SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Lauren Froment is a talented, Pepsi-guzzling teenaged comedian who has shared jokes and broken taboos on stages around town for almost two years.

She approached the arts editor at Javaroma to talk about her art and her dreams earlier this week.

Lauren Froment, a young standup comedian, performs in Old Town last fall. - NNSL file photo

Lauren Froment: Do people at the newspaper get flack for talking about suicide?

Daron Letts: No. Not me. Anything you want to talk about you can talk about. So, my first question will be: what do you want to talk about?

LF: I just want to talk about who I am and where I've been going in the last year and a half with comedy.

DL: Who are you and where are you going?

LF: I'm going big or going home.

DL: What's your plan?

LF: I've been trying to get some opportunities for short-term planning to perform here in Yellowknife. I'm trying for the next SnowKing Festival and the next Folk on the Rocks festival.

DL: Yeah? What special preparation does it take to get ready for big things like the SnowKing and Folk on the Rocks?

LF: It takes a lot of forethought and a lot of paying attention to current news. I read the paper every day and I like to get out of my house every morning and just walk around and see what the rest of the world is doing.

DL: What are you writing your comedy about?

LF: Just stuff that's been going on in life. Parents' divorce. How I'm getting older and how all my friends seem to be moving to B.C.

DL:How do you make that stuff funny?

LF: I don't know. It's a process. But, I can't remember what the last step was. Somehow it just comes out funny. It's a cookie cutter thing.

DL: What do you mean "cookie cutter"?

LF: Well, every joke is different. Like, it's me telling all the jokes so it's the same person saying everything but everything is different. It's got a different feel to it. I have to look at my audience and see how they're reacting and I've got to wait for how they feel about it when I'm telling a joke. It's a lot of precision in the moment.

DL: Do you want to share any jokes? That are short.

LF: I'm short but any other joke would be a tall tale.

DL: Fair enough. Is that good? Do you want to add anything?

LF: I want to talk about my cousin. I was telling you awhile back my cousin died, eh?

And he's a really good guy. He was a big brother kind of thing but he was an annoying cousin, too. He liked life, man. I don't understand why he would die. I've accepted it. His obituary - the pamphlet they handed out - it turns out donations in his name are made out to a comedy scholarship.

DL: Was he into comedy?

LF: He liked watching comedians on TV and all that. He was remembered for being a really funny guy.

Lauren Froment will be performing at Javaroma's open mic this Saturday night.