Entertainment: Reviews of the Week by Snob Reviews: Comedian Joe Avati talks about his upcoming anniversary tour ...

If you grew up in the early 2000’s you’d know that the king and originator of Italian stand-up comedy was the great Australian-Italian comedian, Joe Avati. Luckily the time has come for him to return to Montreal after some time. The 20/20 Vision tour has allowed Joe Avati to bring along some of his closest comedian friends including Guido Grasso, Giuseppe The MC and Freddy Prioia. An incredibly hilarious night of comedy waits for you July 13-14-15-16, when Avati and friends take the stage. I met up with the comedian last week to talk about his career and here’s what he had to say:

GF: You’re finally back in Montreal after a six year absence to celebrate your 20^th anniversary as a comedian – tell me more about this tour:

JA: Well the tour is celebrate 20 years in the business, actually 22 years, and at the same time I feel like it’s a great time to come to Montreal since it’s been so long. I love performing in Montreal, especially where I’ll be performing at the Leonardo Da Vinci Centre, I think I’ve played that room about 70 times over the years; it’s like a second home. This tour does have new material and I’ll be something else, which is I’ll be asking the audience to tell me which of their favorite routines they want me to perform.

GF: Tell me how comedy started for you:

JA: I actually wanted to be a rock star, and if you heard me sing, you’d know I was never going to be a rock star. At a point in my life, my Dad said to me “get a degree and you can do whatever you want”, so I got two. I ended up getting an undergraduate degree in food science and an honor in the same field, so since the experiments would take a long time in the lab, I had a lot time to practice and thought to myself I could tell jokes. I then started to do open mic nights and then my career started to take off in comedy. I thought of creating a show in English and in Calabrese, and it took off around the world through Napster! Thanks to that, it propelled me around the world and I’m grateful for that.

GF: Who would you site as comedic influences?

JA: I grew up in the era of greats like Robin Williams, Billy Connelly or as we call him “Billy Cannoli” *Laughs*, Bill Cosby and Eddie Murphy with “Delirious” and “Raw”, so I would definitely site those as influences for me. The funny thing is back in Australia when I was growing up; we watched American and British sitcoms, so our sense of humor is very sophisticated, whereas Americans didn’t quite understand British humor yet and vice versa, you know? So in Australia, we took both types of humor and made our own.

GF: Who is your favorite artist or band?

JA: I love George Michael. George Michael was my hero. I modeled a lot of my comedy career around him, he just really hit home for me and touched a nerve for a lot of people, and that’s what I hope to do with my comedy.

GF: The best piece of advice you’ve ever received:

JA: My nonna once told me; “It’s-a nice mi trust I genti, ma meglio ca no” *Laughs*. That’s the best advice I ever got. 

GF: If this was your last day on earth, how would you spend it?

JA: *Laughs* in my moutandi doing nothing.

GF: What song would you have played at your funeral and why?

JA: “Another One Bites The Dust” by Queen *Laughs*. It’s funny you should ask that because I recently put in my will that when I die, I don’t want a funeral in a church. I’d want my coffin on a stage, and my friends and family coming up and talking about the good stuff, you know? That song would be perfect as I am placed on the stage. Then when I’m exiting the venue, play “The Show Must Go On” *Laughs*.

GF: What’s your next big goal?

JA: Well, I will be taking a bit of time off next year, but I need to start working America. I need some time off to focus on that. I’ve got a lot of fans over there who have been asking to see me live, and I want to work that market. That’s the next big step for me.

GF: Finally, what’s your message for the Montreal fans?

JA: Montreal, please come and see the show, and support the great acts I’ve brought along with me on this tour. I hope you’ll enjoy the new material I’ve been working on. This is a family-friendly show; don’t be afraid to bring your kids because they’ll love it. I’ve always had this mentality: if my mom and nonna were in the audience, would they be offended with what I was about to say? So, that’s the mandate for all the acts on the “20/20 Vision” tour. I can’t wait to perform for everybody!

A very humble and generous comedian. Joe Avati & Friends will take place July 13-14-15 at Leonardo Da Vinci Centre, tickets cost 69$ and are almost sold out. You can also catch the show on July 16 at Montreal’s Casa D’Italia. Visit www.joeavati.com.au for tickets and info. A night of comedy you don’t want to miss; see you there!

Source: http://www.thesuburban.com/blogs/entertainment/entertainment-reviews-of-the-week-by-snob-reviews-comedian-joe/article_6de38060-7951-11e8-94bf-0b889d2e4241.html