‘There can never be enough said of the virtues, dangers, the power of a shared laugh’, said Françoise Sagan. If it weren’t for the great comedic minds of our cultural landscape, we might have imploded a while ago.
South Africa enjoys a remarkably robust cast of comedians and satirists in all mediums. Whether it is the infamous Nandos adverts (such as The Last Dictator), ruthless cartoonists or cross-dressing comedians, we have been spoilt for choice. It’s not really suprising that a country with as convoluted and painful a past as ours will create such sharp, fearless voices that allow us to transcend the worst through humour and shared experience.
We have John Vlismas and Evita Bezuidenhout to shock as much as they inspire thought. Zapiro, Ben Trovato and Yalo parody, lambast and interrogate the politicians and public figures that so frustrate us. Riaad Moosa, Barry Hilton and more star in Outrageous!, a collection of stand-up shows, and one of my favourite slices of South African comedy. Of course, there’s also the famous Laugh It Off t-shirt bandits and the recently resurrected Hayibo.com. While the mediums have increased and improved, don’t forget the ancient 80’s with the candid camera of Leon Schuster and Pieter-Dirk Uys‘ many caricatures. The older the comedy, the better it is to watch knowing that many of the things that worried us then have been beaten now.
We’ve compiled some of our favourite South African comedians and satirists below from Exclusives.co.za. Let us know about your favourites in the comments thread!
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