Rachid Badouri is the rare comedian who disregards all the usual barriers that can separate audiences. And that's true whether those barriers are political, cultural, or even linguistic. While it's no small thing to be funny in both French and English (he speaks Arabic and a little Berber, too), Badouri carries it off with all the skill, insight and exuberance that make him one of Quebec's most popular performers.

The son of Moroccan-Berber immigrants, Badouri got early lessons on the value of humour by doing impressions of guests at his father's barbecues. He also developed his sharp eye for cultural differences as one of the only visible minorities at school in Laval (he jokes that one of the other two was a redhead). Those experiences set him on the path to developing the wildly diverse gallery of onstage alter egos that audiences would come to know, including a Haitian cab driver, a fast-talking Italian and a French-Canadian school teacher obsessed with being politically correct. (A skilled dancer, he does a fantastic Michael Jackson, too.)

With his fondness for skewering prejudices and stereotypes, he developed a sensibility that was unique in Quebec's comedy scene. After sending a demo DVD to Just for Laughs, Badouri got his big break when he performed at the iconic comedy festival in 2005 and won its "révélation" prize. Two years later, he debuted his first one-man show, ‘Arrête ton cinéma,' a theatrical phenomenon that ran for three years and sold over 325,000 tickets. His screen appearances include a starring role in the 2010 cop comedy ‘L'Appat' and his own TV comedy show, ‘Peuts Contenir des Rachid.' His second one-man show, ‘Badouri Rechargé,' premiered in Montreal in 2013.

Badouri's success at home led to greater opportunities not just in French-speaking parts of the world but English ones, too. After making his Anglophone debut as the host of Just For Laughs' showcase ‘The Ethnic Show' in 2015, Badouri followed up with spots on the festival's ‘JFL All Access' TV show and its gala mainstage. But despite his rise in profile with English-speaking audiences, Badouri's hardly forgotten the fans who already know what he can do. His current run of French-language shows in Quebec includes performances of ‘Badouri Rechargé' and a brand-new one-man show.