Season 1
So You Think You're Funny! is a South African reality competition television series produced by Curious Pictures in which amateur comedians compete to win R100,000 and an opportunity to work with premier South African comedian David Kau on upcoming projects.
The series is hosted by David Kau, with fellow judges Moshidi Motshegwa and Ntobeko "Ntosh" Madlingozi. The first season was won by Sifiso Nene.
So You Think You're Funny! premiered on SABC1 on Tuesday 11 November 2008, at 19h00. See "Seasons" below for seasonal broadcast dates and times.
Synopsis
Hosted and championed by top South African comedian David Kau, So You Think You're Funny! aims to provide a platform for South Africans to show off their comedic skills - while having fun competing for a grand prize of R100,000 and the opportunity to work with David.
Kau is also a judge along with actress Moshidi Motshegwa and fellow comedian Ntobeko "Ntosh" Madlingozi. The trio's judging comments range from sympathy to motivation and harsh criticism.
Contestants can perform anything ranging from stand-up comedy, singing, dancing and magic tricks to ventriloquism - but it has to be funny and make the judges laugh, as the title of the show implies.
A casting call for the show went out on Wednesday 17 September 2008 for auditions which began in Pretoria on Saturday 20 September. South Africans over the age of 16 were invited to attend.
Auditions were held at the following venues:
Saturday, 20 September
Venue: Pretoria City Hall, Pretoria
Sunday, 21 September
Venue: Thanduxolo Special School Hall, Witbank
Saturday, 27 September
Venue: The Bat Centre (Studio and Dance Hall), Durban
Sunday, 28 September
Venue: Broad Walk Centre, Port Elizabeth
Saturday, 4 October
Venue: Bolivia Lodge, Polokwane
Sunday, 5 October
Venue: Nelspruit Civic Centre (Auditorium), Nelspruit
Saturday, 11 October
Venue: Protea Hotel Central, Bloemfontein
Saturday, 18 October
Venue: The Crossing Mall, Mafikeng
Sunday, 19 October
Venue: Cinegate Film Studios, Cape Town
Saturday, 25 October
Venue: Turnbull Park Hall-Green Hall, East London
Sunday, 26 October
Venue: Atlas Studios, Johannesburg
Format
From the auditionees who attended the open auditions at the venues above, the judges selected 60 to go through to the next round in Johannesburg.
Those 60 were whittled down to 30 for a final audition round, from which a Top 5 were chosen.
The Top 5 then competed in the weekly competition. Each week the judges sent home one contestant, until only one was left standing.
Results
The show ended with a final four showdown on Tuesday, 3 February 2009.
The finalists were: Sifiso Nene, Thabang Manyelo, Tsietsi Matlakala and Mdu Mazibuko, who was voted back into the show as a wildcard after being eliminated.
Thabang and Mdu were eliminated in the first round of finals, Sifiso and Tsietsi went head-to-head and the title was won by Sifiso.
Seasons
(All seasons air exclusively on SABC1 and each consists of 13 episodes)
Season 1
Premiere: 11 November 2008 | Finale: 3 February 2009 | Tuesdays, 19h00
Season 2
Premiere: 27 July 2009 | Finale: 19 October 2009 | Mondays, 19h00
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