Posts Tagged → comedy cartel
GB’s Got Game
Here’s another Pinoy standup comedian that is rising through the comedy scene pretty fast – GB Labrador, another member of the hilarious stand up comedy group called the Comedy Cartel.
I found this video on the Vimeo account of Tim Tayag, also from the Comedy Cartel group.
I’ve watched GB plenty of times and I know he’s done gigs locally, in the States, and lately he’s been a regular in the Singapore comedy scene of Comedy Masala. This guy is definitely going places and it will just be a matter of time before he becomes a household name in the comedy industry. This video is one of my favorite bits of his. I hope you enjoy it as well.
Filipino Comedians in Singapore
Laugh Off Asia in Singapore
Singapore, get ready for one of the funniest comedy shows in Asia. The Comedy Cartel will be in Singapore this November 18th & 19th to perform with the funny comedians of Comedy Masala at The Arts House on 1 Old Parliament Lane. These guys are the best of the Philippines and now they are showing their talents to the rest of Asia.
Show your support by watching the show. Get your tickets early at BYTES. Tickets sell for S$26 and S$14.
The Comedy Cartel comedians representing will be Tim Tayag, GB Labrador, and Raffy Taruc. Representing the Singaporean Comedy Masala contingent are Fakkah Fuzz, Rishi, and Jinx. Show your support and watch the show! Guaranteed to be hilarious.
Stand Up Comedy at AVenue in Makati
comedy cartel performs stand up at Capone's in Avenue
This March 18, 2011 at 7pm, the international group of Pinoy stand-up comedians called the Comedy Cartel will be performing their brand of humor at Capone’s for a very good cause. Divina Comedia: Laugh Your Way From Inferno to Paradiso is a fundraiser organized by L’amour and Mighty Maits for the benefit of Mighty Minds.
Capone’s is located in the A-Venue Mall in Makati City along Makati Avenue. Door charge is P250. Please call or text Richel 0922-8187592 for tickets and reservations.
I’m a fan of these Comedy Cartel guys and you will have a fun time laughing at their jokes or just laughing at them.
Congratulations to GB Labrador of the Comedy Cartel
Our very own GB Labrador of the Comedy Cartel, the only group in the Philippines that performs point of view stand up comedy, won 2nd place in the English Division of the 4th Annual Hong Kong Comedy Festival held at Take Out Comedy. Watch him as he performs tonight, Wednesday, at Votre Bar in Quezon City (on top of East St. Louis) near ABS-CBN. Our other Filipino representatives that participated in the comedy festival were the funny Noel Gascon, Eri Neeman, and Raffy Taruc. This is a big win for Pinoy stand up comedy, proving once again that Pinoy talent is world class.
4th Annual Hong Kong International Comedy Festival
4th annual HK comedy festival
Support some of our very own Comedy Cartel members as they perform in this year’s Hong Kong International Comedy Festival. Although, the site claims to be the first full time comedy club, it’s actually not. Details below.
Get ready for The 4th Annual Hong Kong International Comedy Festival
Oct 6-16! Main events include SHECKY WONG (from Comedy Central) and
The 4th Annual HK International CHINESE and ENGLISH Comedy
Competitons!
For the English Competition, there will be over 40 comedians (11
overseas comedians flying in from England, USA, New Zealand, Pakistan,
Singapore, South Korea, The Philippines, and China) compete! Tickets
on Sale soon!
Get ready for The 4th Annual Hong Kong International Comedy Festival
Oct 6-16! Main events include SHECKY WONG (from Comedy Central) and
The 4th Annual HK International CHINESE and ENGLISH Comedy
Competitons!
For the English Competition, we will have over 40 comedians (11
overseas comedians flying in from England, USA, New Zealand, Pakistan,
Singapore, South Korea, The Philippines, and China) compete! Tickets
on Sale soon!
All details on www.hkcomedyfestival.com
Why I Don’t Think Vice Ganda is Funny
“May nag text, insert insult here!” That’s pretty much the formula that Vice Ganda and most run-of-the-mill gay comedians use in their routines. It kinda reminds me of the sketch on Saturday Night Live way back when, where two guys who I think were from Jersey (or could be New York) would just hang out on the street and just make insults by saying, “Hey, Oprah just called, she wants her weight back!” Or how about, “Hey, Donald Trump called, he wants his toupee back!” Which makes me wonder if Vice Ganda actually stole her routine from that sketch and just made it Tagalog.
There’s really nothing original here. In fact, it’s very easy. All you need to do is pick on a physical defect and just milk it. So why is it that Vice Ganda and similar comedians get so much praise for low-brow cheap shot comedy? I’m not sure but I think it has to a lot to do with the media machinery that proliferates and perpetuates this type of insult humor that maybe amusing but doesn’t really enlighten or uplift the type of comedy that Filipinos are known for. But I guess there’s a market for this since people watch this type of crap and consider it stand up comedy.
Call me a hater, which I’m really not because I’m not jealous of Vice’s success. Shit, I wouldn’t want to be successful on those terms doing lousy jokes that require no wit. I could easily do it that way if I wanted to sell out, but I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. I have what a lot of these gay comics don’t have – integrity. Now, I’m not gay bashing, in fact, can I even be accused of that since gays are not really a minority in this field of entertainment? I’m gay comic bashing. There is a difference because Pokwang falls under this category even though she’s a woman.
So what am I driving at? Well, I just wish that the powers in the media would give real stand up comedy a chance. It is out there. The Comedy Cartel does it: observational, point of view comedy with actual writing to back it up. But what’s the incentive for these big networks to gamble on this new type of comedy? Why try something new when this old formula of putting a gay comic in drag or maybe a female comic who looks like a gay comic in drag works? I guess there is no incentive until they realize that this next wave of comedy is the next big thing. And mark my words, it is about to explode.
So if you’re tired of the same old insult, shock, mindless comedy, there is an alternative. There is a point-of-view stand up comedy out there that will entertain you without disparaging the audience. On Mondays, there is Spicy Fingers in Greenbelt 2 @8:30pm and on Thursdays there is the Votre Bar near ABS-CBN above East St. Louis that starts at 930pm. Give it a chance, you won’t regret it. And I dare the big networks to have the balls to push and promote this type of comedy.
Comedy Cartel: the Filipino Comedy Revolution
the core of the comedy cartel
If you haven’t noticed, there’s a revolution happening in the comedy scene and it’s being led by a group called the Comedy Cartel. The group was originally formed a couple of years ago when two Filipino American stand up comics named Tim Tayag and Allan Manalo were judging JackTV’s Lafapalooza and had all these new comic talents but had no direction. So one night, while Al and Tim were hosting a late night radio show for peanuts, they thought of creating an organization that would pool all the powers of these stand up comics – the newbies, the oldies, and the weirdos. And the name they thought of was the Comedy Cartel because they just liked the drug and mafia reference, even though these 2 guys’ only violent experience was when some Middle Eastern men danced with them in a club (actually that was just Al’s experience).
The group expanded and included comedians such as Alex Calleja, Marlon Olivan (consistent runner-up in comedy contests), Red Ollero, Ryan Puno, Noel Gascon (Lafapalooza 2 champion), Ryan Rems, Derf Hebrado, Victor Anastacio (Lafapalooza 1 champion), Richie Fernandez (Cool Center champion), Eri Neeman (MTV VJ), GB Labrador, Chino Liao, Eric Villarama, JB Dela Cruz, Trian Lauang, Marcelle Fabie, and others (sorry if I missed anyone but I think I got pretty much everyone covered). The groups is – as far as I know – the only gang in town that does point of view comedy. In a land dominated by gay comedy bars and insult comedy, Spicy Fingers in Greenbelt 2, Ayala Center, Makati serves as the home nest of these western style comics. In fact, Spicy Fingers has developed quite a reputation for its Monday night comedy that even comedian Jo Koy (who has his own show on Comedy Central) and other comedians from Hong Kong and Canada have dropped by to do guest sets. You can catch the Comedy Cartel every Monday night at around 8pm. You can make reservations by contacting Ecircle Entertainment at +63.2.5339316 or texting +63.922.8596144
Some nights are showcases wherein you will get to watch anywhere from 10 to 15 comedians performing short sets. Some nights are theme nights, wherein you get to see 5 comedians doing longer sets with a headliner. Check with eCircle Entertainment which nights are the ones with more English speaking comedians (in case you don’t understand Tagalog) and which nights are more Tagalog friendly.
The State of Philippine Comedy
Here’s the way I see it: Dolphy, the supposedly king of Philippine comedy, is ancient. No disrespect to the man but his gags are old. I think he should retire and spend his remaining years with his loved ones. I acknowledge his contributions to the comedy scene but he is from a different era. Vic Sotto and Joey De Leon, while still in their productive years, are not really offering anything new besides the old and tired “acheche!” punch line. Willie Revillame, if you can even call him a comedian, has a style that is irritating to the educated but for some strange reason appeals to the masses who don’t know any better. Same goes to Ai-ai. How many times can you play with the title “Tanging Ina Mo”? The horse has been dead for years and she still beats it. Speaking of horses, Vice Ganda’s horse jokes and condescending comments to dance contestants might be funny to an audience that doesn’t think much but it really doesn’t enlighten anyone.
So what is the future of Philippine comedy?
It’s definitely not Jojo A, who tries so pathetically hard to copy Conan O’Brien but has no idea what a punch line is if it bit him in the ass. He just thinks that mimicking Conan’s moves and corky face is about what it takes to get a laugh. Although I must admit, he is funny in a not funny way, if you know what I mean.
The future of Pinoy comedy is actually already here and starting to blow up. It’s point-of-view comedy and it’s being pioneered by a group called the Comedy Cartel. It’s pretty much still an underground movement if you compare it to the mainstream comedy that we’ve been forced fed. But it won’t stay that way for long. With regular gigs on Wednesdays at Votre Bar in Quezon City in the ABS-CBN area and shows at Spicy Fingers in Greenbelt 2 every other Mondays, the group’s following is growing by the hundreds. What they offer is insightful, funny, and revolutionary comic performances that is changing the way people appreciate comedy.
If you dont’ believe me, come check them out for yourself. But I’m willing to bet my Porsche Panamera that you will agree with me. Of course, I have yet to buy the Panamera.
Let me know what your thoughts, comments, violent reactions, etc. are.