Just For Laughs is headed for South Africa in 2018

As South African comedians have begun making names for themselves in America, now Just For Laughs will be spreading its comedy festival brand to South Africa.

JFL announced today during its 35th annual signature fest in Montreal that it’ll debut Just For Laughs Africa in 2018 in Durban, South Africa.

JFL Africa will grow in subsequent years in a joint partnership with the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government.

“We have already established successful Just For Laughs festivals beyond Montreal including Toronto (JFL42), Vancouver (JFL Northwest) and Sydney (JFL Sydney) and couldn’t be more excited by this new venture in South Africa,”says Gilbert Rozon, President and Founder of the Just For Laughs Group.

Just For Laughs has broadcast its shows there on M-NET and Comedy Central Africa. And over the years, JFL has welcomed comedians such as John Vlismas, David Kau, Pieter-Dirk Uys, Riaad Moosa, Basketmouth, and of course, Trevor Noah to its festivals.

This year’s JFL Montreal includes performances from South Africa’s Loyiso Gola and Malawi’s Daliso Chaponda, who are performing on Sugar Sammy’s International Gala.

“The opportunity to bring the experience of the Just For Laughs team to developing African comedy was one we just couldn’t turn down,” says Just For Laughs Africa Director Moyikwa Sisulu. “Their experience in developing local comics, showcasing global superstars and generating amazing content for distribution across multiple channels is second-to-none and we can’t wait to grow the continental comedy scene with them.”

Sean L. McCarthy

Editor and publisher since 2007, when he was named New York's Funniest Reporter. Former newspaper reporter at the New York Daily News, Boston Herald and smaller dailies and community papers across America. Loves comedy so much he founded this site.

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