Mass Comedy: with Dominique
COMEDIAN DOMINIQUE WAS IN TOWN TO IGNITE A LITTLE KC LAUGHTER, by Crystal Booker
KANSAS CITY – Lavell Crawford, Joe Clair and Dominique dominated the stage during a recent performance at Kansas City’s Uptown Theatre. The late Jus Jay was scheduled to host this event, but comedian Bobby J filled in rather nicely. The show, which was dedicated to the memory of Jus Jay, was attended by widow Kristyn “Jus K” Jackson and his mother, Stephanie Owens. It was a beautiful evening as many of the natives came out to show their support. Afterwards, I was able to catch up with Dominique for a little Q&A expression.
CRYSTAL: How long have you been doing comedy?
DOMINIQUE: I think it’s been about 16 years now.
CRYSTAL: That’s a very long time. How did you get started?
DOMINIQUE: I got started because a friend of mine. She had a friend at that time, and they stopped dating. She ran into him again and he said he was doing comedy. She told him she had a girlfriend that was funny. He asked her “do she wanna do stand up?” And I had been talking about it. My mother used to say “do stand up.” I went. He called me and I did my little 5 minutes. I’m from DC. I went to the Comedy Connection in Green Belt. It wasn’t that they laughed a lot. But they laughed enough to make me say “ok maybe I can try my hand at this and see what I can do with it.”
CRYSTAL: That’s awesome! Do you have any children?
DOMINIQUE: No, not yet.
CRYSTAL: Did you know Jus Jay, who passed away?
DOMINIQUE: I sure did. The last time I came to Kansas City, Jus Jay was on the show. R.I.P. Big ups to Jus Jay. Jus Jay was good people.
CRYSTAL: Yes. He was. If people wanted to reach you, or to find out what’s going on with you, do you have a website or contact information?
DOMINIQUE: I’m on Facebook at Dominique Comedienne. And I’m on Twitter at Dominique Comedi.
Comedian Dominique shares a few laughs with Crystal Booker
CRYSTAL: Do you have any advice for aspiring comics?
DOMINIQUE: All I can say is, if you are good at this thing and you got the gift, you can make this a career. I say jump in with both feet. But you gotta hold on. It’s a long haul. It’s got a lot of ups and downs, peaks and valleys. But it’s fun. You just gotta jump in with both feet and go at it wholeheartedly and enjoy the journey. And if you’re not good at it, quit. Don’t waste 5 years. Just go ahead cause it’s not for you. But if it is, it’s a wonderful thing.
CRYSTAL: I want to thank you for taking time to speak with me tonight.
DOMINIQUE: Thank you so much Crystal.
Crystal Booker, a distinguished member of the Kansas City Film Critic’s Circle, is the movie critic of Kansas City’s Magic 107.3 FM. She is also a contributing writer to I Love Black Movies.com. To view her movie reviews, click here. For the latest reports, check out “Crystal on the Scene.” She welcomes both your questions and comments at cbooker@massappealnews.com