BY PRECIOUS CHIDA
TOP stand-up comedian Carl Joshua Ncube says there is more to Zimbabwe than President Emmerson Mnangagwa and MDC leader Nelson Chamisa who tend to dominate news headlines about the country.
The jester who has since branded himself as a professional speaker told NewsDay Life & Style on Friday, ahead of a trip to Mexico next month, that it was important for the world to understand the country from a Zimbabwean perspective.
Ncube, who will feature at the International Festival of the Bright Minds in Pueblo, said it was important for locals to tell their own story and his presentation — dubbed Tell Your Own Story or Someone Else Will — will allow people to understand that there were more interesting things beyond Mnangagwa and Chamisa.
The comedian said the festival was an opportunity to tell a different story about Zimbabwe, which has become known for power struggles.“It’s important for people to not only understand facts, but they must also be given context. Zimbabwe is not MDC or Zanu PF, neither is it Mnangagwa or Chamisa. There are so many other interesting facts about it so I want to tell the world about my beautiful country,” he said.
Running under the theme This is Epic, the fiesta invites “bright minds” from around the globe to share ideas and discuss topical issues.Ncube, who has featured at Technology, Entertainment and Design Conferences — now popularly known as TED Talks — said he felt honoured to be recognised as a speaker at such a big festival.
“When I did my second TED talk this year at TED Summit in Edinburgh, the organisers of this conference saw me and immediately made the enquiry to bring me to Mexico,” he said.
“It’s really amazing. I am so happy that my career as an international speaker is getting this kind of recognition. I am a person full of ideas and excited to share this with the world.”
Ncube said although he had been branded “crazy comedian” back home, he was happy that his ideas were appreciated so much outside Zimbabwe.Organisers of the Pueblo festival have said the festival will fuse comedy, film and debates on different topics that are affecting the international society.
“Attendees are going to watch the award-winning short-film Skin, feel the hours in space, question the validity of abortion, discover the ingenuity in children. We want you to join us and recover your ability to be amazed, to continue smiling with comedy brought all the way from Africa, and above all, to discover new definitions of what it means to be epic,” they said.
Ncube broke into the Zimbabwean comedy scene with his debut one-man show Carl Joshua Ncube’s Big Announcement, setting himself up to become the country’s finest jester. He broke onto the international scene following his move to South Africa.
