Give them a leg up: Tumi Morake is excited about the potential of young comedians in South Africa.
After trying to get an untold joke out of some of the cast members of new reality series Last One Laughing, and failing dismally, I pursue comedian, actress and TV presenter Tumi Morake.
She warns me, “I wanted to tell this joke, but I know I would have laughed first, so I decided not to share it. I must warn you though, it is really stupid,” she says, already cracking up.
“What’s brown and rhymes with Snoop?” she asks. “Dr Dre!”
We laugh way too hard, and I sort of wished that I got the other cast members’ response.
They might not have wanted to share their jokes but, what they were keen to speak about was the state of comedy in the country.
Comedian Robby Collins says he is happy with the trajectory of the industry and measures that by the nascent talent he engaged with recently.
“I hosted the Newcomers Showcase three weeks ago and the kids that are coming up are beautiful to watch.
“They are their own individuals, they are opinionated, and they are hilarious,” he tells me.
Collins also says it is important to support up-and-coming comedians and open up the industry for them as much as possible.
Comedian and actor Jason Goliath shares his sentiment.
“We are farmers looking out over burnt fields, where we know everything has to be destroyed in order for it to regrow stronger and better.
“Covid devastated our industry, like it did the global stage, but I think because our industry was in its infancy, we took a major knock.
“I am happy to see that it is starting to sprout and blossom again,” he says. However, Goliath says what the pandemic did not extract from the comedy space is its funny bone.
He has also seen many of the Newcomer Showcases happening across the country where upcoming comedians are demonstrating impressive potential to keep the industry alive and thriving.
“First World people all go to similar schools, which means they have similar stories.
“South African storytelling is infused with 12 official languages and 36 indigenous languages, which means 36 different cultures influencing storytelling at any given point,” Goliath says.
South African comedians are some of the best in the world and they can go toe-to-toe on any stage with anybody.
“When the pressure is high, that is when we get the diamonds — and our resilience as a country and as artists is unmatched.”
The pandemic saw a lot of artists suffer because they had no income. Theatres and venues were closed and restrictions on audience capacity meant venues were unable to make a profit. The result was that artists often did not get what was due to them.
The situation was exacerbated by the corruption surrounding the R300 million allocated for artists by the National Arts Council. Many did not receive their share, spurring them to stage protests outside the council’s offices for several days.
Morake speaks of how both hard and good times cause South Africa to have such rooted and authentic artists. It is down to the fighting spirit of the people here. The pockets of hope make for relentless talent and we are just getting started.
“We have barely scratched the surface of the kind of comedy that can come out of South Africa,” she says. “We are on fire.
“We are an industry that is so young and has so many women who are right at the top where we belong. I am excited about where comedy in South Africa is going.”