Audio By Carbonatix
Race-based humor is an American tradition that has become a stereotype. Those typical “black people talk like this” and “white people can’t dance” jokes are beyond played out. Come on, comedians! There are so many more cultures and ethnicities to mock. Take a lesson from Russell Peters. The Indian-Canadian comedian has become one of the biggest comic draws in the world, and sells out audiences from Sydney to San Francisco because he’s taken the time to master the intricacies of international cultural differences. When Peters tells an Asian joke, he captures the various accents and idiosyncrasies of Chinese versus Koreans, Filipinos versus Vietnamese. And when the cameras pan over the enormous audience, the laughter is universal.
Peters is wildly popular overseas, but his stateside fame is about to launch into the stratosphere thanks to a new Fox sitcom based on his family life. Peters is gettin’ all kinds of busy — besides the sitcom, he’s working on an HBO special, an animated series, and a special for CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Channel, you better recognize). To kick off next month, he’s joining the ranks of the few comedians who have performed at Madison Square Garden. So if you hurry up and check out any of his seven shows at the Miami Improv, you’ll be able to brag to your friends that you saw this guy before he broke big in these parts. He performs tonight at 8:30 and 10:45.
Jan. 25-27, 2008
