The brotherhood of art
Yesterday was a new first for me. I went to see a stand-up show with the great Bun Hay Mean for the first time. I watched my partner in crime, the great Jordane Saget, perform on a theater stage for the first time. But the more unique aspect of the day was — those two things happened simultaneously, and for a great cause too…
Let me give just a bit more context: for a couple of years now, I have been working with artist and street artist Jordane Saget, as some of you may know (if you ever saw any of my social profiles, and chances are you did if you’re reading this, then you’re probably among the “some of you”). More recently, our collaboration grew more extensive, as we started a company together. And, ever since then, I have been going from one discovery to the next as to the breadth of projects and ideas Jordane has. It’s exhausting just to witness such creativity…
A few weeks ago, as we were discussing upcoming ventures, he told me out of nowhere that he was in talks to go on stage to perform at a stand-up gig. I truly admire the man and his talents, but comedy was not necessarily the thing I would have most associated him with, which is fine: his idea was not to do bits but collaborate with an actual stand-up comic, the extremely talented Bun Hay Mean, and focus on what he does best — create an unforgettable visual experience. The exact concept gradually developed between them — I had very little to do with it, except say “great idea” once in a while — until D-Day happened. That was yesterday, as you might have guessed by now.
Effectively, what took place was a giant, 90-minute long rather meta experience, during which Bun Hay Mean performed a remarkable stand-up set, being both singularly deep and incredibly interactive with the audience, while Jordane drew with chalk on huge boards behind him. Finishing right on time for the closer, a story involving a Bangkok ladyboy, political refugees, personal trauma and the difficulty for a comedian to find new and interesting material. Although that very story was proof enough that he did.
The kicker of the story is that the entire endeavour was setup to promote one of France’s most noted charities, Fondation Abbé Pierre, which has been fighting homelessness for decades. Turns out that, for a while, Bun Hay Mean had been homeless as a young comedian. So he wanted to advance the cause, because he now could. And Jordane gladly gave a hand.
Again, a rather unique day…