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Bongani Ndlovu Entertainment Correspondent
comedian Clive Chigubu brought the house down on Friday night at the Umahlekisa Comedy Nights which celebrated its first anniversary in style at Horizon Pub and Grill.
Out of the nine comedians that had gathered at the pub – Chigubu made the best impression. His punch lines were humorous as he used his body to communicate his comic act.
The difference between Chigubu and other comics was that he was relevant as he poked fun at those from downtown (ghetto) and uptown (salala). So hilarious was his act that part of the crowd signalled to him to get off the stage as they could not bear to laugh anymore.
When Chigubu eventually got off stage, he left amid wild cheers from the crowd. Headliner Simba the Comic King also showed why he won the Outstanding Comedian at the recent National Arts and Merit Awards.
He made a hilarious impression of President Mugabe telling people about his displeasure about homosexuality.
Not saying that the other comics were a turn-off, Doc Vikela, Long John, Allen Marshal, Keith Zaks and HO also got the crowd laughing during their sets. Novice and first lady of Bulawayo comedy Nomsa Muleya fared well although she lost the crowd in some instances.
Speaking after the show, director Ntando “Van” Moyo said it was a great night and was surprised at the attendance of the show. He said this showed that Umahlekisa had grown from strength to strength.
He said celebrating one year was significant for comics as they wanted to make it into a big business.
Chigubu concurred and encouraged fellow comics to work hard.
“Anyone can crack jokes and make people laugh, but it is a whole different ball game when it becomes your source of livelihood. One needs to be serious,” he said.
Fans who had gathered for the comedy nights described them as a stress reliever. Arts critic Raisedon Baya was among those who attended the show. He said all the acts were good but they were some who were rambling.
“I enjoyed, but there were also moments when I wasn’t sure whether I was listening to jokes or some trivial ramblings from some half-drunk wanna be’s. As I have always said, anyone can make cheap jokes about sex, but it takes hard work and some intelligence to keep people laughing for more than 10 minutes,” Baya said.
Umahlekisa Comedy Nights was founded by Van Moyo in March last year. This was upon realisation that stand-up comedy was growing in Harare and was not being promoted in Bulawayo.
Appreciation of the shows has significantly grown in recent months and has motivated young comics to line up more shows.
Online Reporter