Mashabela Galane excited about returning to Wits, where he fell in love with stand-up comedy

It will be a full circle moment for seasoned comedian Mashabela Galane as he returns to Wits University to perform at the Pitso Ya Kalaneng Festival at the University.

“I discovered stand-up comedy when I got to Joburg, while studying at Wits. I used to see the likes of Tumi Morake, who was a bit ahead of me, doing their thing and I thought I could also do this,” the comedian told The Citizen.

 “The Pitso Ya Kalaneng Festival contributes to a holistic student experience. The event was conceptualised and organised by Wits Theatre staff, some of whom are Wits alumni, who observed the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on theatres. The Wits Theatre remains an important hub in our arts and culture precinct,” Wits School of Arts’ Prof René Smith said.

Mashabela studied Dramatic Arts and Media studies at Wits and the comic, known for his Sepedi jokes, said he was eager to be part of the festival.

“I was approached and I didn’t think twice about being part of it. Wits hold a special place in my heart. It means a lot for me to be part of this,” said Mashabela.

Event organiser and former Wits student, Lerato Sekele said audiences can look forward to productions that profile student works from the Wits School of Arts, AFDA, Tshwane University of Technology, The Market Theatre Lab and Drama for Life.

Mashabela is also an entrepreneur, after launching his gin brand.

“With the money I make from my business, I use it to create platforms for young comedians,” he said.

He willingly supplied Wits University with the gin when the Pitso Ya Kalaneng Festival was being launched earlier this week.

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Vernac comedy

Mashabela is one of the champions of vernacular comedy, alongside the likes of Skhumba Hlophe and Celeste Ntuli.

“It wasn’t easy doing stand-up in vernacular at the time I started around 2005,” said Mashabela.

“I actually started doing comedy in English because there were no vernac comedy clubs. I would perform in Melville, at shows organised by John Vlismas and I remember Joe Parker also used to do shows at Carnival City and Monte Casino.”

The comedian still does sets in English when doing corporate gigs.

“I still do English but it’s not as authentic as vernac. Sometimes I try to translate the joke but the punchline doesn’t hit the same,” he said.

Mashabela rose to fame after the recoding of Strictly Vernac, which was a DVD that was ubiquitously bootlegged across the country. It featured a young Mashabela, Mpho Molepo, Nicholas Welch and Thomas Gumede among other baby-faced entertainers.

“That’s the one that opened doors. We were actually performing in front of the Rhythm City crew,” shares Mashabela.

As a sign of how far he has come in the industry, Mashabela will be part of the Weekend Comedy Showcase presented by the Savanna Comics’ Choice Comedy Awards which will showcase the crème-de-la-crème of the local comedy scene, in a bid to introduce comedy to new audiences at Delta Environmental Centre, Delta Park, Blairgowrie.

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