Jeremy Hotz

Jeremy Hotz performs standup as if the microphone is the only thing keeping him from collapsing. He delivers jokes through his fingers. A typical set involves him dragging a hand across his face, rubbing his right eye in exhaustion, or biting his own fist to stifle a laugh. He does not just complain about the world. He acts baffled by how poorly constructed it is. He will talk about an ugly pair of pants or a bad hot dog bun with the breathless urgency of a man reporting a crime.

He is a Canadian comedy institution who headlines theaters across his home country while working clubs in Los Angeles. He usually names his tours after his own misery. He never gets angry on stage. He just gets overwhelmed.

He builds his act out of minor inconveniences. The premises are simple complaints about grocery stores, weather, and wildlife. He makes them work by vibrating with stress. The audience laughs at his total inability to cope with a normal day. If a bit stalls, he saves it by burying his face in his hands and mumbling a grievance about the venue itself.

He was born in South Africa and raised in Ottawa. His Canadian upbringing provides a constant source of material about the freezing indignities of his youth. He spent time as a staff writer for The Jon Stewart Show in the nineties, though his anxious stage persona is the core of his career.