In the 29 months since Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7, 2023, and a tour in the IDF as a reservist, comedian Yohay Sponder has no problem finding funny things for his act.
“My approach is that I think it’s always been…when you’re saying ‘it’s a tough time for Jews;’ so yeah, when, wasn’t it?” said Sponder. “I think our humor is so good and so evolved compared to other ethnicities because of that, that we’ve been through every atrocity imaginable and that makes you have the most sharp, sarcastic, dark humor that does not shy out from any situation and topic. Jews are experts of death jokes and diseases like talking about food and we’re obsessed with…If you’re talking about funeral, so what food [is there].
“What people brought and how fresh the pastries are at the shiva. People don’t know that about us, but no matter where you’re from, the cholent will taste the same.”
Sponder is bringing one of the last shows of his current “Self-Loving Jew” tour to Funny Bone Comedy Club in Liberty Township on Wednesday, March 4. Tickets are available online.
“Self-Loving Jew is about loving yourself. If you’re Jewish, you have to,” he said. “The show is about my Jewish story and how I beat the hate.”
Throughout Sponder’s comedy career – even in Israel – he’s been primarily performing in English. After Oct. 7, he started doing some shows in Hebrew – to mixed results.
“Since that chapter started, that horrible October, I started to do stand-up in both languages,” he said. “But a lot of people who don’t speak Hebrew came to my show and complained. Most of the Israelis understand English. Most of the non-Israelis don’t understand Hebrew.
“I feel really blessed that I made that with this English. That’s the definition of success, right? It’s beyond imaginable to be where I am with the level of my language. It’s very Israeli.
Since Oct. 7, Sponder has faced his share of backlash in European venues, but tries to go on unscathed.
“We got cancellations in like three places, and they don’t know each other, so it’s only antisemitism,” he said. “In Amsterdam, they canceled a week before sold-out, back-to-back shows. They told us, ‘Why don’t we help you to find a Jewish venue?’ So like, what do you mean Jewish venue? Like the Anne Frank Museum? Can you define a Jewish venue? Then I told him, ‘Why don’t I help you find a Jewish lawyer?’”
Sponder also faced demonstrations outside of shows in Brussels and Paris. The latter involved a curious visit from the police.
“I’m going over the lineup of the set in Paris in the green room and a … few police officers and dogs [come in] to sniff around,” Sponder said. “They came to make sure that no one put bombs in [the green room]. ‘You’re targeted, so we want to make sure.’ Isn’t it a little bit too late? I mean, I’m here for 20 minutes.”
Sponder doesn’t face a lot of hecklers; he said after a New York show, people came up to him and said they planned to, but didn’t find the right moment in the. Also, he said, they loved the show.
Sponder said he has always wanted to be a comedian.
“I grew up in a very funny environment, and I always felt the comedic approach that I have, that I had tools as a kid to improve the environment in every room I would enter,” he said. “I would love to improve the environment. I love that vibe that I can make you smile.”
Sponder is wrapping up a tour he’s had on the road for a while. How long he tours a particular show depends, in part, on the size of venues.
“You travel with the show, you shape it, you carve it, and you get to the point that it’s good,” he said. “It also depends on how many tickets you sold and how many people saw the show. Because if I went to New York and I only did 200-person theaters, I can run with it for years. But if you do thousands of people [in a venue], they want to see something new.”