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CiTR 101.9FM - Laughs in Queer: A Story of New Voices, New Cultures, and New Communities in Stand-up Comedy (Ky Sargeant)

My name is Ky Sargeant and for the last 3 years, I have been building an alternative stand-up comedy scene dedicated to the queer and trans community in Vancouver, BC, and this submission is dedicated to showcasing how our monthly open-mic has become new cultural space to queer expression unlike anything else in our city.

Laughs in Queer began in June 2023 and has since grown to become not one of the most popular open-mics in the city, but arguably one of the most successful monthly comedy shows more broadly, easily selling out over 60~ seats per show, a figure practically unheard of in realm of open-mic comedy.

However, I believe the reason for that success is because our space is so much more than a comedy show. In a culture notoriously unfriendly to newcomers, particular queer folks and women, Laughs in Queer was started as a radically supportive space where the biggest rule for the crowd is that nobody is allowed to bomb. This has allowed the emergence of an entirely new culture where the lines between performer and audience blur, and the feeling is one of friends sitting around the campfire sharing stories that show the richness of our local community.

Many of the people who get on stage do not see themselves as performers, but instead are telling us about the disastrous date they had that week, or about what the queer scene was like in the 90s, or trying something completely experimental that they never had the space to try. There are few spaces where a queer or trans person will not only be given time to speak, but have the full support of a engaged crowd of community members interested in what they have to say.

This program uses live recordings, interviews, and archival footage to not only showcase the unique community that we've built, but to also situate Laughs in Queer in the larger context of an evolving movement in Stand-up Comedy, that is leaving behind the edgy boys club attitude it has always had. Between Laughs in Queer, and the producers of other value aligned shows interviewed on the program, I hoped to showcase the real power we have to change culture when we realize that we are the one's making it every time we choose to connect our experiences to our community.

(Show) @Laughsinqueerproductions on Instagram and Tiktok

Check out the award-winning submission:

2026 "OUT LOUD" Best in LGBTQ+ Programming