Julien Lacroix has come a long way. Four years ago, he became an outcast after being criticized for inappropriate behavior by several women. Then, the comedian gave Time to timeas indicated by the title of this second one man show. If he often recalls having done work on himself, he also does not fail to pose as a victim of “cancel culture”. A premise that is not very funny, but Julien Lacroix nevertheless manages to make people laugh.
“Cancelled”, Julien Lacroix still is. Not like four years ago, when he didn’t even dare leave his house to go grocery shopping. But he is still sufficiently so not to be “invited to play Cheater with Guy Jodoin,” he jokes at the start of the show.
The tone is set. Julien Lacroix does not avoid the elephant in the room. On the contrary, its “cancellation” is the common thread of this new show, the media premiere of which took place Thursday evening at the Espace Saint-Denis.
The public, his audience at least, responded. Every time he made a point at the media, that he deplored the fact that we could judge a man without trial, that he was sorry that we were analyzing behavior from another era with our today’s perspective. Today, Julien Lacroix was warmly applauded.
In the audience, made up of as many men as women, we could sense something like a scent of revolt against the #MeToo movement. One thing is certain, all these people who came to encourage him, many of whom were moved to tears at the end of the show, are of the opinion that the comedian did not deserve such a descent into hell.
On this date four years ago, Julien Lacroix, 27, was a true rising star in the world of humor. Then, everything collapsed in July 2020 when nine women accused him of sexual misconduct in an article published in The duty“a student newspaper which will soon go bankrupt”, says Julien Lacroix with a lot of visibly bitterness.
After the controversy, Julien Lacroix was dropped by practically the entire industry. show business, officially at least. He has been extremely discreet, starting again about a year ago to give shows in small venues, especially in the regions.
Away from the spotlight, he says he has rebuilt himself. He followed therapy at Maison Jean-Lapointe. Now sober, the young thirty-year-old is now the father of two young children and says he enjoys perfect happiness with his partner, to whom he reserves a heartfelt tribute. He tried to work on the construction, but a return to the stage was “a question of survival”, he said in one of the emotional moments which punctuate this show.
However, don’t think that Time to time is limited to a tearful “ted talk” on the merits of abstinence. It is indeed a one man show very well orchestrated that we are talking about here. A tour de force, since Julien Lacroix was not able to rehearse his new show as other comedians are lucky enough to do, while several theaters throughout Quebec still refuse to program it. “Not all venues want me. When I want to see where I can play, I look at where Éric Lapointe has gone,” he laughs.
Julien Lacroix’s humor is grating, downright salacious at times. He says a lot. His jokes often revolve around sexuality. As in his first show with the prophetic title, So far, so goodJulien Lacroix plays on stage a character of a retarded and insolent teenager, who seems to have been fed a diet of porn and American Pie. According to certain articles, he would not be so far from his stage alter ego, but the main person concerned denies being a “narcissistic pervert”. A guy becomes a “narcissistic pervert” when a girl is left, he jokes with a lot of sarcasm.
His detractors will criticize him for a certain ease. Maybe. But in this case, it turns out to be effective. It must be said that the comedian has an innate talent for the stage. As proof of this, the numerous moments of improvisation, where he allows himself to interact with the public. Too bad we couldn’t get all the jokes. Nervous, Julien Lacroix held his microphone poorly and sometimes moved in all directions.
During the thanks, he broke down, admitting to having been devoured by stress before this media premiere. In tears, he thanked his loved ones and the public for supporting him. The Show Must Go On by Queen closed the show. We couldn’t have chosen a better song under the circumstances.