Comedy is a funny old thing, especially in a region known to take slap-dash statements in a negative way.
But over the last few couple of years there have been a few Arab comedians who were more than up for the challenge. Ones who have not just succeeded, but excelled in bringing the world of comedy to the Middle East.
Here are just a few of our favourites (many of which you can now watch on Comedy Central Middle East via OSN).
Atheer Yacoub
Much of Ycoub’s comedy stems from growing up as a Palestinian-Muslim in Alabama. She talks about her personal experiences – including political and social justice issues – while challenging stereotypes and social norms (all to comedic effect, natch).
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Mo Amer
Amer recently went mainstream thanks to his documentary on Netflix. The Palestinian comedian recently announced a new TV show on Hulu called Ramy.
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Ismail Al Hassan
Al Hassan climbed the comedy ranks via the Al-Comedy club. An actor and writer in theatre, he now specializes in strong character performances as well as improvisation.
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Khalid Omar
Another veteran of the Al-Comedy club, Omar is has been a scriptwriter for more than five years. Specializing in observational comedy, he doesn’t shy away from speaking about some of the more poignant issues facing the Arab world.
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Ali Sultan
Sultan moved to America from Yemen at the age of 15. A previous winner of Acme’s Funniest Person in the Twin Cities Award, Ali has performed on some of comedy’s greatest stages and is now a regular on the Arab comedy circuit.
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Talal Al Shikhi
Al Shikhi began his career at the Jeddah Comedy club. Known for his spontaneity and energy on stage, he went on to host the inaugaural episode of the regional version of Comedy Central Presents.
