One of the only places it is okay to make a racist joke — and laugh at one — is at “The Most RACES Show on Earth,” a comedy show that seeks to unify through laughter.
The show was created in 2005 by Neil Bansil, originally from Toronto, Canada, who said he noticed a lot of his comedian friends were of different nationalities and backgrounds.
Bansil and his diverse group of comics will be at Dirty South Improv Comedy Theater tonight at 7:30 p.m.
Bansil gathered his friends and created a diverse show with more than just hopes of attracting a large audience — he wanted a diverse audience.
The cast of comics consists of various ethnicities, including Vietnamese, Filipino, Ghanaian, Canadian, American and Jamaican.
“What we noticed in bringing together all these ethnicities was that we would get the support of a lot of different people,” Bansil said.
“They would be the most mixed audience ever seen … and something good is coming out of it.”
The goal is still to create the funniest show, Bansil said. What makes this show different is its use of ethnicity, background and religion to relate to the audience.
“It’s good because each of the comedians is able to comment on their own backgrounds,” Bansil said.
“People in the audience shouldn’t worry because anyone can laugh … and they’ll get the chance to laugh at their own culture too. It will show them that they are really not that different.”
But Bansil said the show is not all about race. It also brings together talented comedians from different backgrounds to make unique, funny jokes.
Bansil searched for comedians by watching YouTube videos, through social networks and by going to comedy clubs in Atlanta, New York and Los Angeles.
Viet Huynh, a Vietnamese-American comedian in the cast, said the show is more about bringing together a lot of funny people with different viewpoints.
“It’s still racist, regardless of whether or not we try to ignore it,” Huynh said. “But (the racism) is more just to show how we are different and the same — all at the same time.”
Huynh said this show is bound to show anyone within the audience something they enjoy, because it is so diverse.
Noah Gardenswartz, tagged as the Jewish comedian in the show, said he sees importance in its diversity.
Gardenswartz said the show is definitely about different backgrounds, but it can be a bit misleading because it is also focused on different types of comedy that come from these different backgrounds.
“Though the show says I’m the Jewish comedian, I by no means come out as the ‘token Jew’ and just do only normal Jewish comedy,” Gardenswartz said.
Gardenswartz said the consistency of talent and great jokes throughout is what sets this comedy show apart from all the rest.
“The main thing is that the audience is laughing no matter who’s on stage,” Bansil said.
“We’re all funny, and our goal is to create the funniest show. That’s still true to this day.”
Contact the desk editor at arts@dailytarheel.com.
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