‘Not like selling toilet paper’: Outgoing festival boss Susan Provan on elevating comedy to an art form
Long-serving festival director Susan Provan reflects on her three-decade tenure elevating comedy to an art form as she prepares to exit the world's largest standalone comedy event
Susan Provan is stepping down from her leadership role at the world’s largest standalone comedy festival after a tenure spanning 32 years. During her time at the helm, she has been a vocal advocate for the industry, emphasizing that promoting comedy is a unique challenge that differs significantly from selling standard commodities.[1][2][3]
Provan famously remarked that her work was "not like selling toilet paper," reflecting her career-long mission to elevate comedy to a recognized art form. Her leadership has seen the festival evolve into the world's premier standalone event for the medium, a transformation she guided over more than three decades.[1][2][3]
Throughout her three decades in the position, Provan has overseen the festival's growth while managing the unpredictable nature of live performance. Her experiences include a variety of behind-the-scenes challenges and anecdotes, such as comedians falling offstage during their acts and performers being evicted from their motel rooms.[1][2][3]
These incidents illustrate the colorful and often chaotic history of the event under her guidance. As she prepares to exit the role, Provan leaves behind a legacy of professionalizing the comedy circuit while maintaining the raw, unpredictable energy that defines the world's biggest standalone comedy festival.[1][2][3]
