According to Arab Times, the National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) announced that it will enforce strict measures against stand-up comedy shows that violate licensing regulations and public morals.
I’m guessing this is related to one of (or some of) the recent standup shows that took place. Did anything happen that I’m not aware of?
16 replies on “Kuwait Warns Comedy Shows Over Content”
totally expected, im expecting the same thing to happen with concerts next…..for some reason, there is a huge resistance to simply letting go and allowing people to have more fun…..not sure why….very simply, if you dont approve of such humor……DONT GO
Have more fun? You mean have fun, there`s barely anything happening here.
I`m completely with you on the “you don`t enjoy it, don`t go” thing.
The average lib in Kuwait:
Heard from a friend that Peters did his thing as usual recently and didn’t tone down the vulgar jokes.
Also, I agree with adly. It’s a closed space and if you don’t want to hear immoral stuff, just dont go????
Thought police at it again, you can’t be anything but pg 13 in front of people when behind closed doors things are wild. The hypocrisy is unreal.
When will Kuwait ever grow up, iff at all ?
Before such events take place, there should be a clear disclaimer stating that it’s for adults only and that some jokes may be considered inappropriate or unorthodox for Kuwaiti culture. When we see an event promoted by a Kuwaiti company, we naturally assume it aligns with the values and cultural standards of the majority in Kuwait.
Yes, every household has its own level of openness, and I respect that but let’s be honest, most Kuwaitis would not accept open sexual references or drug jokes in front of their elders or female family members.
If you’re not Kuwaiti, this isn’t your culture to redefine. And if you are Kuwaiti but see no issue with this kind of content, that’s your choice, but you represent the minority. Don’t expect the majority to abandon their values to accommodate what’s considered “normal” elsewhere.
Respecting our culture doesn’t make us old-fashioned, it shows pride and self-respect. Kuwait and the Gulf have their own traditions of modesty and decency that should not be undermined by imported “entertainment” that crosses moral lines.
I can’t imagine paying for performers flown in from another continent just to deliver a show that’s disrespectful, immodest, and unethical and then being told that anyone who objects is the problem.
And to those who say, “If you don’t like it, don’t go,” grow up. Cultural respect is not optional. If we don’t take pride in our values, we can’t expect anyone else to respect them.
100% Agreed. Thank you.
I’m not even conservative- I love standup and edgy comedy especially- but I agree that people need to stop seeing what they perceive as “normal” through a western lens. Countries and cultures have different values and that should be respected. This is even more relevant now seeing as we are witnessing the culminating effects of moral decay caused by western liberalism in their own countries.
We have been so brainwashed and propagandized by western media (their most powerful weapon) to the point where we are starting to harshly judge our own culture through their distorted and extremely racist lens.
You want to see what I’m talking about look at the reactions comedians are getting just from PERFORMING in Riyadh. It is a level of racist ignorance and dehumanization I can only describe and blatantly supremacist. (western exceptionalism)
I think we have been so brainwashed by their media that we are not noticing how they perceive us- they don’t think we are equal human beings. The comedy fans absolutely torched all the comics who performed in Riyadh- read the comments- see how they by default and very casually believe that A-rabs don’t deserve the entertainment they get and should be left to languish and suffer.
At this point- I don’t care to accommodate our culture to western values. I understand censorship can be a slippery slope and we are dealing with that in a sense- but accommodating western supremacist soft power can be just as dangerous.
What you’re suggesting is that Saudi has fewer Islamic and cultural values than Kuwait, and that we’re the only country still holding on to ours. That is not realistic.
The example you mentioned about the feedback the comedians got from Americans after performing in Saudi isn’t really related to racism. It’s connected to other issues such as the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, the existence of slavery in the region, and whitewashing.
The comedians themselves were able to speak freely, and Saudi allowed that without censorship or backlash. It’s comedy, nothing serious.
I agree with having a clear disclaimer and also, they shouldn’t have been flown into the country to begin with if most of their performance is known to be going against local culture.
If they think that’s bad, imagine what they would do if they knew what people do on dating apps. I’ve learned more from these apps here than what I ever learned in USA, some freaky things go on.
I was at Russell Peters and both he and his warm up act were cringe. It wasn’t material I would have enjoyed watching if I had been in the UK, never mind in Kuwait. Really crude and culturally insensitive. It really did feel like they were going out of their way to tick as many no no subjects as possible.
The material they talked about was related to both men and women’s bits, men in Arab attire behaving differently when out of the Middle East, Russell’s very private life, banned liquids, emotional support creatures being of an oinking nature and more!
I think the government is right. Someone from that venue should have vetted them for suitability.
Comedians that could successfully perform here would be people like Peter Kay or Michael Macintyre. Their humor is clean and inoffensive. The opposite of what we watched.
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Why do I feel like this could also be tied to the Riyadh Comedy Festival somehow 🤔
I think this clip might be the reason 🙂
https://www.instagram.com/p/DPyZNaKCDVf/
I was at Russell Peters event, first thirty minutes was fine, then it went extremely vulgar, he went into the most private details of sex, it was way too much even for a liberal in Kuwait.
He was waaay too describtive to the finest details in his jokes .