There Are No Wrong Reactions to the Crave Stand-Up Special THE EL-SALOMONS: MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede The El-Salomons welcome you to laugh uproariously at their new Crave Original Stand-up Special THE EL-SALOMONS: MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE, which debuts Friday. Really, the harder you laugh, the better. But according to Eman El-Husseini – one half of the comedy duo, along with her wife Jess Salomon – the occasional groan is encouraged as well. “Something that I’m appreciating more than ever is the groans,” said El-Husseini, when asked about the best audience reactions. “I guess I tend to be harsh in some of the ways that I present my theories, so the groans are my new favourite thing.” Whether you’re laughing, groaning, or a combination of the two, there’s no doubt you’ll be entertained by THE EL-SALOMONS: MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE, which was taped last summer at the Just For Laughs Festival in Montréal. It was a homecoming for El-Husseini and Solomon, a Palestinian and Jewish same-sex married couple who met in Montréal a decade ago and have been living in New York City for the past few years. So has the change in location affected the El-Salomons’ comedy? “No, because the English comedy that I did in Canada was somewhat American-ized anyway,” El-Husseini said. “I feel like when you do English comedy in North America, we’re all trying to cater to that already. But I do think I’ve picked up a few rude habits. Even though I relate to New Yorkers in terms of the level of impatience that I have, and that’s why I’ve always loved it there, New York has rubbed off on me in the wrong way.” We obviously had to ask for a few examples of the differences El-Husseini has noticed. “In New York, people will physically bump into you, look you dead in the eye, and say nothing,” she said. “In Canada, even at a fancy store, all these rich ladies will be holding the door open, ‘Please, after you.’ And getting off a plane, you know you’re on an American flight because everybody rushes to the front. They don’t wait their turn. They don’t exit row by row.” There are times, though, when living in the States can be a bit intimidating, according to El-Husseini. “It seems as if everyone there is either really athletic, or some kind of triple-threat in entertainment – they act, sing, and tap dance, or whatever,” El-Husseini said. “My wife and I are like, ‘Um, we’re just comedians.’ ” But all these observations surely have been good for the act, in terms of comedy content. “I love Canada, I’m so proud, I think we have a very high ratio of hilarious people, and while it’s unfortunate that many Canadian comics have had to move to the States to make it, I think that’s changing slowly, finally,” El-Husseini said. “The trend is becoming undeniable, especially in the past five years. Just For Laughs is embracing Canadian comedy more than ever. And the French Canadian side is on fire, they’re killing it, packed shows, they really support their art and their artists. I got to do the French gala (at Just For Laughs) this year and it was like a rock show.” Final question for El-Husseini: If the El-Salomons were marooned on a desert island, and they could pick one other comedian to be with them, who would it be? El-Husseini replied, “Hmmm … if we were stuck on a desert island, that means we’d probably have to have sex with this comic … ” Whoa, whoa, whoa. Who said anything about that? “My first reaction goes to sex all the time,” she said with a laugh. “But then, I don’t want to open up my relationship, so now it’s getting really complicated … ” That’s what happens when a straightforward question meets a comedic mind! billharristv@gmail.com @billharris_tv