Laff-it-Off

Look who’s back in Laff-it-Off! 

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It’s Vilmore Johnson and he is ready to crack you up.

“It is said that laughter is the best medicine and I feel that sometimes people just need to let down their proverbial hair for those who have and those who don’t, and just kick back an get a good laugh for that moment in time and just be in a space where they feel comfortable to forget about all that’s going on.

“Obviously, after the show is finished they have to go back out and deal with all their stuff, but for that hour or two or however long they’re in the auditorium, at least they get a chance to relax, enjoy, and take in something that is wholesome, entertaining, funny, and that they can relate to in some way,” he said.

Some of you may not be familiar with him but trust us, as a member of the cast from 2002 to 2009 he brought his unique style and acting skills to the stage playing alongside Tony Thompson, Peta Alleyne, and the late Wendell Smith.

Not only was the pull of the stage slowly drawing him back through the years, he didn’t realise that the “few 20 people” who approached him on different occasions were missing him from the show, so he’s obliging them by returning.

He said it was not unusual for people to walk up to him and ask if he was in Laff-it-Off. When he responded that he had not been for many yeara, they didn’t believe him.

“People argued with me that I had been on stage in Laff-it-Off. I don’t know what show they went and watch, but it couldn’t be Laff-it-Off,” he said laughing.

Vilmore, who joins the cast comprising Janine White, Ishiaka McNeil, Kyle Cozier, and Asha Elcock, started acting during his school days at Christ Church Foundation School.

“I used to do a couple skits at school. I remember doing a play on stage where I had no words whatsoever. I was just there being a character, being described by the other actor and people were breaking down laughing. I was on stage mimicking what she was saying but not saying anything.

“I saw that even without speaking, I had the ability to make these people roll up in stitches, so it seemed as though it was best for me to [do this]. I like to be in spaces where I can create stuff and where I can impart some level of enjoyment to people,” he said.

Vilmore also sang soca under the moniker Villain and was a member of the House of Soca calypso tent during Crop Over.

Hopefully, Laff-it-Off 2023 will help him ease back into the groove of acting and creating as he aims to “play a pivotal role” in making the show “the best Laff-it-Off ever”.