Garihanna Jean-Louis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Garihanna Jean-Louis (born September 20, 1989)[1] is a Haitian-Canadian comedian,actress and writer.[2] She is the first Black female comedian to graduate from l’École nationale de l’humour in Montreal, Québec, Canada.[3]
Garihanna Jean-Louis | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 20, 1989 Montréal, Québec |
| Education | Université de Montréal - l'École nationale de l'humour |
| Notable work | Les Traces du Passé (2014) - Traits d’humour (2016) - Bye-Bye (2020) - Montreux Comedy (2023) - Johanne, Tout Simplement (2024) - Lakay Nou (2026) |
| Awards | Comedian of the Year at Gala Dynastie (2024) - Artist of the Year at Zoofest (2022) - Prix Gémeaux (2021) - Public Choice Award at Gala Dynastie (2020) - Revelation of the Year at the Festival International du Rire Lol Fest Haïti (2017 and 2018) |
Early life
Born in Montreal in 1989, Garihanna Jean-Louis went back and forth between Montreal and Haiti for most of her early life.[3]
At age 5, she moved to Haiti.[3]
At age 15, she returned to Montreal without her family due to the political instability,[3] namely the 2004 Haitian coup d'état.
Still a teenager, Jean-Louis went back to Haiti after becoming frustrated with all the prejudices she faced.[3]
At age 18, her mother and sister were kidnapped.[3] This kidnapping lasted 3 days and was by a perpetrator that the family knew.[3] They ended up being unharmed, but the ordeal was enough to have her parents force her to go back to Montreal permanently.[3]
Education
Garihanna Jean-Louis got her bachelor's degree in economics and criminology from the Université de Montréal.[4] After being in the police workforce for a couple years, she then went on to get a scholarship and degree from l’École nationale de l’humour in 2017.[4]
Career
Police cadet
After graduating from the Université de Montréal, she went on to work as a cadet with Montreal's police force, SPVM.[3]
Actress
In 2013, she quit her job with the SPVM and moved back to Haiti after her father's sudden death.[3] In Haiti, she actively pursued a career in acting.[1] Garihanna Jean-Louis began acting at 5 in a professional theater company in Haiti.[3] But, in 2013, she fully embraced her love of theatre, teaching at middle schools in Port-au-Prince.[3]
Comedian
In 2015, her sister encouraged her to attend a Quebec comedy workshop, where she performed a skit about her bicultural identity and was selected to present that number at the gala Ha Ha Haïti in Montreal.[4] Two hours before the show, the director of l'École nationale de l'humour, Louise Richer, offered her a scholarship on the spot to study comedy.[3] Jean-Louis quickly accepted, uprooting her life and going back once and for all to Canada.[4] This snap decision marked history, making her the first and only Black female comedian to graduate from this institution since its creation in 1988.[5]
Garihanna Jean-Louis went on to have a career doing comedy galas, TV shows, and a movie.[4] Now, she and her older sister, Cynthia Jean-Louis,[3] lead workshops in acting and comedy to promote inclusivity and inspire young people from marginalized backgrounds.[1]
Awards
Filmography
Film
Les Traces du Passé (2014)[7]
Television
Bye-Bye (2020)[8]
Comedy galas
Traits d’humour (2016)[9]
Montreux Comedy (2023)[10]