There are good jokes, and there are bad jokes, and then there are jokes that are so bad that they are good. There are also untimely jokes, depending on whose funeral you’re at. But, as GRACE CHIN discovers, joking around is becoming serious business.

It is a sign of maturity to be able to not take one’s self seriously, to be able to laugh at one’s own self. In some circles, it is considered rude to laugh at others, especially at misfortune but what if you’re all laughing together?

Over the decades, comedy has transitioned from the silver screen to television in Malaysian households, such as with P Ramlee’s Bujang Lapok comedy film series that is still being aired on national TV. On satellite TV, and with the rising Internet penetration rates in Malaysia, comedy is making a comeback on sage and in our households.

Even as comedy becomes more accessible, a joke that may find someone in stitches will not necessarily have another erupting in thigh slapping laughter. As they would say- YMMV (your mileage may vary) or, different strokes for different folks.

Slapstick comedy is universal, says Rizal Kamal, an entrepreneur who wants to expand the stand-up comedy scene in Malaysia. “Comedy is the art of delivering opposite expectations; the brain must be surprised. Slapstick comedy is universal, a lot of people like it, but I think there are people who prefer something a bit more intellectual. Stand-up comedy is possible now because we are globalised,” he says.

Getting a joke- be it satire, parody or sarcasm- is only possible with exposure and an understanding of the world we live in, Rizal explains. It is all about content, and context- if an American comedian talks about the emancipation of the blacks in America, it would be lost on us unless we understand their history, the significance, or the culture.

It is also about delivery- a joke is a joke, but it should be presented differently on stage compared to a forwarded email.

“You can’t actually take out the slapstick (element) from comedy. If you tell a good joke, but without the perfect expression, it would fail,” says Rizal.

The stand-up comedy scene is now new in Malaysia, although there are several personalities who can be considered veterans in the industry. Joanne Kim, Afdlin Shauki, Harith Iskandar, Andrew Leci and Douglas Lim, for example, are fairly regular faces on screen and on stage, especially at private events and functions.

Paying an admission or cover charge to watch stand-up comedy, however, is fairly new, but is steadily growing. When Time Out KL started the monthly stand-up event, Comedy Thursday, not many were willing to pay a cover charge to have their ribs tickled by local comedic acts. In response has been fairly encouraging. According to the organisers, more than a hundred people are packed into the venue to watch their performance.

Rizal is leveraging on this interest to start The Comedy Club KL, organised in partnership with The Comedy Club Asia, Vivify, and Laugh Out Loud (LOL) Events. During a trip to Singapore, Rizal met Jonathan Atherton, a renowned stand-up comedian, who is also the founder of The Comedy Club Asia in Singapore.

“When I spoke to him (Atherton), Comedy Club in Singapore had just started,” says Rizal. “He is a comedian, not a businessman. He just wanted to organise shows for his mates. That’s what he told me- I just want shows for my mates, they come down here, hang out, we have some drinks, they do Singapore, then go back.”

If all goes well, these comedic personalities will drop by KL after performing in Singapore. The format of the show is pretty straightforward: for a RM58 entry fee, patrons to the club will be entertained for 2 ½hours by three international acts and one local act. The Comedy Club KL will be held two nights each month, and will be officially launched in July at Velvet Underground at Zouk, KL.

Rizal is hopeful the international acts will expose young Malaysian comedians and further expand the local stand-up comedy scene. The main challenge, he says, is about finding a balance between what is culturally accepted, as deemed by the authorities, and what people want.

It goes without saying that there are many ‘sensitive’ issues in Malaysia, such as local politics, but even so, there’s still a lot of joke about.

“The book- Malaysian Politicians Say The Darndest Things- is fantastic. It shows that maybe we are cultured enough to laugh at ourselves,” says Rizal. “It is actually a sign of the times, a sign of maturity. I do hope Malaysians are matured enough to accept different kinds of criticism and sarcasm that is put in the form of comedy.”

Source : The Edge Daily