More women are working the comedy circuit

It"s a global phenomenon that there are more male comics than females on the circuit. It’s not only in South Africa where funny ladies are heavily outnumbered.

“But the landscape is slowly changing” says comedienne Mel Jones. “As ladies see more of us breaking through the ceiling, more are bound to follow”.

Cape Town Comedy Club manager Desiré McKie agrees. “We are currently running a competition at the club, the prize being a spot on the Jive Cape Town Funny Festival. Five young women presented themselves, with one going through to the finals. It’s very encouraging”.

The male-dominated profession seems to attract a range of comics from traditional stand-ups to magicians, ventriloquists or musicians.

“They do not seem to be frightened to go on stage. Women are more hesitant to put themselves in the spotlight” says Jones.

The ones who do, though, are hugely successful. Jones has been on the boards for years with veteran Tracy Klass, Shimmy Isaacs and more recently, Angel Campey. Johannesburg has the queen of South African comedy, Tumi Morake, while KZN has the exciting Celeste Ntuli. Besides them carrying the gender flag, few are on the A list.

“But the quicker aspirant funny ladies realise that this is a profession in which you can make a living through just being your funny self, the better”, says Jones.

“My comedy revolves around my life as a single working mother. I share my life with the audience and they relate to it” she says. "I think men are initially more courageous to take the first step - females analyse too much.”

The trend is changing globally. "In the UK today, the comedy circuit has attracted top-class female acts, all much brighter than the men and with much higher-brow material. You do not find yob comic females. They have too much intellect to stoop that low."

Jones will perform at the Jive Cape Town Funny Festival from July 10-22. Book at Computicket.