Comedy in South Africa: laughs in 11 official languages, and then some!

SSouth African comedy took on a new life after apartheid censorship ended in 1994, bolstered by the freedom of expression clause in our new constitution, adopted in 1996. The comedy explosion threw up a multitude of diverse comedic personalities, styles and lingoes, and well-supported comedy venues have sprung up around the country, often featuring acts that can easily hold their own at an international level. 

South Africans often depict ourselves, our lives and our interactions within our multiple cultures through humour, so it’s not surprising that we come up with some excellent, often satirical material and truly indigenous comedy. 

South African comedy culture is showing significant strength across all disciplines: television, stand-up, theatre and even print media, where columnists and cartoonists work humour into our universal experiences. The boom has also launched a slew of new writers and directors, like Kagiso Lediga (who also has a stand-up pedigree) of Diprente, just 1 of many South African filmmakers who are creating successful local comedies that make waves on international markets. 

Visitors keen to experience South African comedy will have no problem finding theatres and stand-up comedy clubs in Cape Town or Johannesburg, and monthly or even weekly comedy nights hosted in restaurants, bars and other venues crop up in many smaller centres. 

Theatre offerings frequently include satire, musical comedy and farce, while the stand-up scene is a mixed bag. There are observational comics telling witty stories about their lives, gag-tellers doing a string of jokes, one-liner comics, impressionists and political satirists, ventriloquists and magicians, comics wielding guitars or ukuleles, surreal comics, clean comics, blue comics, dark comics and comics who work in character. 

Well-known names in the local industry include Barry Hilton, David Kau, Mark Banks, Loyiso Gola, John Vlismas, Kurt Schoonraad, Joe Parker, Kagiso ‘KG’ Mokgadi, Chris Forrest, Tumi Morake, Martin Davis, Riaad Moosa, Al Prodgers, Tshepo Mogale, Mel Miller, Khanyisa Bunu, Dave Levinsohn and Robbie Collins, but they are just the tip of a burgeoning iceberg of comic talent coming up through the ranks.  

Trevor Noah is by far the most famous South African stand-up comic, although local fans only get to see him perform at home once or twice a year, now that The Daily Show duties keep him in the US most of the time.  

Darling, in Western Cape, is where to find South Africa’s most famous satirist, Pieter-Dirk Uys, and his alter-ego, Evita Bezuidenhout. The man whose plays, impressions, sketches and satirical monologues chastised apartheid through the 1970s and 80s is seen by many as the father of South Africa’s observational stand-up comedy, as distinct from joke-telling. These days, he most often performs his outrageous comic theatre in his delightfully over-the-top Darling venue, Evita se Perron. 

Taking the one-person comedy show a little further, in the same vein as Uys, are the likes of Rob van Vuuren, Mark Lottering, Alan Committie, Casper De Vries and the irrepressible duo of Lisa Bobbert and Aaron McIlroy, who all combine different characters, physical theatre and madcap antics to create an exhilarating experience. Speciality acts are also finding a niche – ventriloquist Conrad Koch is almost as famous as his most popular puppet, Chester Missing, and Stewart Taylor and Magic Man are just 2 of the comic magicians in regular demand. 

Cartoons and comic strips are also growing in popularity, as more young South Africans with drawing skills discover their comedic voices. Political cartoonist Zapiro frequently ruffles feathers across the board, and comic strip Madam & Eve continues to poke fun at the complex relationship between a white ‘madam’ and her African domestic worker. 

After a turbulent past, South Africa is still groping towards a fully integrated future – so the targets that get picked on in South African comedy aren’t always comfortable for everyone. One thing you are assured of, however, is hearing a genuine cross-section of the opinions that exist in this multicultural nation.