An Te Chu is a comedian whose style is a charming mix of wholesome and nerdy humour, captivating audiences with his thoughtful and playful approach to comedy. In this interview, he shares his influences, favourite performances, and pre-show rituals, offering a glimpse into his comedic world and the passion that drives the craft of comedy.
How would you describe your comedy style?
My comedy style has been described as “wholesome and a little nerdy” which is honestly pretty spot on.
Who are some of your influences?
I look up to Sean Devlin. He’s got a very slow, calm, measured style and his stories are absurdist perfection.
Who was your favourite comedian growing up?
They say never meet your heroes but I’ve met both my childhood comedy heroes, Brent Butt and Gabriel Iglesias and they were both super nice!
Who is your favourite comedian now?
Sheng Wang is the name that jumps out to me. If you can be slow, dry and surreal, I’m yours.
What is your pre-show ritual?
I brush my teeth. It’s a little funny knowing that sometimes when I get up on stage, there’s one or two people in the audience who will be like wait, that’s the weirdo I saw in the bathroom earlier!
What is your favourite place you have performed? Why?
My favourite place, like many other Vancouver comics, is the old Little Mountain Gallery. My first Jokes Please set there was a big moment for me.
What is your favourite bit you have written and why were you proud of it?
I love the “play” theory of comedy – the idea that each audience member and I are engaged in play and are willing to step outside of reality, trust each other, and be vulnerable with each other. I have a joke on Serbian nationalism where I get an audience member to lead everyone in Yugoslavia! chant before I step back and let what they’re doing slowly sink in. From the outside, I’m inciting hate speech and should be arrested but in that fictional world we stepped into, we’re instead laughing at our foolishness. They walked into a trap but the trap didn’t hurt because we were playing make-believe.
What is your favourite medium for listening or finding new comics/comedians?
I rarely watch comedy online so I mainly find comedians by going to shows! When I see show lineups that have a name or two I don’t recognize, I make an effort to go and check them out. The best part about doing standup comedy is being able to watch standup comedy all the time.
Tell us a joke about your city.
I love Burnaby and will only share fun facts about it such as 25% of the city is parkland!
Do you have anything to promote right now?
I’m on an improv team called Runaway Improv and we have regular shows at Little Mountain Gallery.
You can also check out my YVR Funny stand-up set on Youtube: Season 1 Episode 3!
Where can we follow you?
Instagram is where I post everything about my life. Or we can be New York Times Mini leaderboard buds!
PAY IT FORWARD: Who is another local comic/comedian we should know about?
I really think Sarah Masri is crazy funny as an improviser. You never know where she’s going to go and it’s awesome.
