Publications
Partners
STREAMING REVIEW
Roast of AKA
Available on Showmax
..---
So, I watched this live and then again on Showmax. And that doesn’t mean I enjoyed it. In fact, half way through watching the Roast of AKA on Showmax, I was contemplating doing something violent to my screen.
AKA was busy with this roast and his AKA Orchestra On The Square gig last week. It’s good to see how active he is, but I’m not impressed with his output.
What I can tell you is the edit was smart. The producers must’ve realised how goofy the entire thing was and so they bolstered the sound of the laughter that you hear in between some of these tired jokes. But I swear the crowd wasn’t laughing that much.
It starts off with Jason Goliath’s stand up and stand out preroast special. He warmed the crowd up like the professional he is. They should just give this guy a full-blown special – it would be far more worthwhile. His crowd work targeting Kwesta, DJ Tira and Riky Rick was perfect. Almost too perfect for someone doing crowd work, which is usually improv.
The show runs for almost two hours, but it felt so much longer live. They attached a glossy intro bumper, perhaps to elevate the delivery of this production. It doesn’t. They also include a video montage of AKA on stage and a few moments where he lets his mouth run off.
The sad thing is that the roastmaster, Pearl Thusi, delivers the best performance I have seen from her. Her portrayal of a funny host was well worked. They did include Papa Penny’s agonising comedic death. Why did they not just let him do his thing in his own language? Nina Hastie fades everyone so I’d suggest hanging in there, at least until her turn to the podium. – Phumlani S Langa
