Top talent for loads of laughter
SOME of the finest of South Africa’s stand-up comedians will be in Durban for performances at various venues from October 28 to November 2, the line-up, including such top draws as Marc Lottering and John Vlismas.
All this unfolds as On Fire Comedy, Durban’s premier comedy events company, announces it will reveal plans later this week that it is confident will soon turn Durban into the comedy capital of the country.
The plan is to team with Whacked, one of South Africa’s leading entertainment companies, co-owned by Vlismas, for a new initiative aimed at providing top entertainers, top business speakers and entertainment events for the corporate market.
Among comedy attractions lined up for Durban soon is the inaugural Durban Laugh Festival at Sibaya Casino’s iZulu Theatre, at 8pm on October 28 and 29, and 3pm on October 30.
The performers will include Marc Lottering, Joey Rasdien, two-time Comics Choice Awards winner Yaaseen Barnes, Dalin Oliver and locals Neville Pillay and Masood Boomgaard. There will also be appearances by a number of up-and-coming Durban comics.
The Friday line-up will showcase Lottering, Rasdien, Boomgaard, Barnes, Pillay and guests, while tagged for the Saturday programme are Barnes, Pillay, Boomgaard, Oliver and guests
Sunday’s line-up features Rasdien, Oliver, Boomgaard, Pillay and guests.
Tickets for the Durban Laugh Festival cost R120 and R150 and are available from Computicket outlets or the Sibaya Casino box office.
Former Durbanite Vlismas is to perform next Wednesday at Hillcrest’s Butlers Restaurant, 24 Old Main Road, where he will share the stage with Jem Atkins, Neil Green, Mo Vawda and Kwanda Radebe.
The laughs will flow from 8.30pm, tickets cost R100 and booking is by phoning (031) 765 3850.
Also next Wednesday, former high school teacher Dalin Oliver – on tour from Cape Town and noted for his one-man show, I Came, I Taught, I Left – will bea special guest, alongside Vlismas, at Durban’s Amsterdam, 143 Helen Joseph (Davenport) Road, Glenwood.
Also on the bill that night are Johannesburg comedians Virgil Prins and Napsta, as well as American comic Jessica Michelle Singleton.
Tickets cost R50 each. To book, or for more details, phone 031 811 5449.
From 8.30pm next Thursday, October 27, Oliver, Vlismas, Prins, Napsta and Singleton are scheduled to entertain at an event billed as Halloween Comedy Special, from 8.30pm at Morningside’s New York venue.
New Durban act Darryl Williams is also on the bill for this gig, for which tickets cost R60 each.
Phone 031 312 9605 for bookings or more information.
On Friday, October 28, Vlismas, Atkins and Green will be at the Umhlali Country Club, 1 Compensation Road, in Umhlali. Also on the bill will be comics Princs, Napsta and Kamz.
The show starts at 8.30pm, tickets cost R100 each and booking is by phoning 032 947 1181.
Also note that Eldorado Park funnyman Dillan Oliphant, the 2015 and 2016 Comedy Central Roast Champion and winner of the Comics Choice Award, will entertain with his solo show, Oliphant in the Room, at the Durban Jewish Centre, KE Masinga Road, at 8pm on October 27, 28 and 29.
Oliphant, a standout act on Trevor Noah’s NationWild DVD, is noted for his deadpan delivery and sharp one-liners
Tickets for his performances cost R100 each and are available from quicket.co.za or at the door.
Still talking comedy, if you’re a fan of Kevin Perkins (better known as “white Indian” Michael Naicker), you would do well to plan to head for the Wild Coast Sun’s Tropical Nights Theatre, where the comic will present his show, Mind the Gap – The Underground Tour, at 8pm on October 28.
Perkins returns to South Africa via Dubai to treat local fans to a combination of what he calls his “normal” stand-up comedy and hilarious stories from the street as regaled through the eyes of the inimitable Michael Naicker.
“Expect aching stomach muscles because his no-frillsno-fuss comedic observations of life and people in South Africa and abroad, skits, songs and riotous jokes, will have you in hysterics,” says Sandi Burger, the publicist for the Wild Coast Sun.
“He will be making his way to the Wild Coast during his whirlwind tour home.”
Tickets for Mind the Gap – The Underground Tour cost R120 each if booked via www. quicket.co.za, or R150 at the door on the night.