Alex Mackenzie knows how to laugh at himself.
And how he’s hoping people will laugh with him at a sold-out show at Jackson’s Social Club and Brewhouse this Friday at 7 p.m.
“I’m really excited to be back in the Cariboo. It’s close to home and I love being around northerners. They’re more carefree and a lot of fun,” Mackenzie said.
Mackenzie, 33, quit his job as a power engineer for a pulp mill in Prince George in 2019, sold his house and moved into an RV with his dog Findlay to pursue the life of a standup comedian. The move landed him a three-month gig touring Australia that began in January 2020 before the “craziest thing happened.”
“COVID came and cut my tour about a month short, so I had to fly back to Canada and had to go into lockdown at my parent’s house. That was kind of cool moving back in with mom and dad in your 30s. It’s not a sign things are going well,” Mackenzie chuckled. “Comedy is all about timing and quitting my job right before COVID and then having comedy become illegal is pretty funny.”
READ MORE: VIDEO: Comedy Night in 100 Mile House
However, Mackenzie landed on his feet and began doing online comedy gigs with friends. As Canada began to open up, he started doing live tours again.
Brewhouse owner Keith Jackson said the show came together by chance. He reached out to Mackenzie after seeing his RV pass through town with his name and contact info on the side and arranged for him to come to 100 Mile House on his way to a gig in Quesnel. He wasn’t surprised that the 40 tickets sold out.
“That’s part of the social club aspect, giving people something to do. We try to provide people with entertainment,” Jackson said.
Mackenzie will open for his friend and mentor Simon King, an experienced comedian who has been on HBO and Just for Laughs. While Mackenzie said his comedy is relationship-based quirky one-liners and about staying sober, King has a more rapid-fire style of quick-witted political comedy that’s akin to a rapper.
patrick.davies@100milefreepress.net
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