Kids in The Hall’s Bruce McCulloch dazzles audience at Algonquin College tour stop

Bruce McCulloch caused echoes of laughter during his show at the Algonquin Commons Theatre on Jan. 26.

McCulloch, who is a part of the Canadian sketch group Kids in The Hall and known as “the dark one” of the group, visited the Algonquin College campus for his Tales of Bravery and Stupidity tour.

The show, which was age-restricted, had the floor seats and main seats packed with its adult audience. McCulloch had the whole audience laughing at his many life tales and mishaps. McCulloch kept lively interactions with the crowd during the show, as he would talk to audience members sitting on the floor.

Greg Sidebottom, a fan of McCulloch since the original run of Kids in The Hall, said his wife found out about the event and they just had to go.

“We were big Kids in The Hall fans from way back in the ’90s, and I got the news of him coming here from [his wife],” Sidebottom said. “He’s great, he’s pretty funny. He’s always funny.”

Sue Sidebottom, Greg’s wife, shared how she first heard of his show at the college.

“We are on an email list for events at the college,” she said. “We had actually gone to see him when he came with his troupe to the NAC previously, so if he came back that would be pretty cool.”

McCulloch kept the audience engaged and laughing. His electric presence and perfect comedic timing filled the room.

McCulloch had varying jokes but many of them involved his family members, whether it was a joke about teen angst or if it was recollecting the bad summer house they stayed at where they found baby diapers in the heat vent. McCulloch also, in a kind way, poked fun at his wife in a few of his bits. His wife is Tracy Ryan, a fellow Canadian actress who is well known for her role as Nancy Drew in The Hardy Boys, which was the main ploy of McCulloch’s jokes about her.

Daniel Sylvester, another Kids in The Hall fanatic, didn’t want to know what the show was about beforehand.

“I didn’t look into it ahead of time because I wanted to be surprised. I didn’t know if it was stand-up or a one-man show, and it was kind of both which was pretty amazing.” Sylvester said after the show.

The 90-minute show ended with McCulloch receiving a well-deserved standing ovation from the crowd.