The Magners International Comedy Festival is coming to Bangkok for the first time!
IT’S OFFICIAL! Southeast Asia’s biggest comedy festival will be coming to Bangkok next month with an entourage of famous international comedians.
Launched in Singapore three years ago – and initially touring Manila, Boracay, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh – The Magners International Comedy Festival has been a runaway success, consistently living up to its title sponsor’s name by bringing together fruity, complex characters for some refreshingly good, lip-smacking entertainment. And now Bangkok’s getting in on the action. And we have some ‘in cider’ information. And, yes, we promise not to make any more jokes like that.
Held over three-nights from March 17-19 at The Comedy Club Bangkok, Tenderloins Sports Bar & Steak House, and Altitude (Westin Grande Sukhumvit), the Bangkok leg of the tour will feature a variety of performances on each night ensuring audiences are spoilt for choice.
Alongside Ardal O’Hanlon, the superb line-up of talent coming to town includes Scottish comic Luke Ashlocke (who, fact fans, was the first headliner of The Comedy Club Bangkok, when it opened September 2014); 2014 Hong Kong Comedy Festival Competition finalist Anto Chan; London-based ‘musical genius and sex symbol’ Earl Okin; Winnipeg Comedy Festival’s ‘Funniest Female Comedian,’ Erica Sigurdson; bearded and brilliant Northern Irish comedian Martin Mor; Comedy Central favourite Matthew Giffen; and self-confessed Canadian 'prop lunatic' Wes Zaharuk – whose routine was summed up nicely as “Twin Peaks meets Cirque Du Soleil,” by the Toronto Sun.
Held over three-nights from March 17-19 at The Comedy Club Bangkok, Tenderloins Sports Bar & Steak House, and Altitude (Westin Grande Sukhumvit), the Bangkok leg of the tour will feature a variety of performances on each night ensuring audiences are spoilt for choice.
Alongside Ardal O’Hanlon, the superb line-up of talent coming to town includes Scottish comic Luke Ashlocke (who, fact fans, was the first headliner of The Comedy Club Bangkok, when it opened September 2014); 2014 Hong Kong Comedy Festival Competition finalist Anto Chan; London-based ‘musical genius and sex symbol’ Earl Okin; Winnipeg Comedy Festival’s ‘Funniest Female Comedian,’ Erica Sigurdson; bearded and brilliant Northern Irish comedian Martin Mor; Comedy Central favourite Matthew Giffen; and self-confessed Canadian 'prop lunatic' Wes Zaharuk – whose routine was summed up nicely as “Twin Peaks meets Cirque Du Soleil,” by the Toronto Sun.
While at time of writing the full performance schedule was still being completed, we did learn that the program will kick off on St. Patrick’s Day with an ‘almost-all-Irish’ comedy showcase at The Comedy Club Bangkok, where Matthew Giffin and Martin Mor will take to the stage, one after the other, to tickle your funny bones with their hilarious tales, gags and anecdotes.
Chief organizers of the Bangkok leg, this month’s cover stars Chris Wegoda and Drew McCreadie (pictured), both professional comedians and creative directors of The Comedy Club Bangkok (the city’s first dedicated English-language comedy venue), are unsurprisingly ecstatic about the prospect of having so many big name comedians performing under one roof.
“Bangkok’s comedy community has earned the recognition as one of the major players in comedy in Asia, and Chris and I are so excited to be country managers of the Magners International Comedy Festival this year,” says Drew. “The level of talent coming to Bangkok is awesome, and we couldn’t be happier that The Comedy Club Bangkok is playing a major role in developing the local scene.”
Since opening their club in 2014, Chris and Drew have certainly had a big impact on the city’s fledgling comedy scene. Through workshops and regular stand-up shows they have nurtured and promoted local talent; they’ve also put the city on the map as a respected stop on the international comedy circuit by bringing in big name acts such as Gina Yashere, Tom Rhodes, Ari Shaffir, and, most recently, improv specialist Denise Jones, Artistic Director of Vancouver Theatresports League.
What’s more, last month they officially hosted The Big V - Magners International Stand-Up Comedy Competition, a search to find Bangkok’s best local English language stand-up comedian to make it internationally.
Another superb initiative by Magners, this competition gave local comics the chance to win 20,000 baht and an all-expenses paid trip to Singapore to go head-to-head with other regional winners in a Comedy Central televised final. The grand prize: SG$1,000 and the dream opportunity to perform for seven nights at the largest comedy festival in the world, Edinburgh Fringe 2016. As anyone who dreams of being a comedian will attest, prizes don’t get much bigger, or better, than this. (By the time you read this, details about the Bangkok winner should be posted on comedyclubbangkok.com).
“Magners are the biggest sponsor of comedy in the world and they’ve done so much for the business,” says Chris. “Their January competition was a massive hit with audiences and comics alike and generated lots of buzz. And that prize…just wow. Magners definitely whet people’s appetites for next month’s festival. And we can’t wait to host it.”
Performances during the festival will start each evening at 7.30pm. Tickets are B500 for early birds; B750 the week before performances; and B1,000 at the door. Expect more information in next month’s issue.
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