Josiane Aubuchon: Balancing Self-Deprecation and Self-Confidence

“Boob jokes” are an easy laugh, a bit “dad-jokey” … and more frowned upon than they were in years past. However, comedian Josiane Aubuchon has reinvented the genre with Le show de boules, in which she recounts the adventures surrounding her breast reduction. The whole thing is the subject of five performances in Salle Claude-Léveillée.

The main person concerned says she “very selfishly” wanted to look back on this episode in her life, which has now stretched out over more than five years. Five years from the moment she was put on a waiting list. At the time of this interview, she had just undergone minor corrective surgery.

“I had the surgery in January 2024, and it was something that was quite time-consuming,” the comedian confided. “A lot of things happened from the moment I made the decision to have the breast reduction, then during the operation, and during my convalescence. And now, a year later, I’m not in the same state of mind about my self-perception. Talking about it is therapeutic for me.”

Becoming the inspiration that you can’t find elsewhere

When people think of breast surgery, they tend to think of breast augmentation or, from a less cheerful perspective, a mastectomy. Breast reduction is an almost non-existent topic in public discourse, and it was to shine a spotlight on this phenomenon affecting many large-breasted women that Josiane Aubuchon—a 2012 graduate of the École nationale de l’humour—decided to write about her experience. “I was looking for role models—women who had had the same experience—but I found nothing,” she laments. “Large women, like me, with a significant breast reduction. All I saw were women of rather standard size who went from a triple D to a B.”

Failing to find the inspiration she sought, the comedian therefore chose to become the inspiration herself. And as a sign that she has struck a chord, many women are contacting her to react to her experience or tell her about their

The artist isn’t uncomfortable talking about such an intimate experience. “On the contrary, I discuss it with a lot of self-mockery,” she confides. “I’m rather good-natured, with a certain manner on stage that allows me to take things further.”

She notably addresses her concerns about her future figure… she who, naturally, wore a J-cup. “Am I going to look like Winnie the Pooh… like, with a big belly, and no boobs?” she asks. “I really had to work on that, on my body image.” 

“This operation sort of opened a Pandora’s box of vulnerability for me: I feel like a teenager who no longer understands her body,” adds Josiane Aubuchon.

With humor, she also addresses the viewpoints of others. Even though her Show de boules deals with a thoroughly feminine experience, men are not left out.

“If your partner is getting a breast reduction, you’re going to have to help her!” she tells these gentlemen, many of whom may be surprised to learn that bra cups can go beyond a double D.

A renaissance and a residency

The show was first presented in the summer of 2024 as part of ComediHa! Hello Montreal. Given the event’s success, Encore then offered the comedian the chance to return to the show with a five-month residency in a more intimate setting, conducive to more intimate talk.

“For me, it adds another string to my bow, because I rarely repeat shows,” explains Josiane Aubuchon. “I thought that after doing the show, that was that… so I had tucked it all away, but I’m very happy to bring it back to life!” Following a first performance of Le show de boules on Thursday, February 13, additional performances take place on March 11, April 2, May 6, and June 4 in Salle Claude-Léveillée