Laff-a-Lot comedians to tour Palapye, Selebi Phikwe

Gasebalwe Seretse
Correspondent | Thursday May 16, 2013 00:00

 

The crew's spokesperson and promoter, Gaolatlhe Kediemetse, said the shows will be held in Palapye (Botsalo Hotel) on May 31st and in Selebi Phikwe (Bosele Hotel) on June 1st.  The tour will end in Gaborone (Cresta President Hotel) on June 7th.  Comedians to perform are; Shigah 'Stokie' Sendimba, Olefile 'Mawee' Mokgware, Goodwill 'Goodie the Badd', Tlokwe, Shima 'Jerusalema' Nnaakoko, Bafana 'Ribcrakcer' Letsatsi and Modiri 'Mod' Keseabetswe.

'We have a pool of both professional and amateur stand up comedians and we don't want them to perform only in Gaborone and that's why we are going on tour.  We want to familiarise Batswana with the concept of stand up comedy and if I had my way, there would be venues that would be hosting local comedians regularly all over the country,' said Kediemetse.

He added that during the tour, his wish is to meet with upcoming comedians whom he could help establish themselves wherever they are based.  Kediemetse further said that one of the reasons why he is taking his comedians on tour is because local stand up comedians cannot afford to rest on their laurels and the glory of the past, so they need to entertain their fans on a regular basis.  'For a comedian to be the best and get respect in the game, he has to keep performing.

We are confident that our tours are going to help grow the culture of stand up comedy in the country,' he said.According to the promoter, some of his artists are having a breakthrough since the likes of Ribcracker and Mod recently had the opportunity to perform at the prestigious Miss Botswana pageant which was aired on Btv.Kediemetse said that as a promoter of stand up comedy in the country, one of the challenges he encounters regularly is that of getting sponsors.

However, he pointed out that things might take a turn for the better after the crew received good publicity for the recent sold out comedy show held at Cresta President Hotel in Gaborone.He further said that in the neighbouring South Africa, there are more than 200 professional stand up comedians whose talent is appreciated adding that he hopes that the culture will also grow significantly in Botswana.The Laff-a-Lot crew is also preparing for the President's Day competitions after which they are going to take yet another tour.All the shows will be hosted by Paphani 'Paps' Masalila, formerly with Yarona fm and two guest comedians from South Africa are expected to perform at the Gaborone show.