Let's unleash some laughter!

It’s not part of the military government’s campaign to make everyone happy again, but Bangkok now has its first fully dedicated comedy club. It’s called the Comedy Club, so there’s your first giggle.
Mind you, the 120-seat “mirth spa” sitting atop the Royal Oak pub on Sukhumvit Soi 33/1 is only open on Fridays, so you’ll have to seek out fun elsewhere the rest of the week until the Army delivers on its promise.
Tonight is the grand opening and admission is Bt750, which also buys you a drink. Most night you’ll get charged Bt250 at the door, unless there’s some big foreign comedian on the bill, in which case they’ll charge more. Food and drinks will always be on offer.
     Chris Wegoda, who’s a stage actor, and award-winning improvisational-comedy specialist Drew McCreadie are the club’s “creative co-directors”, and they amused The Nation earlier today with a few hints of what else to expect.
    
Why did you decide to open a yuk-yuk club?
Wegoda: The comedy scene in Bangkok is growing, but with the closure of the Londoner pub, which put an end to the three years of open-mic nights, the city was in desperate need of new venue. A city the size of Bangkok deserves a proper comedy club. Now it’ll have one.
McCreadie: Now that improv has arrived to complement stand-up comedy, a dedicated comedy venue in Bangkok is not only viable, it’s an important part of the city’s cultural growth.

Who specifically are you trying to cheer?
Wegoda: The Comedy Club Bangkok is a dedicated, English-language comedy venue. We see the target market as English-speaking expats, tourists, and English-speaking Thais who are interested in the western comedy scene. The club will host local talent as well as bringing in foreign acts, such as Luke Ashlocke from LA, who’s the headliner for the grand opening tonight.

Are we talking just stand-up here or all sorts of comedy performances?
McCreadie: The club is for anything funny! We’ll be alternating every other week with stand-up and improv, comedy game shows and special comedic theatrical performances.

Will there be regular acts?
McCreadie: It’s on a revolving basis, and you’re likely to see open-mic nights where up-and-comers can cut their teeth on new material. On stand-up nights, established comics from around Southeast Asia and beyond will tickle our funny-nuts. We’ll also have improvisational comedy, as seen on “Whose Line is It Anyway?” or “Theatresports”, in which two teams compete for the audience’s love and admiration.

Is Bangkok really that sad that it needs a dedicated shrine to funny? It is ready for this?
Wegoda: Ready? It’s in dire need! It will give the public a totally different entertainment dimension to the usual Bangkok nightlife.

How hilarious is tonight going to be?
Wegoda: We’ll be featuring improv comedy led by professional Drew as well as stand-up comedy headlined by Luke, a Scotsman who now lives and works in LA. He won an LA Stand-up Comedy Award and is a writer for the Comedy Central TV channel. He’s been killing it throughout Southeast Asia and we’re very excited to have him here for our opening.
McCreadie: We’ll also be hosting a variety of workshops. Luke will be doing a stand-up workshop at 10am tomorrow, on everything from tricks of the trade to writing jokes. There’ll be regular improv workshops as well.


Now that’s funny

Admission to the Comedy Club Bangkok’s grand opening party tonight is Bt750 with a drink.
The club is above the Royal Oak on Sukhumvit Soi 33/1, close to Phrom Phong BTS station.
Find out more at www.ComedyClubBangkok.com and the ComedyClubBangkok Facebook page.