Giant puppet parades through the crowd at the Just For Laughs street fair. (Image: Bob Knorpp)
Just a few blocks from the hotel in Centre-Ville where the Festimania people are housing some of us bloggers, is the home of the Just For Laughs Festival.
Now remember, Festimania is composed of several festivals (eleven to be exact), and Just For Laughs is supposed to be the comedy festival. But nothing prepared us for the extent of the street fair surrounding it.
Yes, there are world-famous comedy performers in sold out venues in the middle of it all. And yes, we hope to see one of these performances tomorrow. But tonight, we used our Bixi bikes to swing by and experience all that the outside venues had to offer.
There were juggling acts, vendor booths, live musical performances, giant puppets, what was arguably a giant penis dressed as a woman (see the image below), amazing food, great libations, open cafés and a few thousand revelers.
Particpants eat, talk and enjoy themselves. (Image: Bob Knorpp)
Without having seen a single one of the comedy acts that are supposed to be the centerpiece of the event, I was completely captivated by the experience. Just an amazing time and well worth your effort to check out.
If you do come to the festivals next year, make sure you plan some extra time around your comedy shows. Because I can guarantee that as you make your way to your venue you’ll be kicking yourself if you haven’t allowed enough time to play among the booths just outside.
The arena decorated as the little devil mascot of the JFL festival. (Image: Bob Knorpp)
Giant puppets parading through the crowd. (Image: Bob Knorpp)
What may or may not be a giant...part. (Image: Bob Knorpp)
Robert Knorpp is host of The BeanCast Marketing Podcast at thebeancast.com and is President of The Cool Beans Group, a marketing strategy consultancy based in New York City. He likes laughing even more than breathing. You can follow the madness on Twitter at twitter.com/BobKnorpp.
