You've got to be joking

If, as the American comedian Milton Berle once said, "Laughter is an instant vacation", then audiences in the Macao Special Administrative Region recently enjoyed a weeklong getaway as the first Macao International Comedy Festival garnered guffaws from March 11 to 18. Diverse comedy films and theater plays from multiple cultures were staged for local audiences at various venues, including the Macau University of Science and Technology, the MGM Theater, the theater of The Parisian Macao, and the Macao Culture Centre.

International theatrical productions, such as the Spanish musical comedy, A Comedy of Operas, and the Norwegian play, A Dance Tribute to the Art of Football, were among the highlights.

Cinematic exhibits included Luxembourg, Luxembourg (2022), Rent Boys (2011), Friend Zone (2019), Back to Love (2022), Mr Donkey (2016) and Men of Deeds (2022).

Additionally, artists took to the streets of Macao for flash mob performances of excerpts from such musicals as Rent and Avenue Q, adding to the immersive experience of the festival.

Co-organized by Chinese comedy production company Mahua FunAge and cultural communication company Beijing Damai, the festival spanned both Macao and Hengqin New Area in Zhuhai, Guangdong province.