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Harper jokesters tackle BC politics in live comedy show

Comedy and politics join forces tonight and tomorrow in the Lower Mainland to educate, entertain, and empower youth in B.C. to affect change in government.

Sean Devlin, the founder of ShitHarperDid.ca, has teamed up with comedy troupe The Sunday Service, comedian Graham Clarke, and former Senate page Brigette DePape, who rose to fame in May 2011 after holding up a "Stop Harper" sign in the Senate chamber, for the ShitHarperDid Live! Comedy Tour.

The show promises to be "really funny" while focusing on the "real issues" and "the power of young people," DePape said.

It won't just be wisecracks about Prime Minister Stephen Harper; the performers will tackle B.C. politics as well, with the hope of getting audiences engaged enough to vote in the upcoming election.

DePape said that B.C. Premier Christy Clark and Prime Minister Stephen Harper are essentially pursuing the same goals: building more pipelines and extracting natural resources, rather than focusing on sustaining the environment and providing local jobs.

"I see this as an opportunity for change for a government that rejects these pipelines and that prioritizes a green and just economy for everyone," said DePape. "But the scale of the problems won't be solved by voting in a new government. It's a way to address them, but it's also beyond voting."

She said that seeing youth-centric movements like Occupy, Idle No More and the Quebec student protests reignited her faith in the power of her generation to affect change. After visiting Vancouver to work with on Defend Our Coast, DePape decided to pack her bags and move from Ottawa to Vancouver to work with the ShitHarperDid team.

"I really feel we are part of building something that is capable of taking down not only the Christy Clark government and the Harper government, but really being part of this shift of culture," she said.

"When people are informed, they get enraged, and that moves us to action."

The SFU Harbour Centre show is tonight, and a show at Douglas College is tomorrow. Check out the video preview below.

Carly Rhianna Smith is completing a practicum at The Tyee.

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