They had their breakthrough through visual comical skits on Youtube. The Swengere comedians are based in Jinja and they act skits in Lusoga. However, while their skits have spread like a wild fire, the outfit has not performed at any of the renowned comedy nights in Kampala; not even in their home area in Jinja or Busoga at large.
And we probably know why; one has to part with a whopping Shs5m to be able to enjoy a live performance by the Swengere comedians! Yet at the same price, one could easily get the services of about three established comedians.
But after a mini survey we carried out amongst top comedy promoters, we were hesitant to solely attribute Swengere’s scarcity to their almost exorbitant performance fees. Many promoters who have contacted the outfit for shows in Kampala and other areas, be it for private functions, told us that the group’s manager always comes up with reasons that make it impossible to get their services; “I have contacted their manager over five times, but every time we agree on a certain price, they call back asking for more, and in millions of shillings,” the promoter told us.
Another promoter concluded that the outfit probably can’t pull off a stage performance; “at one time they asked me to pay them, but they gave me a condition to have an LED screen where they would screen their skits!”
Well, we made a mock call to the outfit’s manager, and he asked for Shs5m, but when we agreed, he called back and told us that the date was already booked. Efforts to ask for another date proved futile as he insisted the other four subsequent dates were also booked.
