South African sketch comedy

Sketch comedy is a form of comic performance built from a series of short, self-contained scenes, known as sketches or skits, each with its own characters and premise and usually lasting only a few minutes. In South Africa it is performed both live (in revue, cabaret and theatre programmes) and on screen (television and, more recently, online), and it draws heavily on satire, parody, impersonation and character work. It overlaps with, and often grows out of, the related forms of Revue, Cabaret and Satire.

History and development in South Africa

The South African sketch tradition has its roots in the satirical revue of the mid-twentieth century, in the work of writer-performers such as Adam Leslie, Jeremy Taylor and Robert Kirby, who combined songs, monologues and comic scenes in topical stage programmes. From the late 1970s the political satirist Pieter-Dirk Uys developed a distinctive one-person, multi-character sketch-and-impersonation style that became the best-known face of South African stage satire. From the early 2000s the form moved strongly onto television, where sketch series began to reflect a younger, multilingual, post-apartheid sensibility.

On stage and live performance

Live sketch work ranges from the older revue tradition to contemporary experimental pieces. Jefferson Tshabalala, who performs as J.Bobs, was the 2020 Standard Bank Young Artist for Theatre; his sketch-based work, including the virtual production Seen Pha Kwa J.B (also styled J.Bobs Live! Seen Pha Kwa JB!), created with the Kwasha! Theatre Company for the 2020 National Arts Festival, blends sketch comedy with poetry, hip-hop, kwaito and traditional performance. The comedy troupe Crazy Monkey, whose members included Brett Goldin, Trevor Clarence, Brendan Jack and Gavin Williams, produced short comic inserts (originally screened between music videos on MTV) and the 2005 feature film Straight Outta Benoni.

On television

Die Francois Toerien Show is a television sketch comedy show created and written by Francois Toerien, performed largely in Afrikaans. The Pure Monate Show (2003-2004), filmed mainly in Johannesburg, was a sketch-based series focused on South African social and political themes, sometimes described as South Africa's answer to Monty Python; it was an early platform for performers such as Kagiso Lediga and Loyiso Gola. Later sketch and satirical formats include Skwizas and the puppet-based satire of ZANEWS / Puppet Nation ZA, while Late Nite News with Loyiso Gola combined satirical news with sketch material.

Sources

Uys, Pieter-Dirk. 1993. The playwright-performer as scourge and benefactor: an examination of political satire and lampoon in South African theatre (PhD thesis). Durban: University of Natal. https://researchspace.ukzn.ac.za/items/93f6b169-c24e-4d2d-a7bb-30363ed041fd

'Comedy in South Africa', South African Tourism (SouthAfrica.net). https://www.southafrica.net/gl/en/travel/article/comedy-in-south-africa-laughs-in-11-official-languages-and-then-some

'Francois Toerien', Performing Arts Academy, Cape Town. https://www.performingartscapetown.co.za/francois-toerien

'The Pure Monate Show', IMDb. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0932657/

'Brett Goldin', Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brett_Goldin

'J Bobs Live Seen Pha Review', MTL Reviews, 2020. https://mtlreviews2020.tumblr.com/post/626786851968237568/

Go to ESAT Bibliography