{"id":57318,"date":"2026-04-27T16:07:34","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T16:07:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=57318"},"modified":"2026-04-27T16:07:34","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T16:07:34","slug":"utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaigntrevor-noah-returns-home-with-nationwide-comedy-festival-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2026\/04\/27\/utm_sourcerssutm_mediumrssutm_campaigntrevor-noah-returns-home-with-nationwide-comedy-festival-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Trevor Noah returns home with nationwide comedy festival in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"mvp-content-main\">&#13;<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-190805\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Trevor-Noah-returns-home-with-nationwide-comedy-festival-in-South.jpg?resize=600%2C347&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"347\" srcset=\"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Trevor-Noah-returns-home-with-nationwide-comedy-festival-in-South.jpg 600w, https:\/\/fakazanews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Trevor-Noah-others-300x174.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Trevor Noah is bringing his focus back home, unveiling an ambitious comedy initiative aimed at reigniting South Africa\u2019s live entertainment scene and spotlighting local talent.<\/p>\n<p>The global star made the surprise announcement during a closed media briefing, where journalists were initially kept in the dark about what to expect.<\/p>\n<p>Speculation filled the room before Noah finally stepped on stage alongside Eugene Khoza and Ntosh Madlingozi to reveal what they described as a major shift for the country\u2019s comedy landscape.<\/p>\n<p>The project, officially titled <em>South Africa\u2019s Festival of Comedy<\/em>, is being positioned as more than just another event.<\/p>\n<p>Backed by Savanna, the initiative aims to rebuild and reimagine stand-up comedy following years of disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a revival. A renaissance of South Africa comedy. Making it what it was, while focusing on the future,\u201d Eugene explained.<\/p>\n<p>Rather than following the traditional festival format, the concept introduces a fresh approach, one that treats comedy like a national team, complete with a curated lineup blending established names and emerging voices.<\/p>\n<p>Noah takes on the role of lead curator, working alongside Eugene as vice captain and Ntosh as coach, all with the goal of nurturing and showcasing talent on a larger scale.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cServing you the finest comedians that you may not know about yet. Giving them a platform,\u201d the team shared.<\/p>\n<p>For Noah, the vision is clear: bring audiences back to live comedy in a way that feels immersive, exciting and uniquely South African.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s all about stand up comedy. A physical comedy show\u2026 there is nothing like it. A grand scale of stand up comedy that leaves you laughing until you cannot breathe,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The festival will roll out across the country over several months, with activations, performances and announcements leading up to major shows later in the year.<\/p>\n<p>Pretoria\u2019s SunBet Arena is set to host the opening in September, followed by another major showcase at GrandWest Casino in Cape Town.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond the headline shows, the organisers are urging audiences to support the broader comedy ecosystem, from smaller gigs to rising performers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDon\u2019t wait for the big shows. Go to the smaller shows too. Support comedians. Make comedy funny again,\u201d Eugene added.<\/p>\n<p>Tickets for <em>South Africa\u2019s Festival of Comedy<\/em> are expected to go on sale on 29 April, marking the start of what organisers hope will be a new era for South African stand-up.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">South Africa needs to laugh and with Savanna I\u2019m bringing just the team to do it!<\/p>\n<p>Bafunny Bafunny is South Africa\u2019s National Team of Comedy. 5 Shows, 3 Cities September 2026!<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019ve got Eugene Khoza confirmed with many more local and international comedians to be announced.\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ukpnD5BnPG\" rel=\"nofollow\">pic.twitter.com\/ukpnD5BnPG<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Trevornoah\/status\/2048684827818283496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">April 27, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><!-- CONTENT END 4 -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Trevor #Noah #returns #home #nationwide #comedy #festival #South #Africa<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#13; Trevor Noah is bringing his focus back home, unveiling an ambitious comedy initiative aimed at reigniting South Africa\u2019s live&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":57319,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57318","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57318"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57318\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57320,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57318\/revisions\/57320"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}