On a recent Sunday evening at Leipzig’s Kabarett Theater Sanftwut, a venue employee named Marcel could be seen seemingly everywhere at once, busy ushering patrons in and taking care of their food orders. Between shows, he’s also the one doing public relations and promoting and liaising with the acts that perform in that particular slot at the cabaret: the international standup comedy slot, one that had been in the making for years in Leipzig but has only established itself in recent months.
It can be said that international standup comedy in our city has a nascent momentum that needs active nurturing to continue, and Marcel has taken it upon himself to do it, based on a mix of personal interest, the public’s positive response, and the initiative’s potential. He emphasizes that the rewards are not financial. We all know that local culture industries get very little funding and compensation compared to what they give us. It’s typically the first sector to suffer during crises in society. Unfortunately, often we don’t know we miss it until it’s gone, which was the case when international standup comedy all but disappeared from Leipzig after periodic appearances at venues such as Stoned and Noch Besser Leben (NBL).
Now, though, we get international standup comedy every week at Kabarett Theater Sanftwut, located inside Mädler Passage in the city center.
By “international standup comedy,” I mean comedy in languages other than German. So far I’ve seen English-, Spanish-, and Russian-language acts announced for the cabaret, which also has a plethora of German acts. The phenomenon is a result of a unique moment in the Leipzig cultural landscape when an individual and venue are carving the space for it and various artists and audience members keep coming over and spreading the word. This high supply and demand can also be connected to Leipzig’s fast-growing population with a migration background, which is now close to 20% of the total.
On those comedy evenings at Kabarett Theater Sanftwut, the audience is incredibly diverse and standup comedians are themselves from different countries, and based in different cities in Europe—or in none at all. This was the case with the standup comedian Victor Patrascan, whose performance I watched that last Sunday in September at the cabaret. He told the audience he has no fixed home, spending his time as a traveling performer, immersing himself in the multiple cultures and idiosyncracies he comes across.
Originally from Romania, Victor poked fun at the stereotypes assigned to his own culture and challenged audience members to confront theirs.
The flyer claimed he’d perform in “broken English,” but he was totally fluent, and everyone else he chatted with in the audience appeared to be, too. Playing verbal ping pong with patrons for the entire first half of his show, he didn’t shy away from making a stand for the plight of Palestinians or touching on other divisive, or otherwise too personal, topics. As a testament to his skill in navigating rhetorical minefields and knowing his audience, he had no trouble getting audience members to share their personal experiences and impressions out loud. Apparently, it’s worked out like this for him in his performances elsewhere in Europe, too.
But those preferring other types of standup and vibes have plenty to choose from.
Marcel the organizer says that Spanish-language comedy evenings have been doubling as a sort of dance hangout for Leipzig’s Spanish-speaking community. On other evenings, you can find Berlin-based standup comedians such as Anshita Koul (originally from India) and Liliana Velasquez (aka L’Adios, originally from the US with Colombian background). They were listed as part of the same show (“An English Comedy Feast”) earlier this month at Kabarett Theater Sanftwut, and are known for their spicy insights on their multicultural experiences, challenging family expectations, and sexuality.
In fact, Liliana helped lay the foundations for international standup comedy nearly a decade ago in Leipzig with the “Shameless” show she brought to NBL, which featured multiple comedians. And Anshita led the current comedic revival and wave in Leipzig, starting at the tail end of the pandemic last year with a solo show at Basislager Coworking. The show attracted so many people that she kept returning to the city regularly and bringing more comedians with her.
These forces have converged to our advantage, and now we can finally enjoy international standup comedy in Leipzig pretty much anytime. It’s important for us as Leipzig’s international community to support this project and those involved, so that it continues to thrive and contribute to the city’s blossoming diversity and cultural scene.
