Y - June 14, 2011 - Issue 174 - Y-oman.com

Smile and
Oman
smiles
with you
Words & Photography Clint Derric Egbert
A proud national of Oman, Abbas al Lawati is in love with his
country and his people. Currently pursuing an Association
of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) degree, Abbas
holds a BSc. Honours in Applied Accounting from Oxford
Brooks, and is currently working as a relations officer in the
corporate department of one of the banks here in Muscat.
He has also worked as an external auditor in one of the four
biggest auditing firms, and has recently taken up kickboxing
as his first sport. This, however, is only a few of the very
many characteristics that make up Abbas; the one that
stands out the most, or stands up if you please, is his great
sense of humour. It wasn’t very long ago when Abbas thrilled
audiences with his opening act for international stand-up
comedian Rajiv Satyal, during his visit to Oman. This is
where I met our very own Omani joke-box. Y conducted an
interview with Abbas in order to find out more about this
young upcoming talent and the potential of the newly found
art of comedy in Oman today.
What encouraged you to take up stand-up comedy?
I was usually the funny guy in the group and I did like that
title. I started using my jokes on different groups of people
to see how they respond to my jokes. I tried it on serious
people, people with humour, geeky people, and several other
groups, and got a pretty good response. I started feeling
that my humour was unique; when I used the same jokes on
different people and people I would meet for the first time,
it would still make them laugh, and not only that, but when I
would meet them again they would remember my jokes and
that gave me a lot of confidence. I always found humour as
the perfect ice-breaking method; people that I would meet
for the first time would instantly feel comfortable opening
up when I dropped a few funny punch lines, and to be honest
it would also put me in my comfort zone. Usually people
have the impression that humour can only be used when
the time is right, but in my opinion, humour can be used at
any moment, be it a serious situation. How many times has
it happened that you see a face smiling and it has made you
smile? Well, being a stand-up comedian gives you a chance to
look at a hundred faces smiling at you, and I would say that
was my biggest inspiration to take it up.
How do you see the future of standup
comedy here in Oman?
I think there is scope for stand-up
comedy in Oman. Even though there
are not many venues or occasions to
perform in, which puts a comedian in
a very difficult situation, because he
will have to come up with new material
every now and then entertain the same
set of crowd. People of Muscat have a
strong appetite for trying something
new and entertainment shows in
general have always attracted a decent
number. There is not much stand-up
going around in Oman, which means
there is a lot of room for it to grow,
and if it gets the right kind of support,
it might just be the next big thing in
town.
What kind of response have you
received from the shows that you
have done? Are there any particular
jokes that audiences appreciate here
in Oman?
The response I got from the shows
I did was amazing. The crowd was
wonderful and very receptive. I did
a couple of corporate shows too and
did not have very high expectations
from it, but to my surprise it was really
good. Yes. The crowd really likes it
when my jokes are localised; they
like it particularly because they can
directly relate to what I say, and when
you can do that it automatically paints
a picture of exactly what I am trying to
say.
Would you say that there is level of
sensitivity here in Oman that might
hold you back from delivering jokes?
In other words, do you ever have to
tone down your jokes in order not to
hurt people’s feelings?
Not really. I mean, I do have to take
a word or two out of my routine but
I never had to tone down my jokes to
an extent where I had to write a new
one from scratch. I would say that the
crowd here is amazing when it comes
to being a sport, but yes, sometimes
you just don’t feel that it’s right to use
a word or a line from a joke, and when
I get that feeling I just scrap that line
because I don’t want to take any chance
hurting anyone’s feelings, because if it
wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be on the
stage.
Who would you reckon to be the
best stand-up act in the world today,
and do you have any mentors in the
world of stand up?
Russell Peters is the best act in my
opinion; I like the way he trademarks
his jokes, they are so hard for any other
comedian to react and do it the way he
does. I also like the way he researches
on the jokes he performs; facts make a
major part of his jokes and then it’s the
extremely funny punch lines that he
drops. I watch a lot of his stand-up acts,
not to copy his style or his jokes, but to
learn the art of stand-up in general.
Do you create your own material,
and where do you draw inspiration
from?
Yes, I do write my own material, and
even if someone else did you wouldn’t
know (that was just a joke by the
way). My material is mostly inspired
by observing not only people, but all
the things that are around me. When I
notice something funny I make a note
of it, make it funnier and work on the
delivery of the joke, add a few punch
lines and you have a good two minute
set to do on the stage.
Do you plan on performing on an
international stage someday?
If I do get a chance I would love to.
Recently, I opened the show for Rajiv
Satyal, who has opened shows for
big names like Russell Peters, Dave
Chappelle and Tim Allen. Even though
the show was local, there was a lot of
pressure on me because I was sharing
the stage with an international standup
comedian, and despite of all that it
was a great feeling. I have also done a
show for Ahmed Ahmed who is a part
of Axis of Evil Show which includes
names like Dean Obeidallah, Aron
Kader and Maz Jobrani.
What do you feel needs to be done to
improve or further promote standup
comedy here in the country?
I think that the event companies, radio
stations and other organisations in
Muscat should play a part and take
an initiative in organising stand-up
events in town, and rather than calling
international stand-up talents they
might want to try giving local talents
a shot. Surely there should be a right
balance between calling comedians
from abroad and having local shows at
the same time.
Do you plan on making stand-up
a profession, or do you have other
plans in the long run?
Like I said before, I would love to take
up stand-up comedy as a full-time job,
but then at this time I don’t know. I
have been getting shows every now
and then, and I try to perform as much
as I can so that I improve further and
at the same time don’t get rusty, so if
I can be that good at it then why not…
I’m just waiting for the big break.
Do you see a future for stand-up here
in the country, or will you look to
perform outside Oman for a better
response?
I see a bright future for comedy here
in Oman, and the crowd is just right
for it to click. Even then I would like to
travel and perform in other countries
and experience that feeling. Being an
Omani I know Arab humour, and I will
be honest – it’s very funny, the only
thing that needs to be done is to have
a steady platform for comedians to
perform, and believe me there will be a
tsunami of comedians pouring in from
all parts of Oman.
Anything you would like to say to
young upcoming stand-up acts in
Oman?
Well, keep chasing what you have a
passion for and sooner or later you
will have it. All your shows might not
go as planned, but that’s what teaches
you that there is no limit to learning
and you can go on and on. No matter
where you perform, it can be at the
dinner table entertaining your family,
entertaining a bunch of people at your
friend’s birthday party or on the stage
in front of thousands of people; it is
all the same and requires the same
level of skill that you need to make an
individual laugh. So keep laughing and
making people laugh... believe me it’s
the best job.
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