“I owe more to TikTok and Instagram than to my mother.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Galder Varas, a Spanish comedian famous on social media, has fulfilled his followers’ wishes by organizing a tour through Latin America and the United States. Thanks to Nitantarde Productions, he will present ‘Esto no es un show’<\/em> starting on September 21st in 13 cities, a journey no Spanish comedian has ever undertaken before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf it weren\u2019t for social media, I wouldn\u2019t be doing this tour through Latin America. I\u2019d be doing a more traditional circuit through Spain. I get emotional about social media; for me, it\u2019s been everything. I owe more to TikTok and Instagram than to my mother. I tell her that she didn\u2019t believe in me, but Instagram did. We\u2019re working on that in therapy,\u201d says Galder Varas, a Spanish comedian born in Bilbao (1987), who has crossed the borders of local laughter to tour with ‘Esto no es un show’<\/em> in 13 cities across Latin America and the United States between September 21 and November 2, under Nitantarde Productions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The opportunity to tour for the first time in Latin America and the United States, with his routines full of high doses of audience interaction, started to take shape thanks to comments from followers that Galder received through his social media. \u201cWe got many messages asking us to visit countries like Chile, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, almost all the ones on the tour. I was a bit sad not to include Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The comedy scene is being reshaped by technology. One day, on a friend\u2019s recommendation, Galder uploaded a video of one of his routines to TikTok and went to take a shower. When he came out, the post had 100,000 views. \u201cIt was so fast. TikTok\u2019s algorithm, for a moment, made life for many comedians. Then came Instagram with the reels. I didn\u2019t have exposure on national TV programs, which is usually the classic way to build a career, and social media became everything for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Preparing for ‘Esto no es un show,’<\/em> Galder is curious about the humor codes he\u2019ll encounter in each country, though he trusts in the universality of laughter. \u201cI\u2019m scared of not being able to adapt to what they find funny. In a few days, I\u2019ll present what I\u2019ve been preparing to a small group, and then in each country, I\u2019ll build the first few minutes of the show based on what I read, hear, and perceive from being in the place,\u201d he reveals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Galder boards the plane without too many expectations of what he will find. \u201cThat way, I get more surprised.\u201d Regarding Mexican comedians and humor, he says, \u201cThey\u2019re great at making memes, they nail stand-up, and have a very universal sense of humor.\u201d Of the Argentinians, he says they have a humor very similar to the Spanish, and \u201cthey love telling anecdotes.\u201d From Peru, he knows the improvisation videocast Hablando Huevadas,<\/em> and about Venezuelans\u2014immigrants he may encounter in the audience during the tour\u2014he says, \u201cI find their way of speaking funny; I think they\u2019re potentially funnier because of how they talk and tell stories.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n What kind of humor does Galder Varas do?<\/p>\n\n\n\n A query to ChatGPT\u2019s AI says, \u201cGalder Varas is a Spanish comedian known for his humor style, which mixes observation, surrealism, and touches of absurdity, all wrapped in an apparently carefree but very calculated delivery. Key points of his style: Everyday observation taken to the extreme\u2014Galder is a master at identifying small details of daily life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Galder responds to the AI: \u201cI don\u2019t think I do very surreal comedy from my own initiative. Maybe I have some interactions with the audience that are a bit absurd or break from reality and turn into fantasy. These are the kind of situations that happen live, during the show, like when a 60-year-old lady and I play out a seduction scene on stage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Half of the show is written by Galder, and the other half develops through interaction with an audience that\u2014for the most part\u2014understands they\u2019ve paid for a ticket that involves a pact of fiction: \u201cIn any kind of art, what the audience enjoys is different for everyone. If you don\u2019t have a good time, this show isn\u2019t for you; if you don\u2019t understand it\u2019s fiction and that what\u2019s happening there is to have a good time, this show isn\u2019t for you. Most people get it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n With ‘Esto no es un show,’<\/em> Galder Varas joins the roster of comedians at Nitantarde Productions, a company that produces around 300 shows a year in the United States, Latin America, and Europe. Leading Nitantarde is its founder, Ximena Otero, with over 15 years of experience in the entertainment business, who directly manages talents by providing her expertise in hiring and sales, logistics and ticketing, communication, marketing, and sponsorships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three random facts about Galder Varas that no one cares about:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n How did he become a comedian? \u201cI used to coordinate language teachers at a consultancy that went bankrupt, and I found myself thrown into comedy. I was laid off; I wasn\u2019t young, but I was reckless, had savings, tried doing comedy for a year, took a comedy course to lose stage fright, among other lessons, and I did well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Comedy he grew up with: \u201cAs a kid, Disney\u2019s Aladdin<\/em> and The Lion King,<\/em> with a preference for Aladdin.<\/em> When I got older, Home Alone<\/em> with Macaulay Culkin, the comedy duo Cruz y Raya,<\/em> Muchachada Nui,<\/em> The Simpsons,<\/em> and Futurama.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Does he enjoy the humor of other comedians? \u201cSometimes it\u2019s hard for me to disconnect from the comedian role. When someone does it really well, you know how to appreciate it because you know how hard it is to make a joke, how much effort it takes to find an idea that\u2019s not overdone, make a twist, and achieve a fresh perspective. Some comedians are more appreciated by fellow comedians because they know how much work it takes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n