No Kidding
Courtesy of the Calgary Sun
By TYLER McLEOD
Wednesday, May 14, 1997
"Two minutes. One question," says Bruce McCulloch over the phone.
Um, OK. Tell us about your one-man show, Slightly Bigger Cities.
"That's the one question I was hoping you wouldn't ask," he sighs in mock frustration.
One noticeable change from when McCulloch presented his "theatre/rock/poetry/comedy show" at One Yellow Rabbit's High Performance Rodeo this winter would be the venue.
Slightly Bigger Cities needed a slightly bigger theatre.
Last time out, fans packed the Big Secret Theatre for four sold-out shows.
"The people who got to see it were happy they did and the people who didn't were kind of sad. It was flattering," McCulloch says with a mildly suspect pleasure in the misfortune of others.
So while OYR is still presenting Friday and Saturday's performances of Slightly Bigger Cities, McCulloch will take the stage at the University Theatre.
Take McCulloch's word for it: the University Theatre's seats are much nicer.
"I like that theatre, it's a good size. I know the Kids in the Hall played there and we played there way back when we were doing late-night comedy. It's kind of nice to play that theatre again."
"Way back" was when McCulloch was a member of Calgary's Loose Moose Theatre Company along with fellow Kid in the Hall Mark McKinney. The duo moved to a slightly bigger city (Toronto) and joined the Kids, eventually producing one of Canada's most popular TV series and one less-than-popular movie.
"I haven't seen Brain Candy in a few months but I think when I saw it, it struck me how weird it was," McCulloch admits. Weird even by Kids in the Hall standards.
"Well, I've never found the Kids in the Hall that weird, quite frankly. I've always thought it was kind of square," he says.
Nevertheless, McCulloch says he's proud of the movie, proud that it found an audience, and proud of the personal goals the Kids accomplished with it.
He says the troupe is in the discussions for another film and even tried to arrange a tour for this summer. It fell through -- but not because the Kids are on the outs.
"Of course we have friction. What rock band doesn't have their bass player throw down his guitar and storm out the rehearsal hall now and then? We're in OK shape."
For now, McCulloch is "the loser in Canada" according to the other Kids, he laughs. Though living in Toronto, McCulloch still spends a great deal of time in Los Angeles -- one of aforementioned Slightly Bigger Cities.
"(The play) is kind of playful and stupid and whatnot. It's based on my old show which is based on my old life."
Bruce McCulloch has a new life?
"No, not really. I guess that's what the show is about. All there is, is more of the same."
After taking Cities on a four city tour, the Calgary-native starts casting a romantic comedy he will direct this summer entitled Dog Park.
Then there's the office comedy he's developing for HBO, not to be confused with the CBC series directed by Bruce McDonald in which he appears in a part meant for William Shatner.
Bruce McCulloch: writer/actor/director/musician... William Shatner stand-in.
"I'm going to ride it for all I can," he pledges.
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