What exactly does ''Adult Comedy'' mean?

Just so there’s no misunderstanding, I’d like everybody to come and see me perform stand-up comedy.

Everybody. Including that guy in Hong Kong who keeps spamming me for my bank details.

And, more than that, I’d love everybody to like my show, buy my DVD and put a poster of me up on their wall, garlanded with bougainvillea.

But I know that’s not a realistic, grown-up expectation.

So, when people ask who is most likely to enjoy my gags, I label my shows “adults only”. That’s because I talk about things that concern grownups, but it doesn’t automatically mean, “dirty”.

For example, it’s pointless trying to get laughs from kids by talking about paying your bond in a recession. Having a home loan is and adult topic, but it doesn’t mean it’s X-rated, although interest rates are obscene. On the flip side, kids have their own views of the world that show me up for the old fart I am. That's another reason why I say my show is “adults only”, so that your kids don't waste your money coming to see me and leave disappointed. So when I’m asked whether my gigs are suitable for children, I can’t truthfully answer that because I don’t know your kids, but generally I’m going to recommend that it’s for “adults only” because I couldn’t be funny about The Jonas Brothers if my life depended on it. If, by the time you read this, The Jonas Brothers reference seems hopelessly naff and out of date, it strengthens my point.

Stand-up is an expression of my personal opinion for the purpose of entertainment. Some of it is true, but most is deliberately exaggerated, comically emotive and designed to provide surprises along the way for the purpose of delivering the mild shock to the system that triggers a laugh. Part of the fun of the show is the feeling that some of what is being said is spontaneous and improvised on the spot when the comic and the audience interact. Stand-up is a real live relationship between everybody in the room, making it an exciting, electrifying experience.

In South Africa this form of entertainment was once heavily censored and is still viewed with suspicion by the powerful (of all descriptions) as a subversive medium. No doubt, comedy has the potential to speak truth to power, but I only have simple, obvious truths to tell. And I'm bound by the unbreakable rule that people are only listening as long as I'm funny.

Those who are paranoid forget that the audience is largely in control of the process. To shut a comedian up, they don’t need to call the police or the dominee, they can do something that comes naturally when people are no longer enjoying themselves, simply stop laughing. Silence defeats every comic every time.

So, who’s afraid of “adult” Comedy? In my opinion, only those who want to do your thinking for you, those who claim that they already have all the answers and all you need to do is follow. Those are the people who insult your intelligence, your independence and your morality, not me.

But you may think I’m ducking the issue. Apparently, we all understand what “adult” means. It’s a code word for sex and swearing and sin. It’s the word that tells upstanding citizens where to find the cheap and nasty thrills they lack in their fine, exemplary lives. I don’t accept that. If you want to find out about sex, say the word “sex” like a grown person. I don’t have the energy to decode your obfuscations. The two groups who have most thoroughly missed the point of stand-up comedy are those who stay away when they hear “adult” because they fear it might be late night, etv soft porn… and those who come for the same reason.

(In Part 2: Corporate vs Club comedy, Swearing and some other taboos.)