© Tristero
2025

Please don't laugh

Analyzing humour is like dissecting a frog. No one is interested and the frog dies of it.” (E.B.White)

The world is slowly going down. Yet there was never more stand-up comedy to be seen than today. Why is that? Does humour distract us, or does it keep us on our toes? Why is Trump laughable but never funny? And when a clown really slips up, is it still okay to laugh at it?

Against their better judgment, Brussels’ Tristero takes up the gauntlet – or rather, the microphone. For years, the company has made performances with a comic undertone. Now they ask themselves the question at last: what is humour, actually? Their investigation leads us to both the very first joke in history and the best joke in the world. They share their findings in all seriousness, equipped with little more than an empty stage, a microphone, and a spotlight.