The Third Beat Headliner Challenge

If you’re like me, you’ve seen more comedians perform live than you can count.

Or have you?

It’s been over 20 years since seeing my first live standup show, and in that time I’ve been to several festivals, a ton of clubs, and a hefty serving of one-nighters. From an hour of Carlin to 15 minutes of Cook, there aren’t many big dogs I haven’t come across… I think.

It can be tough to remember every show. But I’m resolving to reach into the far corners of my brain and assemble a complete list of who I’ve seen and where. It’ll take me a while, but I’ll share the results with you in the coming weeks.

I would love to see everyone else’s lists, but even if you don’t care to share, I still challenge everyone to give it a shot for their own enjoyment. I’m already surprised by what shows I’d previously forgotten about, and it’s proving to be fun.

And let’s face it – none of us are getting any younger, and jogging our memories now will help us regale our grandkids with marathon stories about some guy we once saw at Whiplash.

About the Author

Sharilyn Johnson is the author of the book Bears & Balls: The Colbert Report A-Z. Called "one of the city’s most discriminating comedy critics” by NOW Magazine, Sharilyn has been covering comedy for longer than she cares to admit. She served as the comedy reporter for Winnipeg's Uptown Magazine for five years, and was the host of the radio show Laugh Tracks for three seasons. Her work has also appeared in the Toronto Star, the Winnipeg Free Press, The Apiary, and on CBC Radio's national comedy programs LOL and Definitely Not the Opera.