DARCY MICHAEL
Appearing at Yuk Yuk's Toronto. Aug 27-30. Wed-Thu 8pm, Fri-Sat 7:30 & 10:30pm. $12-$19. 224 Richmond W. 416-967-6425. www.yukyuks.com.
Psst! Don't tell anyone, but Darcy Michael is a fag. It's a really big secret, at least to anyone who's never seen his act — which the Vancouver comic likes to open with a few innocuous crowd-pleasers about weed and relationships before slyly outing himself with a nod to his husband back home.
The crowd laughs, does a double take, and the self-described "undercover fag" yells out a gleeful "Surprise!"
See, if you put stock in stereotypes, the 28-year-old Michael is not the first person you'd pick out of a spot-the-gay lineup. He's portly, unshaven, not much of a dresser — the sort of guy more likely to be pegged as a B.C. pothead than a Fab cover boy.
That undercover bit has all but become his tagline. But with a headliner spot at Yuk Yuk's, a Comedy Network special set to air this fall and an album in the works for XM Radio, one can't help but wonder if by now his cover is about to be blown.
"Oh I can't wait until my cover is blown," he says, laughing. "I hate telling that joke. I've been telling it for three years."
The full bit is about eight minutes long, but lately he's pared it down to 30 seconds, he says, because he's got other stuff he'd rather talk about, such as his 10-year-old daughter or the time he was mugged by a girl.
"I look forward to being able to talk about my family and tell my jokes without having to preface everything [i.e., with my sexuality]," he says, on the phone from his home. "The new 'undercover' for me is shaving and getting a haircut."
For the time being, though, it's a significant part of his act, playing unpredictably when crowds don't see it coming. Once in a while, his act tanks after he comes out.
Other times, he errs on the side of caution and turns down entire shows.
"I get freaked out more than anyone imagines," he says, when asked about homophobia on the comedy circuit. "I always make sure there's a little extra security in some of the smaller towns and I say no to some gigs. I was supposed to do Red Deer and — you know what? — Red Deer just doesn't want to see me."
Best bet:
Bad Dog needs your $20 to help renovate its space and on Thursday (Aug 28) presents Music to Listen to Comedy By, with geriatric hipsters The Williamson Playboys, Fast & Dirty, Slap Happy and — up from L.A. — Marc "Heino" Hickox as host. 8pm. 138 Danforth Ave, 416-491-3115. www.baddogtheatre.com.