Stand-up comedy booms in Venezuela, but politics are off stage

 

Samuel Rodriguez's pizzeria in Caracas does not just serve up hot cheesy pies - it also dishes out jokes, offering a stage to young comedians filling the void left by veteran comics who have fled Venezuela's economic crisis.

Rodriguez, 36, performs himself several days a week in what he describes as a kind of catharsis for dealing with day-to-day problems, at the unlikely spot that is one of a growing number of venues in Venezuela's capital attracting stand-up fans.

The public and comedians alike are worn out by issues like constant power or water cuts and growing income inequality, Rodriguez noted.

"The subject of (what's happening in) the country is not touched on in the routines or in the jokes... people are generally tired of it," he said.

The influx of entertainment venues, including cafes, bars, and restaurants, comes after the government relaxed economic regulations three years ago, allowing more transactions in dollars.