Sugar Sammy

Dept: At a time when some might choose to downplay - even deny - the bilingual character of this city, Sammy has chosen to celebrate the richness thereof. Most in the concert business were aghast when he first proposed the concept of meshing anglo and franco shtick in a show. Clearly, the public wasn't paying attention: What began as a one-show experiment mushroomed into 30 - before Sammy had even taken to the stage. And since opening soft last week - the official redcarpet premiere was Wednesday, in conjunction with the comic's ninth leap-year birthday - another five shows have been added. At this rate, Sammy is never going to leave the building, according to Montreal Gazette. If the unprecedented success of the first large-scale anglo-franco comedy revue in the country leaves some thinking that Sammy is going to be playing it safe on stage, trying to placate both sides of the linguistic divide, they are dead wrong and oui, most are gonna rire their derri res off. But Sugar Sammy's much buzzed-about Franglais offering You're Gonna Rire - continuing until at least May 26 at the Olympia - is more than a comedy spectacle. It is also a bold and unique Montreal cultural experience. Make that a Montreal sociological experience as well. It's not an accident or simply a public-relations coup that Sammy will be packing the Olympia for months to come - nearly 35,000 tickets have already been sold. Nor are patrons being forced to shell out at gunpoint. His act obviously resonates with an often fickle ticket-buying public, which would appear to be equal parts anglo and franco. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.