Ahead oh his debut at the Lyric Theatre, we chatted to Marc Lottering, who is very “excited” due to the love he has received from comedy lovers and fans in Joburg. He told IOL that tickets to his once off performance on Sunday, July 8 were already sold out over 48 hours ago.
“It's a big deal for you me, so I’m so excited. I’ve never performed at The Lyric theatre before and it’s 1100 seats, I was quite apprehensive as to whether I was going to sell the tickets but there you go, Joburg people want to laugh.”
With his wild hair paired with his charming grin, plus two decades in the industry, Lottering continue to thrive as he delivers world class comedy.
“Stand up comedians are very well supported in out country and it’s a reflection of South Africans, of how we feel, and it’s beautiful when you see everybody in one venue laughing together...it speaks to the possibility of what can be because fundamentally we all laugh at the same stuff, comedy is very important in our country.
Lottering said in spite of his 20 years experience in comedy, he still gets jittery whenever he must perform to live audiences.
“It (jitters) never lives you, and it’s worse when you’re standing backstage and you hear people coming to the venue, and I’m always thinking, ‘gosh what I am doing’, what a nerve to think that you can go out there for 90 minutes and make these people laugh but the minute you get on stage and grab that microphone, it all goes away. The fear is always 'I am going to be funny?"'
Lottering said he is “encouraged” by many young South Africans reaching out to him on social media wanting to come into the comedy space.
And what happens when you tell a joke and one one laughs?“You move on very quickly” said Lottering laughing.
“There’s always new material, like at The Lyric Theatre I will be trying on new material as well and old material, stuff that always works.
"Sometimes something is funny at home or when you’re having drinks with your friends, you tried it on stage and people stare at you, you can’t stand there, you can’t pause you move on. Through experience I’ve learnt that when I try new material, people love it, whether it’s hilarious or not. If it doesn't work, you go home, fix it and tell the story differently the next time”.
So, what can be expected from this sold out show?
Fans can expect to see a very good looking comedian, they can expect a lot of new stuff, including what have been going on in my life over the past year, things that annoy me, for example they will view on men who wear cycling shorts, my view on going gluten free.
"I went for colonoscopy for the first time in my life and I want to tell my fans all about it too."
If you didn’t buy the ticket for tomorrow’s show, no need to despair, Marc Lottering will be hitting Joburg again soon.
Lottering’s mash hit show, Aunty Merle The Music, which was nominated for 4 Fleur du Cap theatre awards, opens at the Joburg Theatre on February 1 2019.
After the musical, the Capetonian comedian will have two weeks of comedy show in and around Joburg, next year.
Follow Marc Lottering on Instagram @marc_lottering