EDITOR’S NOTE: A few of June’s Hot Head submissions are written in response to the Real Live Action review of Barely Legal by Clara Dubber posted to discorder.ca on May 17. It attracted angry feedback on social media from the event organizers, performers and their colleagues, who considered the review too mean. Some Facebook comments were directed at Clara personally. Discorder reached out to event organizers Sophie Buddle and Gavin Matts, and encouraged them to submit their feedback to Hot Head. They declined to have their responses published. We did, however, receive Hot Heads from others in their community. Here they are…
GAVIN MATTS AND BARELY LEGAL
Hi Clara and Discorder,
I was not at the Barely Legal show and up until now I barely had any idea who Gavin Matts was until I saw him trying to rile up more people to inundate you with hate mail.
I just want to say I am so, so sorry for the bullshit you’re having to deal with right now. How he has responded is childish, petty, and insecure, and the growing response (him doubling down, attempting to dox, and amassing a large group of friends and fellow comedians to pile onto you) is astonishing and horrifying. That I am friends with some of the people agreeing with and defending him is embarrassing.
Comedians are a different breed and as I get to know more of them I like them less and less.
As a woman I can’t help but feel that the response to the review would be entirely different if the author were a man. It’s frustrating to feel like I can only speak up to a certain extent for fear that the mob will turn on me next. There are a few of us watching this go down and we are all disgusted by how vile, unkind, deluded, and self-absorbed Gavin is.
From what I’ve seen, your responses to him have been incredibly professional, and yet he’s relentless. Although he probably has no idea who I am and likely would profess he doesn’t care, in solidarity with you and anyone else who has to deal with his shitty behaviour I will never attend any show that he is associated with.
He has done more damage to his reputation than any review ever could have. I can only hope that in time he realizes how needlessly mean is he and exactly how wrong he’s been through all of this, and I hope the shame he feels haunts him. And if that doesn’t happen then I hope that he fails at comedy and dies alone and unloved.—anonymous
BARELY LEGAL REVIEW BACKLASH
I don’t know if I’m missing some integral piece of information that creates a portal to an alternate reality, but in the world I live in it’s petty and fucking outrageous to respond to feedback by finding the messenger’s personal information and photographs and attacking their person. Dead serious, I genuinely believe that the reaction of some individuals in our community is the most infantile and malicious response to such a minor piece ever elicited. It takes a special kind of hateful egomaniac to launch an unimaginative spiral of assault.
I don’t care how sick you think the shit you produce is, no one is obligated to enjoy any or all of it and reacting like a bratty twelve year old is embarrassing for you. If you want people to give a shit about you and your work, try not to be a flaming asshole when you get a minor criticism. If you were actually confident in your project you wouldn’t be reacting like this. Your insecurity is showing and it’s not cute.
I just cannot conceive of a world where this kind of reaction would be productive in any way. Hate isn’t funny, if you haven’t figured that out by now maybe you should consider a different line of work.—Act Your Age
THESE COMICS SUCK
Are all comedians self-hating smut lords who can’t take criticism, or is it a specifically Vancouver thing? I’m seriously asking.
After seeing the explosion of indignation by Gavin Matts, Sophie Buddle & friends on facebook following a negative RLA review of “Barely Legal” in Discorder, I was expecting to read the most hard hitting, least informed piece of arts and culture journalism this magazine had ever posted. Comedians responded to the review by screenshotting pictures of the reviewer, mocking her age, her pictures, and linking to her social media profiles. Reading the review, it barely had teeth, and their response is to publicly shame the reviewer for being a young woman?
Comedians stand on stage and say anything for a laugh, but as soon as they get out of that spotlight, they are fragile, melting snowflakes unable to take legitimate criticism that *might* just improve their craft.
Thank god for shows like “Rape Is Real And Everywhere” that prove talent, quality and nuance come out of this city’s comedy scene to counter the extreme dick-head attitude propagated by these spineless turds. With any luck the group of “wounded” comics who participated in this ridiculous bruised ego fueled witch hunt, die in debt and obscurity.
Doxing isn’t cute, and y’all aren’t funny. Grow up.—anonymous
THE FEUD
barely legal is trying to brand the review and all the fb shit as a “feud” but where’s the feud? all I see is some folks sore about criticism and a magazine that knows when to shut up and watch them make fools of themselves.—game over
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To submit your own feedback on Discorder or the community we serve, please email Hot Head submissions to editor.discorder@citr.ca or drop them off for BB at the CiTR 101.9FM in the UBC Nest. Please clearly indicate whether or not your submission is anonymous. By submitting to Hot Head you are consenting to have your submission published in the magazine and online. Disclaimer: Hot Head submissions do not necessarily reflect the points of view of Discorder Magazine or CiTR 101.9FM.