Sarah Lazarovic—curator of the garage-based Montrose Portrait Gallery of Canada—is painting a portrait of a Torontonian every day. Each Monday, we'll feature one of those portraits here. Suggestions for subjects welcome. A bunch of SCTV alums reunite for a benefit show tonight. It's sold out, but there are some $250 tickets left for tomorrow's show. Steep—even if you rationalize it as $125 a piece for each of Eugene Levy's fantastic eyebrows.......

Attention residents of the tri-city area: much of the cast of SCTV is reuniting for a single live performance in Toronto on Monday, May 5 at 8 p.m. The occasion is a benefit for the Alumni Fund for Second City cast and crew facing financial or health difficulties. It's bound to be difficult for the talented troupe—Joe Flaherty, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, and Dave Thomas will all be there—to live......

Former Alliance president Robert Lantos and former president of CBS/Tri-Star Pictures/Sony Pictures Jeff Sagansky have invested millions in TV production company Blueprint Entertainment in order to create better Canadian television. Lantos explains, "The strategy is simple: to design TV shows that from the ground floor are genuinely Canadian...[and] whose first sale is to a network in the U.S. In the States, they perceive these shows as being domestic, so they are able to be......

If you’ve seen the movie The Aristocrats, you know disgusting can be smart. But while most stand up nights have more than their share of jokes involving penises, poo, breasts and masturbation, by the end of the night, what was once mirthful becomes meh. It’s partially because most comics reserve their most fecund fecal matter material for friends and fellow comedians. Few truly delve into scatological onstage. Comedians Deborah Robinson (Fresh Meat 2006, Much......

From their no-doubt hilarious training centre,Second City launched a new bunch of comic hacks into the world yesterday with Da Tory Code, their inaugural comedy writers showcase. With a healthy balance of political debate and general Canadian hosery, the players joked about Osama becoming a Scientologist, used five-pin bowling and Korn to describe electoral reform and sang the praises of the Terry Schiavo diet (too soon?). But the undoubted highlight of the show was when......

Wanna welcome summer with a tickle of the funny bone? Check out Second City's Da Tory Code, their political CanCon version of The Da Vinci Code, this Sunday May 28th at 4pm, 51 Mercer St.......

There's no room for objectivity here - we've loved Boygroove since they graced the stage of the Tarragon Extra Space last summer and became the runaway hit of the Toronto Fringe. Our inner theatre student admires the sharp direction and the skill of the performers, our inner musical satire lover thrills to the spot-on songs and dances, and our inner 14-year-old thinks they're just plain dreamy! Andrew Bursey, Matt Alden, Jon Paterson, and Scott Walters......

Every other Sunday night at the Drake Underground, David Shore hosts the always awesomely hilarious Monkey Toast, an improvised talk show. Each week he interviews a different guest - anyone from Nash the Slash to Quirks and Quarks' Bob MacDonald - and a troupe of six of the city's best improvisors do comedy based on the interview. The next Monkey Toast takes place on Sunday (April 30th) at 8pm, with Sean Cullen as David's guest.......

Two guys, indy-looking hipster 20-somethings, exit the new Diesel Theatre (aka the old Second City building) on Blue Jays Way. Guy: Now I've got Britney Spears' Toxic stuck in my head. F*CK! Both guys sing it softly under their breath as they walk away.......

Perhaps you've seen those sneaky ads for Virgin Mobile on the subway lately? You know, the ones that masquerade as public service ads about STDs and implore you to visit www.curethecatch.ca? Well, Catch 23 has absolutely nothing to do with those irritating advertisements! No siree, Catch 23 is a weekly improv competition that takes place at Clinton's Tavern (corner of Clinton and Bloor) every Monday night. This week is an extra-special one for the funnymen......

The Geminis toast media mediocrity, and last night was no exception. Torontoist despairs at the fact that a patently unfunny comedy is making CRTC waves, summoning TV execs across this great land out of Wellbutrin, and into a united cry of 'it can be done!' But if the 'it' is well-intended, nationalistic, mediocrity, count us out. Scene sufficiently set, our curiousity was aroused by a release for a new Canadian show that promises 'The Office......

For the past two and a half months, actress Hilary Doyle has been playing Matt Damon in Matt & Ben, which is closing for good this Sunday at the Poor Alex. The little off-Broadway play that could has been a surprise success in its Toronto incarnation this fall, playing to solid houses and being extended twice. Last week, National Post theatre critic Robert Cushman wrote of this celebrity-hilarity that it is "still the best in......

It was more genuine laughs and less polite encouragement as Katie Crown took home the prestigious Tim Sims Encouragement Fund Award last night at the 9th annual Cream of Comedy Awards. The award recognizes the year's best emerging comedic talent, and the best emerging comedic talent recognizes the Cream of Comedy's $3,500 prize money. Crown is a 23-year-old Ryerson graduate and Oakville native who performs regularly at the Rivoli and Catch 23 Improv, as well......