 "When
I was single, my therapist said that to build my self-esteem,
I should be my own date. So I tried it. I made myself
pay for everything, wouldn't return my phone calls, and
then decided I only liked me as a friend."
— David Granirer
Neurotic humour has long been a
mainstay of the stand up circuit. Comedians from Woody
Allen to Richard Lewis to Garry Shandling are famous
for using their frailties as fodder to make us laugh
but also, it's said, to rid themselves of their inner
demons.
Now a new group of performers has
taken the neurotic shtick to a whole new level and are
causing a stir on the Toronto and Vancouver comedy circuits
with their insane — literally — brand of humour.
Meet Stand Up For Mental Health,
a comedy troupe made up of the mentally ill protégés
of Vancouver-based mental health counsellor and stand
up comedian David Granirer. "For people who are mentally
ill, this gives them a real sense of empowerment. They
realize they can be scared to death and still do this,"
says Mr Granirer, 44, who runs the program in conjunction
with the Richmond chapter of the Canadian Mental Health
Association (CMHA). "It also goes a long way toward
reducing public stigma around mental illness."
THE
LIFE COMEDIC
"Depression is most common between 18 and 44. That's
because relationships never last when there's that big
an age difference."
— David Granirer
Although many neurotic comedians
are reputed to be 'crying on the inside,' depressed
people aren't really known to be a laugh-a-minute. So
it seems pretty unusual for someone who's been diagnosed
with humour-busting depression to decide to pursue a
career around their comedic talent. Not so says David
Granirer, who didn't let his own diagnosis get in the
way of his funnyman future.
But he still recalls that his parents
were less than amused by his early attention-grabs.
Like most stand ups, he tested the waters in the role
of class clown employing, among other juvenile gags,
much crossing of the eyes during school photos.
"I remember them saying, 'Is this
how you want your friends to remember you?'" he recalls.
"And I said, 'Well, why not?'"
His aptitude for jest found a useful
outlet after he became a registered professional counsellor
through the Counsellor Training Institute in Vancouver.
At his first job training crisis hotline workers, he
was able to break the tension by testing new jokes.
On the side, he was busy preparing
to turn his long-time dream to do stand up into reality.
He now admits his first appearance on stage was a nightmare,
more gong than guffaw. He thought he was ready and mustered
the courage to perform on an amateur night at Punchlines
in Vancouver. The dream of laughter, applause and adoration
gave way to horror as Mr Granirer found himself sweating
through the longest five minutes of his life, in a dead
sea of silence.
But this joker doesn't scare easily.
With practice, and the feedback of his domestic critics,
his wife Beatrice and their two kids, he eventually
fine tuned his gags and comic timing. Happily, deafening
silence is no longer part of his routine.
SHARE
THE LAUGHS
"I've been confined to several psychiatric wards.
But my dad always told me: 'If you want to accomplish
great things in your life, you have to be committed.'"
— Norm Conrad
David Granirer got the idea to
launch his Stand Up For Mental Health courses after
he'd been teaching stand up clinics at Langara College
in Vancouver for a while. He says though it wasn't intended
as therapy, he found that many of the students enrolled
were using comedy as a way to work through their troubles.
He first found success with drug addicts and cancer
patients, and soon realized the value of laugh therapy
for the mentally ill.
The Stand Up For Mental Health
courses are two-and-a- half months of weekly and then
twice-weekly afternoon sessions, during which Mr Granirer
uses instructional workbooks and CDs, as well as his
own experience, to explain the chemistry behind crafting
and delivering the perfect joke. It deals with humour
basics but mainly its aim is to let students pinpoint
and harness the comic potential of their battles with
mental illness. With some light counselling and supportive
coaching, Mr Granirer has so far enabled 15 students
to stay on their treatment track and devise solid, funny
routines.
By the time their first performance
rolled around last April at the CMHA-run Pathways Clubhouse
the students were seasoned pros. They wowed the 35-strong
audience with jokes about, among other things, the voices
in their heads, cross dressing and, of course, their
families.
One performer that night was 37-year-old
Norm Conrad, who makes light of his 'latest' diagnosis,
schizophrenia — the most recent in a long line
bestowed on him by the healthcare system, including
bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety and schizoaffective
disorder.
Mr Conrad credits Mr Granirer and
the program not just for giving kitchen-table comedians
like him a public platform, but for instilling much-needed
confidence in him and the rest of the troupe members.
Mr Conrad puts joking aside and even gets a little serious
when talking about it. "He's been dealing with a class
of people where each participant has his or her own
struggles," he says, "and a lot of people wouldn't have
the nerve to do it. He's done a fantastic job of keeping
the group together."
Mr Granirer's proud of what his
band of jesters has accomplished. "There's not a lot
of fun in their lives," he says. "Most places they go,
people are pretty grim. Everyone's found it a wonderful
opportunity to not only laugh at themselves, but also
bring some laughs to other people who could really use
it."
Meanwhile, it's onward and upward
for their mentor. Mr Granirer's signature routine, called
"I'm OK, But YOU Need Professional Help," is very much
in demand at mental health conferences and venues in
BC these days.
He's in the process of publishing
his first book, The Happy Neurotic: how being fearful
and neurotic can lead to happiness and success.
Stand Up For Mental Health will
hold their 2005 class showcase fundraiser, hosted by
Vicki Gabereau, on April 6 in Coquitlam, BC. For more
info, visit www.standupformentalhealth.com.
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