Here Are the Ukrainian Stand-Up Comedians Coping With the War Through Dark Humor
There’s nothing funny about Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, but that doesn’t mean Ukrainian comics caught in the war zone are bombing.
Shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin began his war of expansion into Ukrainian soil in February 2022, the Russian entertainment industry suffered a crisis of comedy as their top comedians kept trying to flee the country and escape possible conscription into the conquest, thus shutting down multiple hit sitcoms in the process. And while the Russian people have never been famous for their sense of humor, they’re losing the laugh war by a wide margin to their Ukrainian adversaries, which is exactly what they should have expected when they invaded a country that literally made their favorite comedian president.
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The Ukrainian people have suffered a grueling three years thanks to the Russian aggression, but they haven’t lost their sense of humor — it’s just grown several shades darker, much like the sky above an Engels munitions factory after an airstrike. The BBC recently spoke to stand-up comedians in Ukraine who use their humor to help their people cope with the dark realities of war and to raise money for the military, and these comics certainly aren’t short on ammunition.
Anton Tymoshenko, whose highlights from his American fundraising tour is linked above, became the first solo comedy act to perform in the Palace Ukraine in Kyiv in 2023, and he told the BBC, “I grew up in a village with fewer people than Palace Ukraine can hold. So many people had told me: It’s not going to happen. ... Stand-up comedy has not reached that level.” However, as Tymoshenko notes, the Ukrainian stand-up scene saw a massive uptick in interest following the beginning of the Russian invasion, and comedy is thriving during the country’s darkest hours.
“Stand-up comedy is a budget version of psychotherapy,” Tymoshenko pointed out, adding, “I like to relieve social tension with my jokes. When that happens, that’s the best thing.”
And, when tension is the norm, Tymoshenko’s comedy hits even harder. “The demand for comedy looks totally natural to me now because comedy supports and unites,” explained fellow stand-up Nastya Zukhvala of the current boom in the Ukrainian comedy industry. “It can also make reality look less catastrophic. It is a tool which can help us process this stream of depressing information. To stay optimistic or even sane, we've got no other choice.”
Naturally, with the artists and audiences both enduring so much danger and destruction, the kind of comedy that’s popular in Ukrainian clubs right now is pretty dark. “It looks even darker from abroad, and it’s clear why,” said Hanna Kochehura. “Anyone who’s in Ukraine knows that there are no safe places here. You never know if this air raid is going to be your last. You don’t know if a Shahed drone is going to target your house or your family’s house. Naturally, all our themes are related to the war. Because it’s our life now. Stand-up comedy is a frank genre where comedians speak about their own experiences or thoughts.”
For example, here’s a transcript from one of Tymoshenko’s favorite war-related routines that he performed at the Palace Ukraine:
“I never worried about a nuclear attack because I know it would mean death for rich residents of Kyiv. I live on the outskirts, but the nukes will hit central parts. Before fallout reaches me, it will have to make two changes on the metro.
“More realistically, I’ll get killed by Iranian Shahed drones. The sad thing is, did you hear the noise they make? They sound very demotivating, like the cheapest kind of death.”
And, to be clear, these comedians are Ukrainians first, and their humor serves a patriotic purpose as they perform for their armed forces and set up fundraisers for the front lines. “Culture, humor or psychology — that’s all fine and well, but everything must be of practical use to the military. When so many missiles are on the way to hit you, you’re not as interested in talking about art alone. My main task is holding concerts so I can raise funds for them,” Tymoshenko explained.
To that end, the comedian has already raised or donated more than $710,000 for the military effort.
