Funnyman Mark Lottering is thrilled to bring comedy back to the live stage following two years of online performances.
His new show, simply titled “Uncle Marc” is inspired by his latest discovery that he’s at a stage in his life where complete strangers refer to him as “Uncle Marc”.
“Just over two years ago, before a show, as I was walking in backstage, some comedian said ‘Hi uncle Mark’ and I thought, ‘when did I become an uncle? Because I mean, we drink together. We have fun together,’” says Lottering.
He adds: “And then I was out with friends at a very sexy bar in Cape Town and there was a cute person sitting at the bar…and my friends said, ‘we dare you to send a drink over, which I did.
“And of course, the cute person asked the barman who sent the drink, and the barman pointed to me and the cute person turned around and when he saw me, he shouted ’uncle Marc!’… And I just wanted to take back the drink and send over Oros or something.
“So, that ‘s when I first started noticing that I’m uncle Marc now,” says Lottering.
The show features Marc’s brand new stand-up material which includes his theory around why Simon Leviev, the Tinder Swindler, would never have succeeded with conning South African women, the pandemic, Eskom and more.
Reflecting on the past two years of digital events, Lottering says nothing can replace the power of a live audience.
“I've been performing to a camera for two years. When we moved online, it was the worst experience. I mean, I've got used to it.
“We had to do it. But can you imagine just walking into a room and it's just one or two cameramen?
“Both of them are babalas (hungover). They’re not really interested in comedy. There's no audience. You can't hear anybody. You can't see anybody.
“But you know, the addiction of comedy for every stand-up comedian is the sound of laughter.
“When you tell a story and you suddenly hear 200 or 300 people screaming with laughter, that cannot be bought.
“I'm just so happy to have an opportunity to have people in a room with me again, laughing along with me when I tell my story. And this comes with a new kind of appreciation and gratitude,” he says.
With a career spanning over three decades in the entertainment space, Lottering says it’s a nightmare for any comedian to add new material “because you've got to test it out in the audience.”
“I was terrified when I went to Durban because there’s a live audience and I had to try out new material. But I’m happy to announce that we had a wonderful time and the people absolutely loved the new material,” he says.
The Cape-Town based star told IOL Lifestyle exclusively that his popular theatre showcase “Aunty Merle The Musical” is being developed into a film.
“This is very exciting news for us and you are the first to know about this. The producers are on board and we are shooting the film, starting in August this year. And the film is set to release later around the festive season,” says Lottering.
The “Uncle Marc” show makes its debut at the Pieter Toerien Theatre, Montecasino, on Thursday, February 23, and it runs till Sunday, March 6.
The show is then headed to Pretoria, Paternoster, East London, Cape Town and Gqebera.
Tickets to the show are available at Computicket from R150.