"Beyond excited": Toronto comedian Steph Tolev opening for Bill Burr at Scotiabank Arena next week
Toronto-born and LA-based comedian Steph Tolev has a tasty tradition she likes to keep every time she comes home to the city.
“Saving Grace is what I tell everyone about,” Tolev told Daily Hive in an interview. “It’s a great brunch place on Dundas West and you have to order from the chalkboard. It was mine and my sketch comedy partner Allison Hogg’s favourite place. We went there all the time.”
Tolev will get to indulge in her favourite dining spot soon as she’s opening up for Bill Burr at Scotiabank Arena on August 23 and 24 on the Slight Return tour.
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“I am beyond excited to open for Bill. I am borderline ‘losing my mind’ over it.” shared Tolev. “The largest room I had done before this was the Danforth Music Hall opening for Rob Delaney and that was 1,500 people. Scotiabank can hold 20,000. I’m almost fainting just thinking about it.”
The Los Angeles-based Tolev first met the Grammy Award and Emmy Award-winning comic when she appeared on Comedy Central’s Bill Burr Presents: The Ringers. He continued to follow Tolev afterwards and support her work online.
“He ended up seeing a really silly Instagram video I did where I was making fun of New Yorkers and I think it really hit a good nerve with him,” explained Tolev, a Canadian Comedy Award winner for Best Female Stand-up. “He started following me and liking all of the insane things I was posting. He then asked me to be on his Netflix special, Bill Burr Presents: Friends Who Kill.
“Bill truly changed my life and I can never thank him enough for getting me out to a much wider audience.”
Steph Tolev/Submitted
Tolev was inspired to begin her comedy career after she landed an iconic role in a high school production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
“I played Nick Bottom and wore a very realistic donkey head. I got to prance all over the place and loved it,” shared Tolev. “Lots of my teachers told me I should do stand up. They weren’t too fond of my loud mouth in math class but knew I had something.
Her drama teachers encouraged her to audition for the Comedy Writing and Performance program at Humber College and she was accepted. (“I wanted to be an actress but got rejected by every big acting program in Toronto.”) Tolev then performed her first stand-up set at the age of 18, and it was a memorable moment in her career.
Steph Tolev/Submitted
“I got heckled by a man who I then threatened to beat up in the parking lot,” Tolev said. “He waited for me cause he was angry, but we didn’t fight because he was too drunk and it wouldn’t have been fair. Still, I knew right then this is what I was meant to do.”
Fans and critics would agree with Tolev, who has been named one of Vulture’s “Comics You Should and Will Know” and one of Comedy Central’s “Up Next” comics to watch. She was a finalist in Sirius XM’s Next Top Comic, nominated for a Juno Award for Best Comedy Album, and is also performing two sold-out shows at The Comedy Bar on August 25.
One of her recent career highlights happened this summer when her name was painted on the wall of the world-famous The Comedy Store in LA.
Steph Tolev/Instagram
“Having my name painted on The Comedy Store wall means the actual world to me,” Tolev said. “I believe I am the first female comedian from Canada in around 20 years to be passed (becoming a paid regular), not to mention a Canadian in general. Not too many of us are on there. Jim Carrey and Harland Williams are a few that I always see on the wall.
“I was told by the big Toronto club bookers that I was too dirty and was never close to being passed at either of them. So to get my name on the biggest comedy club in the world really means a lot. It feels really good to prove people wrong. So if you are reading this, and have had people not believe in you, use that anger to drive you to work that much harder.”
Tolev is also grateful for the supporters who have cheered her on over the years and is excited to have so many of them in the audience at Scotiabank Arena next week.
Steph Tolev/Submitted
“I have old friends from high school, previous coworkers, and many more coming to the show My sister and my dad will be backstage. I feel so happy to have these people supporting me,” said Tolev. “My sister has been with me at all my big shows, so that means the most that she can share this with me. She has been my number one supporter for years even when I was wildly unfunny.
“I love Toronto and miss it when I’m not here. I am a true East Yorker and very proud to be. I often feel like Canada doesn’t show off its talent as best it can, which is a huge reason why so many of us leave to go to the States. So it really means a lot to open for such an amazing comedian in the biggest venue in my favourite city.”
Bill Burr: Slight Return Tour with opener Steph Tolev
When: August 23 and 24, 2022
Time: Doors 7 pm, show 8 pm
Where: Scotiabank Arena – 40 Bay Street, Toronto
Tickets: Various prices, purchase online