Takao Comedy Bay-Comedy Club in Kaohsiung!

　The Kaohsiung-based comedy club Takao Comedy Bay always brings nights of joy and laughter. They perform at BAR SSN-117, which is a renovated old house that has been transformed into an eloquent bistro. Their hilarious monologues and improvisational sketches bring comic relief to those who can use a brief escape from their busy careers.

　Although not formally trained as a comedian, founder A Hai is an enthusiastic and extremely funny performer. He feels comedy can be a way to forget your problems and find a balanced life. “People who just need a little uplifting should come and see our show!”he says.

　A Hai explains that his experience at open mic nights (where performers come to try out new material) inspired him to establish Takao Comedy Bay. He felt that Kaohsiung's relaxed and open culture would embrace his comedy club concepts and decided to launch a brand that would be unique to Kaohsiung.

　However, trying to be intentionally funny is not an easy task. Audiences set high standards for performance quality, especially when they are required to purchase tickets. However, after more than two years of arduous work and great word-of-mouth, Takao Comedy Bay has finally become known and well-established. He doesn't claim to be the only or the first comedy club in Kaohsiung but feels they have an original and novel concept. “We hope that when people think of comedy, they think of Takao Comedy Bay," says A Hai.

　In addition to inviting well-known actors to perform, they have an Open Mic on Friday nights, which provides amateurs with the opportunity to come on stage to practice. It gives them the chance to understand the audiences better and to scout local comedic talent. They also provide training and stand-up comedy competitions, which also help cultivate outstanding performers. 

　A Hai feels that perhaps comedy could not directly change people's lives, but it can give them different and lighter perspectives. Therefore, A Hai feels improvisation brings positive energy to performances. Although they usually start with funny talk shows or monologues, Takao Comedy Bay does not always limit itself to one performance style. Recently, improvised sketches have been added to test the actors' on-the-spot reactions and have become extremely popular.

　A Hai admits a lot of pressure that comes with planning the club's direction and mentoring actors. However, the positive feedback received after the performance motivates him to keep working toward his goals of expanding the club and getting a larger platform. He hopes that in the future, Takao Comedy Bay will become part of Kaohsiung's mainstream art and culture.

「喜劇開港」高雄喜劇品牌

　　出身高雄的喜劇品牌「喜劇開港」在老屋改造的餐酒館「鸚鵡螺精釀生啤酒餐酒館，带給觀眾充滿歡樂笑語的夜晚，以脫口秀、即興劇，為追趕現實、追尋夢想的的生活加點糖。如同創辦人阿海說：「『看笑話』也可以是治癒人生、平衡生活的一種方式」。想轉換心情的觀眾，不妨踏進來吧！

　　「喜劇開港」創辦人阿海非戲劇科班出身，然而表演是熱忱、搞笑是他的專長，談到建立喜劇開港的契機，阿海說，在接觸了Open Mic表演(就是一個讓喜劇演員「試段子」的場合)後，覺得高雄的開放性與海派特質與Open Mic表演的表演不謀而合，他興起建立屬於高雄的喜劇品牌的念頭。

　　然而刻意搞笑並不是一件容易的事，尤其當觀眾買票進場，這時候門檻會提高。歷經兩年多的耕耘，口碑相傳，「喜劇開港」逐漸闖出名號，成為一個「品牌」。阿海說：「我們不敢說自己是高雄唯一或第一，但在沒有參考範本的情況下，我們會努力做到提及高雄喜劇，就會想到『喜劇開港』。」

　　為了培養在地優秀表演者，除了邀請知名演員出演，每週五晚間的Open Mic也會開放讓素人上臺練習、測試「新梗」，了解觀眾笑點，也藉機發掘不少在地喜劇演員。此外，還安排師資舉辦培訓課程，舉辦單口喜劇爭霸賽。

　　阿海說，也許喜劇無法直接改變人生，卻能使人學會用不同角度去看待事情。因此即興、突破與多變對阿海而言，變幻無窮正是產出表演段子最佳的正能量。以脫口秀起家開港喜劇，不侷限表演形式，近期加入即興劇，考驗演員臨場反應是目前喜劇開港的一大賣點。

阿海坦言規劃品牌走向，且又是演員的燈塔，壓力不在話下，但演出後的正向回饋，讓阿海感動不已，驅策自己朝更大的表演場域前進，阿海期許「喜劇開港」能夠成為高雄藝文界的代表名詞。