Get to know the Saudi king of comedy Bader Saleh

Have you heard the one about the vibrant Saudi Arabian comedy scene?

Bader Saleh is well aware that some people find the notion that the conservative kingdom does, in fact, have one is, well ... laughable.

“People sometimes are shocked when they find out that there is a lot of comedy in the main cities in Saudi Arabia,” he says. “You can find a lot of shows there and more people are getting into it now. I think that’s a very good thing.”

Saleh, who will perform in Arabic at du Forum on Friday as part of Abu Dhabi Summer Season, can take part of the credit for helping establish the modern Saudi stand-up comedy scene — he was one of the first to regularly perform, back in its early days in 2009.

He recalls those shows as somewhat challenging affairs, both for himself and the audience.

“This was especially the case when you are not playing in the main cities such as Jeddah, Riyadh or Damam. The crowds just didn’t know what to expect in a stand-up show,” he says.

“People were used to stage plays and they think you will do some [Egyptian actor] Adel Imam thing. Then the show starts and they see me alone on the stage talking about myself and it was a bit of shock for them. They were thinking: ‘Why are you not acting?’ Or even worse: ‘Why are you looking at me?’”.

The 31-year-old found greater success when he showcased his comic talents online.

Since launching his YouTube programme, Eysh Elly, in Arabic in 2011, he has regularly had more than a million views for each fortnightly episode.

Hosted by Saleh, the professionally produced 10-minute show is a mixture of skits and segments poking fun at other YouTube clips. Saleh puts the show’s success down to it being good, clean fun.

“There is also a hidden message in every joke that we do, like ‘don’t be stupid’,” he says.

“We also want everyone to enjoy it so we don’t do jokes that are racist or sexist or have any sexual references. We found that we can do this and the show is still good — we can still be funny without relying on these.”

The show’s success has naturally raised the question of whether Saleh would consider a more lucrative move into television.

“The more I think about this, the more I ask myself if I am actually ready to be on television,” he says.

“On YouTube, it is much easier and I am very good at it. When moving to television, the expectations would be very high. To be honest with you, I like being great at something rather than just being OK. But I do think I am getting more ready for television with each day.”

That move would never come at the expense of giving up his stand-up career, however. Saleh says it will always play a major part in his career, as it allows him the freedom to be at his most personal.

“On YouTube, I found the more I talk about myself the more people get bored,” he says. “But on stage, I find the audience feels that as long as your life is interesting, they want to hear from you. “I do talk about other people as well, but I mostly make jokes about myself. I find that if you take the first bullet, people will be more open to you talking about other people.”

Saleh will be joined by his all-Saudi Eysh Elly supporting cast at the du Forum show, which he says will be full of fun.

“It is always amazing to work and travel with your friends,” he says.

“Some of them are great writers who are now beginning their stand-up comedy careers. I am very happy about this — as long as they are not funnier than me, of course,” he adds with a smile.

• Comedy Night featuring Bader Saleh is on Friday at du Forum, Yas Island, at 8pm. Tickets start from Dh75 at www.ticketmaster.ae. For more on Eysh Elly, visit www.youtube.com/EyshElly

sasaeed@thenational.ae