Tillsonburg native Debra DiGiovanni was a guest on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon. The stand-up comedian regularly performs in night clubs in Los Angeles. Contributed photo.
By Jeff Helsdon
Editor
Tillsonburg native Debra DiGiovanni hit the big time when she appeared as a guest on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon on Jan. 22.
“It’s the holy grail of comedy,” she said. “There’s something special about The Tonight Show, it’s been running so long.”
DiGiovanni went to New York City to film the show. She arrived about 2 p.m., and taping started at 5:15 p.m. and ended at 6:30 p.m.
“A well-oiled machine,” she said of the show. “After it’s done, everyone is gone. Just a regular day for them and a dream for stand-ups.”
Growing up in Tillsonburg, DiGiovanni never imagined she would be on The Tonight Show, or a comedian for that matter.
She went to college in Toronto to study art. Although she quickly realized art wasn’t for her, there was an oral communications course. As part of the course, students had to reach into a bowl, pick a topic, and speak about it for two minutes.
“I thought this is for me,” DiGiovanni quickly found.
Her professor agreed, telling her she should be entertaining people.
“That planted the seed, if you will,” she said.
Then DiGiovanni started working at CITY TV. Part of her job was giving tours to the public through the building, which then housed CITY, Much Music, and Bravo.
“I liked it, it was entertaining and I was performing,” she said, adding she had another taste of entertaining at CITY when she co-hosted the company’s Christmas party.
In 1999, she saw a press release about Humber College’s new Comedy Writing and Performing course. At the encouragement of her friends, she signed up, and her first experience with stand-up comedy was in the classroom.
“I was hooked immediately. That was all I wanted to do,” she said.
She performed as much as she could, and it took eight months with a day job before she became a full-time comedy performer. She moved to Los Angeles in 2014, and has been there since.
Along the way, DiGiovanni has made her mark. She won the Canadian Comedy Award for the best newcomer in stand-up in 2002. Over the next decade, three more Canadian Comedy Awards followed for the best female in stand up. DiGiovanni co-hosted the Gemini awards with Sandra Oh in 2008 and made other television appearances.
Now, DiGiovanni is typically in Los Angeles, working in clubs. Her working day starts at about 7 p.m., and she does 99 percent of her work at night.
Asked about the source of her jokes, DiGiovanni said she sees things as she is out and about, writing them down or making notes in her phone. Really, just every day stuff. She looks over her list every couple of weeks to see what she can use.
“If I write down 10 things, one or two I will use. It’s always happening,” she said.
In the beginning of her career, she had a few jokes with material about growing up in Tillsonburg.
Generally, she doesn’t practice, and gets up on the stage to present her material.
“The only way to learn do comedy is to do it. It does require an audience,” DiGiovanni said.
Stand-up comedy is about audience response.
“The energy is different,” she said. “It’s like a monologue that just doesn’t stop. It’s not a two-way conversation, you just talk. You can’t find that by yourself. You have to have real people to figure that out.”
DiGiovanni’s father, Joe, still lives in Tillsonburg. Her mother, Susan, passed away. Her siblings Andrea, Erica, Michael and twin sister Joanne also grew up in Tillsonburg.
Following her appearance on The Tonight Show, her family all texted in.
“I hoped they liked it. I can only go by what they say,” DiGiovanni said.
Locals will have a chance to see DiGiovanni live this fall when she tours Ontario. Although Tillsonburg isn’t on her prospective dates, London will be.
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