Comedy heavyweights back for more fun
THE second instalment of Comedy Experience is in full swing at the Goliath Comedy Club at Melrose Arch. The festival has a similar format to what they had at the inaugural event last year, with a few tweaks.
Jason Goliath explained the idea behind founding the festival last year.
“We thought it was an exciting idea to launch the Goliath Comedy Club and then something that we could do annually to celebrate the club’s birthday. So instead of just launching quietly, we decided to do a massive launch to introduce Melrose Arch as a comedy precinct, and to also celebrate the opening of Africa’s third and, in our opinion, premium comedy club.”
This year they decided to host the festival strictly at the club (as opposed to also having shows at other venues around Melrose Arch, as they did last year) because they wanted people to come and experience the Goliath Comedy Club and to educate audiences on all the different genres of comedy.
Goliath said that because South African audiences were exposed to so little comedy there was still a lot of education that needed to happen, and so they have a range of shows with different formats.
On Monday they had the Next Gen where they showcased up-and-coming talent and last night they had Old’s Cool where they featured some South African comedy greats like Joe Parker and Roni Modimola.
Tonight will be a big celebration of comedy, he said. “Wednesday night is for me one of the most exciting nights. We have a concept called 30in5: 30 of South Africa’s favourite comedians on one stage, all doing five minutes of comedy. No host, it’s just a rapid fire of comedy. As acts arrive they draw a number, which dictates when they’ll go on.”
Tomorrow night the Goliath trio will be teaming up with Twins on Decks for an experimental comedy show that will act as a prelude to their national tour.
“It came about because we have a good relationship with the twins. We all love the old Def Comedy Jam style. We also all love breaking the mould. You can expect fastpaced, high-energy comedy infused with music and sound effects and a couple of surprises.”
Goliath said that they were excited to be taking this format around the country to major cities like Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, as well as some of their favourite small towns like Kimberley and Klerksdorp.
On Friday and Saturday they’ll have their most sought-after show, Headliners where they’ll be featuring a mix of South African comedy’s biggest names. Get tickets at www.goliathcomedyclub.com