell at the Boiler Room Oct. 13 and 14.
A standup comic in his own right
McGovern likes to bring the comedy to light from real life, like experiences in being a substitute teacher. He has a working man’s charm.
Laugh with Jarrett Campbell this October
Jarrett Campbell, a massive headliner in Toronto, is the second headliner in McGovern’s fall comedy series at the Boiler Room Lounge in Whitehorse Oct. 13 and 14, with shows at 7 and 9:30 p.m. both nights. Each show will also feature a local Whitehorse comedian.
Hailing from the community of Maxwell in Grey Highlands, Ont., Campbell is considered one of the fastest-rising talents in Canadian comedy. His debut comedy album, Straight White Fail was nominated at the 2020 Juno Awards for the Comedy Album of the Year and he can be seen on season 1 of Roast Battle Canada on CraveTV.
“Campbell is someone I’ve been wanting to get up here to Whitehorse for a while. He’s opened for Andrew Schulz, Mark Normand and Theo Von, so it’s exciting to have him here,” McGovern says. “He talks about some funny situations about having a German and English background and having parents speak a different language.”
When it comes to comedy, McGovern loves the craft itself: “You get up there, have fleeting, weird thoughts, and make strangers laugh. It’s a pretty wild concept. It’s a great feeling,” he reflects.
Check out Steve McGovern on Facebook and pick up tickets for Jarrett Campbell at eventbrite.ca
Find the Boiler Room at 4220 4 Ave, Whitehorse.
