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While they wait for clubs to reopen, standups are returning to the stage in car parks, with audiences tuning in on the radio
In his new Netflix special, US standup Dave Chappelle reflected on the drive-in comedy shows that have sprung up while clubs are closed during the pandemic. Audiences watching from cars and honking their horns if they liked a joke, didn’t “sound like any fun at all” to Chappelle. However, until the UK’s comedians are allowed to perform in venues again, drive-in outdoor gigs offer a way forward for an industry devastated by Covid-19.
Last weekend, the first such shows in the UK took place in a car park by Brent Cross shopping centre, just off the M1 in north-west London. Comic Kai Humphries, who appeared at The Drive-In Club, said it was good to be back at the mic again but that after such a long break from live performance he would have preferred a “little basement with 30 people”. However, he described performing before rows of vehicles as feeling like “200-odd intimate gigs” because rather than hearing his voice booming out across the car park, audiences tuned in on their radios while watching him on a giant LED screen. Continue reading...