Our interview with Second City performer and writer: Patrick B. Smith.

A good comedian can tell a compelling joke and make us laugh. A great comedian can make us laugh and tell a compelling story. Patrick B. Smith is the latter – he has the capability to invent characters we each can relate to and sympathize with all while including gut-wrenching humour. We had the chance to sit down with him and learn about how he got involved with Second City, as well as how screenwriting became as important to him as the performance itself.

Pony: What made you go into acting after being in sports for so long?

Patrick: Baseball was my life growing up, until I got hurt. I needed shoulder surgery but even after that it wasn’t good enough to continue the sport professionally. So a friend asked me what my dream would be if I couldn’t do baseball anymore, and my response was to either write or perform on Saturday Night Live. I didn’t think that was even attainable, but she pushed me to sign up for improv classes at Second City. I listened, and it was around the time of my 3^rd level there that I realized this was something I really wanted to do.

Pony: How did you go about getting an agent?

Patrick: It was a teacher of mine who really had a lot of faith in me. I was really lucky. I’m with Penny Noble of Noble Caplan and they’re one of the best agencies in the city if not the country. They called me in to do a few readings on the spot, and I guess that was where all the improv really paid off.

Pony: And where did you learn how to write scripts?

Patrick: When I write, I like to think of it as a form of improv. I learn the character and place a scene together in my mind – and go from there determining what he/she would do in that situation. I also took a screenwriting class at the Film Lab, which really helped as well.

Pony: Describe what Best of the Fest is, that’s coming up for you soon.

Patrick: It’s a show during the Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival. They have people coming in from all over: MadTV, Frank and Matt, etc. and I’ll be performing [on Friday March 5^th] on the Second City stage. It’s the best picks of sketch comedy really, it’s going to be a lot of fun.

Pony: How does doing shows like that compare to doing film?

Patrick: Doing stage is one thing, because those who see it are only seeing it at that exact moment, live. They get a good sense of who you are as a person, like when I’m doing Haircut, these people get to see me playing a dog or a woman or a kid – anything! And generally it’s my writing as well (or my groups writing) so there’s that satisfaction that you’re making people laugh based on a joke you came up with. Film is more challenging in that sense, because you’re forced to portray someone else’s idea and vision, and you end up going in a direction that you may not have gone on your own – which is really fun!

Pony: Is there an actor or comedian that you look up to for inspiration?

Patrick: Stephen Colbert is a smart, quick Second City guy. I’ve done a few of his scenes so I’ve had to study him etc. I think John Cleese would be unreal to study from, some friends of mine got to perform with him last year on stage. Conan O’Brien would be amazing too. He’s written for so many great shows and performers, I’d love to learn from him.

Pony: And what would say is the most satisfying part of your job.

Patrick: What is my job? Haha. I guess the most satisfying part about being an improviser is keeping it fresh. Learning new characters and finding new sides of myself that can mimic them. When I watched one of our shows, Big Bad Wolf, I was like “man you’re playing this guy way too cool! He’s supposed to be vulnerable.” I think I was almost protecting myself in that role, so last weekend when we did the show again I made the character all smiles and completely innocent and the audience loved it a lot more. I guess spotting that dimension of myself on stage is really satisfying and fun.

Pony: Stepping away from yourself to watch yourself. That’s challenging!

Patrick: Exactly. The best part about being a sketch artist though would be the writing. It helps me with all of my roles to be able to write better, and understand the characters that are presented to me.

Pony: So how has your style of writing or acting changed since you started?

Patrick: When I started, it was all about finding a funny scenario and presenting that to an audience in order to make them laugh. Plain and simple. But there’s the next level of comedy where you try and say something about that – diving deeper into the situation and how to get the audience to relate to the character on a personal level. I like to find the hidden meaning and make people think a little more about why a character does what he does.

For more information on Patrick, check out his MySpace page here.

XoXo
– The Cowgirls.

Patrick Keeps it Fresh., 5.0 out of 5 based on 2 ratings

Category: Back Fence, Prized Pony · Posted by: Mushy Pony Tagged: Best of the Fest, Patrick B. Smith, Patrick Smith, Second City, Toronto comedians, Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival on Tuesday, February 23, 2010 · No Comments »