ABOUT THE COMEDY IGLOO
Kevin Janus started The Comedy Igloo in 2003, booking shows as his New York-attorney’s schedule permitted. Its success made it a monthly event, regularly lauded as a “Critic’s Pick” and “Don’t Miss” in TimeOut New York magazine.
Kevin was inspired to start the show after he did a full-length, five-minute-long, impersonation of Corey Hart singing his unforgettable 80s classic, “Never Surrender” in a show in Brooklyn. The largely American audience responded heartily to the sketch and The Comedy Igloo was born.
The name of the show is a play on the stereotypical vision that most Americans have of Canada: that all Canadians grew up in igloos, tool around on dogsleds, and produce a disproportionate number of world-class comedians per capita.
Kevin usually supplies the “Canadian-ness” of the evening with sketches and stand-up that have distinctly Canuck themes, references, and accents. In addition, for each show, Kevin mines the New York comedy-club circuit for four or five of the city’s top up-and-coming comics, who have been featured on and written for television programs such as Saturday Night Live, Chappelle’s Show, The Tonight Show,Late Night with Conan O’Brien, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Comedy Central Presents, Comedy Central’s Premium Blend, VH1’s Best Week Ever, Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham.
Some of Kevin’s featured characters include:
* Jacques Fournier– the lovable, friendly, French-Canadian celebrity guest host of The Comedy Igloo. Jacques also hosts Eastern Quebec’s number-one rated talent show, “Reach for Da Star Quebec.” Known as the Ryan Seacrest of Rimouski, he’s everybody’s favorite guy.
* Corey Hart - the 80s Canadian pop superstar periodically drops by as a surprise musical guest, singing “Sunglasses at Night,” “Never Surrender,” and, if you ask nicely, “The Boy in the Box.”
* Gordie Shaffer– an accomplished soft-rock conductor who leads an easy-listening rock, paddlewheel cruise around the ports of Lake Erie. He may or may not be a distant cousin of Dave Letterman’s side-kick, Paul Shaffer.
* Cardinale Giovanni Boscaiola – an Italian Cardinal who is actively campaigning to be the next Pope.
* Judge Wop – a small claims court judge in New Jersey and the star of the television show, “The People’s Court: New Jersey.”
* Jorge Sabbato-Motorhendez-Metallicaneque – a world-renowned opera tenor who has given up classical music for his true passion – singing heavy metal.
* John Ashcroft – the former U.S. Attorney General recently starred as an evil recluse genius in the critically-acclaimed new Broadway musical, “Rovefinger… Karl Rovefinger.” Mr. Ashcroft also enjoys singing Tom Jones.
* Paul Martin – the former Canadian prime minister often leaves irrational rants on The Comedy Igloo voicemail admonishing Kevin for promulgating Canadian stereotypes that tarnish Canada’s name brand in the world community.
ABOUT KEVIN JANUS
Kevin Janus is a comedian, writer, and producer on the New York comedy scene. He’s one-half of the sketch duo, The Sophisticates and a contributing writer for The Final Edition. As a member of the off-Broadway hit show, Wake Up World, he performed and wrote with Daily Show Co-Creator Lizz Winstead and the sketch ensemble group, Shoot the Messenger.
Kevin does a lot of character work, playing roles as diverse as: Wake Up World’s legal affairs correspondent, Bernie Silvergold; Chase Waldorf, founder of the charity, Ponzi’s Kids; Cardinale Giovanni Boscaiola – a Catholic cardinal actively campaigning to be the next Pope; Jacques Fournier, host of Eastern Quebec’s number-three-rated talent show, Reach for Da Star Quebec; and a member of a support group for men who speak like Truman Capote.
Kevin started performing professionally at age 13, including lead role premieres with the Ancient Comic Opera Company’s adaptations of Aristophanes’ Clouds (Socrates) and Assemblywomen! (Blepyros), the role of Vlad Lupo the Vampire in the world’s first ever cowpunk musical, The Yeehaa Cowboys, and as Herman in The Canary at Greenwich Village’s Players Theater.
Kevin was also the lead singer of the cowpunk band, The Yeehaa Cowboys, including appearances on Canadian television and at Nathan Phillips Square.
And yes, it’s true. He’s also a lawyer. He’s a litigation attorney at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP. He received his LL.M. from NYU, his J.D. from University of Toronto and clerked for the Honorable Lawrence M. McKenna in the Southern District of New York.
Kevin currently lives in Manhattan with his wife, Kelly, and son, Jack.
For all the latest updates, follow Kevin on Twitter @KevinJanus.