A man in a suit sits onstage at a Roppongi theater in May and fires a fart-fueled dart at a balloon. Later, another comedian flips through oversize image boards to tell an increasingly absurd narrative about feeding ever-larger pies to an old lady. The audience responds with bewilderment, laughter and applause.
This is Yoshimoto Comedy Night Owarai, an English-language comedy show staged every Monday by Yoshimoto Kogyo, the powerhouse talent agency best known for its comedians.
The Osaka-based company also stages a similar event called Nandeyanen every Friday at Yoshimoto Dotonbori Theater in its hometown. The title of the show comes from a Kansai dialect catchphrase now synonymous with the region’s comedians.
While Yoshimoto puts on countless comedy shows in Japanese, Yoshimoto Comedy Night Owarai and Nandeyanen, both launched in late 2023, aim to make Japanese-style comedy accessible to English-speaking audiences. Performers rely on slapstick, nonverbal gags and simple English to connect with audiences across language barriers.
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