Cindy Klassen is having a stand-up kind of week. She is on her way to Alberta where she is already one of the finalists for this weekend's Calgary FunnyFest Finals and once back in hometown Prince George she is spearheading a comedy fundraiser for a family fighting cancer in our community.
Klassen will not be headlining the charity event. She still considers herself a newcomer to the standup comedy profession. But her rep has grown to the point that veteran local comics are happy to help her out as she tries to help out Jake McLeod and his family.
"He's a teenager in town who developed a rare and really painful medical condition. He has what's called Desmoid tumors," said Klassen, who also held a fundraiser for the McLeod family when she owned cupcake store Bites Of Bliss.
"He is near and dear to my heart. It's a really cool family, and they have new expenses to contend with since he's now past 18 and so he doesn't qualify for some of the supports he had when he was considered a child. They have a lot of ups and downs, their attitudes and outlook on life are just so awesome, and he is in so much pain on a regular basis. I had to use this opportunity to help him."
Joining Klassen on stage are a who's who of the local comedy scene. Virginia O'Dine, Mwanasi Lo, Jon White, Brian Majore and big closer Mike McGuire are all on the bill on May 10 at Artspace (upstairs at Books & Company).
She said that the lucky part for her is, preparing for the Calgary championship and preparing for the Comedy For A Cure event involved the same thing. "Vodka," she said.
"But the comedy process is also the same. Preparing a standup set is actually quite methodical. You develop your material, learn how to hone it, to adjust for different audiences, and I'm still learning, I'm only a couple of years into this, but I'm starting to learn a few things and the most important thing is to listen to other comedians and sponge knowledge from the more experienced ones."
Or sponge their vodka, either-or.
Klassen travels at least twice a month to Vancouver, Edmonton or Calgary to try her material out on other audiences, meet outside influences, and bring that back to Prince George where a comedy community is developing.
Tickets to see five of the best are available for $20 at Books & Company. There will be other fundraiser elements to the night so the McLeod family gets a meaningful contribution from the event.
Call Klassen at 250-640-0543 for more information on how to donate or how to attend.
