LKPG HA HA! @ Arenabolaget

Backstage

“I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it's the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It's probably the most important thing in a person.” ― Audrey Hepburn

Laugh brings happiness and relieves stress. That's what LKPG HA HA! intends to do. Linköping's comedy club, created in 2008, introduces comedians on the Backstage of the Konsert och Kongress. Three Thursday nights in Fall (with Messiah Hallberg, Soran Ismail and Ann Westin in 2012) and three Thursday nights in Spring. With some friends, we went to the show last night  (April 4th), which was partly in English, with Al Pitcher from New Zealand.

Al Pitcher

This Kiwi revolutionized the comedy scene in Sweden since he moved here a few years ago. His life as a foreigner led him to joke about all surprising Swedish customs, such as the fika, fy fan, "tackar tackar", etc. Have a look for yourself.

His Fika Tour all over Sweden was a great success. Yesterday, felt like the show I saw was unique: very spontaneous and playing around with the audience a lot.

“Heckle is the funniest thing ever. I was talking about this before the show tonight, that it’s important to have that moment, that one-off event, that feeling that this is only happening tonight,” he explains. 

The atmosphere was really chill-ax, nice music during the break and people having drinks at the bar... Good times!

Linköping is sold out tonight. But if you don't make tonight , come to Norrköping in October. Shurping , shurping. alpitcherpatartour.se
— Al Pitcher (@TheAlPitcher) April 4, 2013

Pontus Ströbaek

James McKay, Adeel Faqih,
Pontus Ströbaek & Ben Kearsley

Prior to his show, Ben Kearsley, the usual LKPG HA HA!'s host, invited other comedians on stage. Adeel Faqih, Swedish with Indian origins, made fun of his own day-to-day life in Sweden. He made fun of the "chai tea", explaining that it literrally means tea-tea as chai is the word for tea in many countries... Even though it was in Swedish, I could understand most of it! Then, James McKay, an Englishman, came on stage for a short while, joked about his life in Stockholm and wondered why there was always a picture of the farmer on egg boxes in Sweden. Eventually, Pontus Ströbaek, another Swede, came on stage and... got naked! He said that people laugh when they're surprised. He might have ended chocking a few of them though!

Al Pitcher

As part of his new tour, Påtår (meaning a coffee refill), Al Pitcher was warmly welcome on stage by the audience. Of course, he told jokes about the culture clash he lives everyday in Sweden. He also made fun of Swedish hockey; Ryanair; his two-years old son about whom he sometimes feels like  he's a hobbit on crack; and the two Australian girls in the front row. Using the audience to such extent proves how last night was unique. He ended his hour-long show by desperately inviting people to be friends with him on Facebook! Lots of laugh which put a smile on our faces for the next hours :)

The next show of LKPG HA HA! is on May 2nd, with Jesper Rönndahl. Winner of the Stand-up Championships of Norra Brunn in 2007, he his famous in Sweden for being in the Comedy Fight Club in 2009 and presenting Extra Extra since 2012 on SVT (tv) and on the radio. Some of his sketches can be seen in funny videos on Youtube. There will be other comedians (Henrik Blomqvist, Christina Nordhager and Thomas Eriksson) which Ben Kearsley will introduce before the big show. Check him out!