The Rise of the Insanity League: not your normal funny

I’m always keen for comedy, especially if it’s of the South African kind. After watching Trevor Noah’s The Daywalker and Crazy Normal , I was really looking forward to his third show, even though I had already heard most of the jokes from friends constantly retelling them (why do people do that?!).

When I finally got round to watching the DVD, well... I was disappointed. The show began with a not-very-funny song about Indians and all I could think was no, not again, not another show based on racial stereotypes. I think it’s great that South Africans are able to laugh at jokes like these, especially considering our history, but does this have to be the main part of every comedy performance? As I write this I know a lot of people will think I’m simply getting offended or that I lack any sense of humour. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not at all offended by jokes about race, I’m just wondering if that’s all that current and future comedians will have to offer.

Because of this, it makes me quite happy to stumble upon a comedic performance that promises something other than the usual. The Rise of the Insanity League is a comedy sketch currently touring SA, and I was lucky enough to be at the Durban premiere last week. I already had high expectations from the comedians: I’d seen Aaron McIlroy perform outstandingly on many occasions, Ben Voss and his alter-ego Beauty Ramapelepele are always hilarious, and John Van De Ruit has of course written, Spud, one of the few books that can make me cry from laughing. Put these three fine men together, call them the Insanity League and I know I was set for a funny night.

The show had each of them playing various roles, male and female, young and old, human and animal. They did not play excessively with racial stereotypes, they did not resort to crude jokes or situations, and despite all of that, they were genuinely funny – how unbelievably rare!

The Insanity League aims to not just entertain but rid the world of the plague of ‘Normans’, their name for people who are completely normal. Kudos to the three for promoting utter insanity and in doing so, reviving my faith in South African comedy.

PS. I was very excited to see that the merchandise on sale after the show was locally made, with the t-shirts being designed by The Holmes Brothers.