Did you hear the one about Dartmouth’s indie comedy scene?

The route to the stage at 127B Portland Street—the former Picnic at the Dart restaurant—starts in an alcove between the Dart Gallery and a rectangular room that’s become a much-needed event venue for downtown Dartmouth. It must get crowded for comedians waiting to take the stage for the weekly show The Red Room Riots, a mascara-smearing set of silliness featuring a slate of locals every Friday. But, for co-host and producer Amanda Spriggs, the journey begins further back than the curtain at stage right. It started at age 19, when, on a whim, she delivered an impromptu stand-up comedy set—and, in the process, found her voice. “This sounds super crazy, but the only place that I feel super comfortable is actually on stage—and everything else feels like so much work,” Spriggs says, speaking by phone with The Coast.

These days, Spriggs (alongside her co-host/co-producer Jon Pickett) is on a mission to help more could-be comedians have their own moment like that—and, in the process, she’s part of a budding indie and inclusive comedy scene in Dartmouth. “I’m over finding a seat at the table. It’s making your fucking table. Making your own scene,” Spriggs says. “I want to find my platform and then bring people who are even further marginalized.”

HRM isn’t new to funny business, between an annual sold-out comedy festival, being home to the long-running sketch show This Hour Has 22 Minutes, and hosting long-standing comedy nights all over town. But on the eastern side of the harbour these days, things feel decidedly DIY and comedian-led: Alongside Spriggs and Pickett, comedians have also launched a regular Wednesday night showcase called the Darkside Comedy Club at the Doubletree Hilton Dartmouth. Then there’s The Comedy Cove, the 2021-opened venue offering a slate of live comedy from touring acts and locals alike three nights a week.

Spriggs is quick to explain that, as she sees it, the palpable energy and extra in local comedy these days started with the momentum of Durham LaPorte, a friend and mentor of hers who passed away unexpectedly earlier this year that she calls “the real reason for the resurgence of comedy in Dartmouth.”

“I don’t mean to put too much of an exclamation mark on it, but Durham wasn’t in any other time or place,” Spriggs says, emotion creasing the corners of her voice “All the magic that [he and his stage partner Brandon Michael] made: I just feel like we’re trying to carry that on.”

Spriggs says she hopes The Red Room Riots will continue the work she, Pickett, LaPorte and their friends have been working towards: Things like paying comics fairly for their time, doing “some social enterprising” to give partial proceeds to local charities and increasing diversity and representation in the comedy scene.

“John and I were driving home the other night after grabbing a slice of pizza from Revana’s,” she says. “And I said ‘Dude, if this is all it ever is, this is the best. This is it. If it’s like 40 bucks a week, but we get to go be turkeys that make other people feel good and showcase people, that’s it.’ And he looked at me and said ‘That’s just what I said outside.’”

The Red Room Riots are Fridays at 8pm at The Dart Gallery, 127 Portland Street. Tickets are pay what you can, but those looking to attend should text 902-483-7657 for reservations.