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STORY
Why a comedy club?
The four partners started this comedy
designated place with the idea of having
a venue that would allow young local acts
to develop the craft, under the guidance
of seasoned professionals as well as to
cross-pollinate the comedy scene with
visiting international acts.
Rizal, Santhiram, Atherton and
Jayaram are helping to build bridges
across Asia. The Crackhouse have col-
leagues in India, Singapore, Thailand,
Philippines, Indonesia, China and Hong
Kong, who all share a similar vision, all
of whom are up-and-coming comedians
who are passionate about comedy rather
than profits alone.
The idea of the Crackhouse is to make
everyone laugh and to take their minds off
the often trying times of life. “I don’t get
involved in Malaysian politics or political
humour,” said Atherton. “I think as a
guest it is rude to criticise one’s hosts.”
The four partners have the dream of
going international but they say it takes
a lot of manoeuvring and paperwork to
get it off the ground. This is not stopping
them, though and they are working hard
to achieve that goal. There are many
young acts in Hong Kong that are crying
out for stage time and the club would love
to get them onboard but dealing with the
promoters has proven to be challenging,
to say the least.
Crackhouse is also looking at estab-
lishing a full-time venue in Singapore.
Atherton added: “I’ve been promoting
shows there for seven years and have
mentored many promising young comics.
Unfortunately, Singapore requires a much
greater financial investment, but if we
don’t do it, some soulless promoter will
and the scene may well collapse.”
Who made you laugh?
“Australian Peter Berner was awesome,
as was American Butch Bradley. They
have two completely different styles-
Pete is thoughtful and ironic, Butch is
high energy and improvisational. Both
are brilliant performers. And of course
there’s British- Nigerian comedian Gina
Yashere , who never fails to deliver an
explosive show.”
“The Crackhouse have had some
incredible shows from locals like Harith
Iskander and Douglas Lim, as well as
Singaporeans, Indonesians, Indians
and Filipinos acts. The industry is in its
infancy in Asia but the ground is very
fertile. Comedy is really blossoming
throughout the region. We will simply
keep watering and fertilising it.”
Comedy is a soothing balm for a
troubled soul. We all need a good laugh
from time to time, and really, the more
often the better. Even medical science
says that laughing is good for us and
The Crackhouse is the place to go to
for your laughter fix. I am now going
to check my bank account, which is a
joke in itself.
Asian looking Paul Ogata
who is actually fromHawaii
Gary Eck fromAustralia