Photo courtesy of Señales de Humor

Been in Buenos Aires for a few months now, reasonably confident of your Spanish and tired of nights out that don’t end until the sun comes up? Seen a few tango shows, maybe even a couple of plays and looking to be entertained in a slightly different manner? Simply curious about what the hell it is porteños find funny? If your answer to these questions is a resounding yes, an evening with the guys (and girl) of Señales de Humor might be just what you’re looking for.

Señales de Humor is a group of four Argentine comedians, from diverse artistic backgrounds including radio, theatre and television. Anyone familiar with traditional stand up comedy will recognise the format; with one comedian acting as MC for the night, and one guest comedian, each gives a fast-paced monologue directly to the crowd, with no pretensions of the “fourth wall” present in traditional theatre. The audience are there to be interacted with, to share in the jokes and on occasion become the subject of the jokes. The concept is relatively new in Argentina; there are no household names of comedy along the lines of Richard Pryor, Bill Hicks and Chris Rock, and the genre is still very much in its infancy.

The show takes place in Terraza Teatro, a small performance venue/bar in the Paseo Plaza entertainment complex. This allows for an intimate atmosphere between performer and audience, with those at the front sitting right at the comedians feet. For me this is the ideal set up for a stand up comedy set- having experienced comedy events at larger clubs and arenas, these without fail lack the atmosphere of a small club no matter how talented the performer. The group has built up a strong word of mouth following around Buenos Aires as a result of continuous, bi weekly performances over the past months, and this dedication has paid off; there is barely a free seat.

The comedy itself is fast-paced and fluid, with no let up in the flow of jokes; as one performer is leaving the stage the MC takes over, keeping the audience laughing with his own material. There is certainly a higher energy and more of a commitment to spectacle than found at US or British comedy events. Each comedian takes to the stage to a background of blaring music, and throws themselves into a manic dance corresponding to the music’s genre. Some of the performances we were treated to included an enthusiastic air guitar solo to a rock, some reggaeton grinding and an impromptu salsa duet between the solo female performer and the MC.

Photo courtesy of Señales de Humor

Such enthusiasm and performance values were certainly entertaining, and helped put the audience in a relaxed, enjoyed frame of mind. The comedy itself was also very enjoyable; every performer clearly had excellent comedic timing, the material was presented well and throughout every attempt was made to keep the pace up, maintaining the audience’s attention. Of particular note was German Ven’s self-deprecating routine about his baldness, detailing the difficulties and confusions such a conditions provokes- such as regularly being confused with Austin Powers character Mini-Me- with good humour and energy.

In general however what detracted from the performance slightly was the material. The group itself cite people such as Chris Rock and Bill Hicks as comedic influences. There was little evidence of this as the performance unfolded. People like Rock and Hicks, and most of the premier comedians of the English-speaking world excel by tackling the controversial polemic issues of the day, such as race, drugs, crime and politics. The material may often be polarising, borderline offensive but it provokes a reaction, and this is the first objective of any performer.

In comparison the subjects covered by Señales de Humor were rather tame and dated, neither attempting nor managing to break new ground. Many familiar bases were covered: problems with lateness and waking up in the morning, differences between men and women, dealing with Argentine chamuyos (cheesy pick up lines) and problems in the bedroom. This by no means detracts from enjoyment of the evening; but it does mean if you are looking for edgy, controversial comedy you may need to look elsewhere.

Overall the energy, enthusiasm and spectacle of the Señales de Humor team make their show a great way to spend a night. The Spanish is fast-paced and colloquial, but those with a decent base in the language and who have accustomed themselves to the porteño accent will not have too much trouble following events. It is important however to restate that those looking for something new and groundbreaking in the genre of stand up comedy will go home disappointed; the material ensures that the show always veers towards light entertainment over hard hitting social commentary in it’s pursuit of laughs.

Señales de Humor is performed weekly at Terraza Teatro in the Paseo LA Plaza entertainment complex, Corrientes 1660. At the time of writing schedules were due to change slightly, please check the listings at www.senalesdehumor.com.ar (In Spanish) for further updates. The group also offer classes in stand up comedy; again check the website for further details.

Photos by Thomas Locke Hobbs

The position of sexuality in the Argentine society seems controversial. On the one hand, the country has got the highest rate of Catholics of the whole continent, conservative values are still upheld and religious practices form a part of daily life. On the other hand, porteños are known for their openness towards the subject of telos, the pay-by-the-hour sex hotels, which mark the inner city of the continent’s gay capital and have an ever-growing clientele.

Sexuality has also become a subject in the art scene and features more and more. Some such artists who made eroticism publicly available together founded Club 69 11 years ago, which now takes place each Thursday at Niceto Club. The weekly happening is mainly focused on sexual stage performances, mixed with electronic music and breakdance. The lascivious shows have given the event a steady position in the cities nightlife and made it a point of reference for sexual diversity.

With rotating themes, the structure of the shows is following a fix schedule. Main act of the night is the so-called Compañía Inestable, the clubs disguised artists, performing their high-energy programme and allowing the crowd a voyeristic view on stage while partying in the club. In addition, there are the resident B-Boys who do their show for half an hour and there are the several DJs, putting on melodious techno-sounds.

Club 69 always hosts a wide variety of visitors and whereas underground events like this once mostly attracted scene-involved people, today there are also a lot of ex-pats on Thursdays at Niceto. This is mainly because the show has caused a sensation during its decade in existence, a sensation that both nightlife and travel guides took notice of.

But back at the beginning on 8th October 1998 it was anything but than startling. That night, a couple of friends, connected through their professions in the creative sector, met up in a little venue in the centre and organised an erotic storytelling for a little audience. Enjoying the new way of acting, the artists arranged the Noche Guaranga, a burlesque performance at Café Concert next to the obelisk. Soon, this venue couldn’t handle the rising popularity and Club 69 moved to Niceto Club in 2000, adding electronic music to the main concept and making a party out of the shows.

Proud of what they had created, two of the four founders are still present at the weekly event. Pedro Segni is one of them. As artistic director and a passionate DJ, he sees the activities at the happening from a hedonistic point of view that is orientated on fun and spontaneity.

“What we are is more a movement of professional artists than a business,” says Segni, who is visibly good-humoured while surrounded by his androgynous dancers.

Photo by Thomas Locke Hobbs

Among the drama-queens is Robertino Grosso, who actually stopped working for the show after nine years of night-club activity and just came back for a couple of performances with his old friends. His homemade, tight and sparkling costume is mainly characterised through the focus on his equipment and this is also what he plays with during the stage-time.

Even though he gives everything to seem as voluptuous as possible, his impulse to go to Club 69 is another. “I do that because of the positive energy. I want to be active and in action and it’s just pure power when I go out on the stage. Even though I actually stopped working in nightlife, I still love to perform with these guys.”

After sharing a stage with the Chemical Brothers, advert appearances for Nike, Fiat and Nokia and recently shows in Brazil, the crew is now back at Niceto Club. If you come there on a Thursday night, you shouldn’t be out for a cheesy stage presentation but rather for a jaunty way of partying because the focus of the event is more a diversive way of having fun and being its own parody than gazing at the scene.

So why complain about an obviously visible lack of coordination or redundancy on stage? It’s not about presenting what you rehearsed, it’s about letting your thoughts go and enjoying a different way of clubbing.

Club 69 takes place each Thursday at Niceto Club, Niceto Vega 5510. If you enlist your name on www.club69.com.ar, the entrance is free til 1am. Afterwards it’s $25 for men and $20 for women. The official 11th birthday party is 8th October and some specialities will wait there for you.

Photo courtesy of Ministerio de Cultura del Gobierno de Buenos Aires

Large green snakes slithering across the stage, singing, dancing pink flowers and the remnants of a broken plane in the center of it all. Not the usual scene you would expect from a visit to the planetarium. Don’t worry however, there are plenty of star-gazing moments for all those astronomy aficionados at El Principito, the latest show at the Galileo Galilei Planetarium.

El Principito is a theatrical show of Antoine de Saint Exupery’s widely known tale of the same name, The Little Prince. If you have never read this story in your French class, it involves a little prince and his interstellar travels but starts out with a man crash landing in a desert. The star gazing parts come in as the prince, here a grown man acting in a wig of yellow feathers, recounts his visits to six different planets to the man in the desert.

This is the first live version ever to be performed inside a planetarium. When first hearing this combination, I never expected to see a woman in a costume with three flower heads talking simultaneously. Or an incredibly rotund fox, complete with pants and suspenders, which it seemed to go against the whole notion of the untamed fox (an important element of the tale). Yet I did, and I enjoyed it. The show is an eclectic mix of live actors, some in character costumes like you would see at an amusement park, and occasional projections of de Saint Exupery’s original drawings floating on the ceiling above.

Photo courtesy of Ministerio de Cultura del Gobierno de Buenos Aires

Since the tale is told in Spanish, the show is probably most suitable for those who are familiar with the story. Although if you have not read it, you will get the general idea thanks to this interactive and imaginative form of storytelling. At about one and a half hours, the show runs at a good pace and keeps both children and adults entertained for the 10 pesos that it costs.

The whole experience left me feeling like I did my own traveling through the universe, all the while my head strained to look up every time something was projected above. Perhaps this was because most of the audience consisted of children under five so that the seats were more suitable for them to gaze up at the prince flying planet to planet.

The Little Prince is known as a fairytale for adults- as a reminder of the innocence lost to grown-ups. If you don’t mind the occasional shouting from energetic children, this show will definitely make you reclaim your lost youth if only for that brief period.

General entry is $10. Show runs until 30th November every Saturday and Sunday at 4:30pm. At Galileo Galilei Planetario at: Av. Figueroa Alcorta and  Sarmiento. For information about other planetarium events check out: http://www.planetario.gov.ar/   or call 4771-9393.