In October 2025, the UBC Cantonese Language Program proudly welcomed two internationally acclaimed bilingual stand-up comedians Vivek Mahbubani and Joanna Sio to Vancouver for the UBC Cantonese Comedy Festival, marking a joyful highlight of the program’s 10th anniversary celebrations.
This series of events not only brought laughter to Vancouver’s Cantonese-speaking community, but also showcased the creativity, versatility, and global reach of Cantonese humour.
The Cantonese Comedy Festival comprised three events held on October 16-18, 2025.
The festival kicked off on October 16, with an interactive workshop titled Meet the Comedians: The Skills Behind the Laughs, co-organized by UBC Language Sciences and held at Dodson Room, Irving King Barber Learning Centre.
Comedy enthusiasts and aspiring comedians from the UBC community joined Joanna Sio and Vivek Mahbubani in an engaging discussion about the art and craft of comedy, exploring how timing, linguistic nuances, and cultural context shape laughter. The audience was also guided to do hands-on practice on drawing associations between seemingly unrelated events with a creative mind.
Joanna Sio (left) and Vivek Mahbubani (right) gave the audience a behind-the-scenes look at how great jokes are written.
The second event was the Vivek Mahbubani Cantonese Stand-up Comedy Show, held on October 17 at the Frederic Wood Theatre. The show was also held as a fundraiser, with proceeds after production costs supporting the Cantonese Language Program and Hong Kong House, a community organization that promotes Hong Kong culture in Vancouver.
Due to popular demand, two shows were presented that evening at 6:00pm and 8:00pm. Joanna opened the show with a lively set that warmed up the audience for an evening of laughter. The performance that followed showcased Vivek’s signature humour and sharp observations about identity and everyday absurdities as a person of Indian descent in Hong Kong—from navigating fame to reacting to misfortune with positivity.
The Frederic Wood Theatre buzzed with laughter and energy as audiences packed the house.
The festival concluded on October 18 with Laughter on Pender: Comedy Afternoon with Vivek Mahbubani & Joanna Sio, held at the Chinatown Storytelling Centre. The afternoon featured two back-to-back sessions that explored how humour transforms across languages and cultures.
In the Cantonese session, Joanna Sio warmed up the stage before Vivek Mahbubani headlined with a full Cantonese set. The English session followed, with Vivek opening before Joanna delivered her witty reflections on life as an Asian woman living in the Czech Republic and her experiences as a mother and wife.
The performances concluded with a reflective Q&A session on Asian Canadian identity and how shifting between languages can shape self-expression and personality.
Vivek Mahbubani and Joanna Sio’s comedy highlighted the deep connection between language, sense of belonging, and world view.
The success of the UBC Cantonese Comedy Festival was made possible through the support of UBC Asian Canadian Research and Engagement and UBC Pop Culture Cluster. We extend heartfelt thanks to our event co-organizers, namely UBC Language Sciences and the Chinatown Storytelling Centre. Special appreciation goes to the lecturers and volunteers whose dedication made this festival a reality.
Vivek Mahbubani (sixth from right), Joanna Sio (fourth from right), and the UBC organizing team pictured after the successful Cantonese Comedy Festival.
