{"id":1291,"date":"2026-08-04T13:06:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T13:06:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/08\/04\/exiled-russian-comic-sasha-nezlobin-brings-laugh-therapy-to-edinburgh-fringe\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T13:06:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T13:06:00","slug":"exiled-russian-comic-sasha-nezlobin-brings-laugh-therapy-to-edinburgh-fringe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/08\/04\/exiled-russian-comic-sasha-nezlobin-brings-laugh-therapy-to-edinburgh-fringe\/","title":{"rendered":"Exiled Russian comic Sasha Nezlobin brings laugh therapy to Edinburgh Fringe"},"content":{"rendered":"

I was recently party to the world premiere of Russian stand-up comedian Sasha Nezlobin\u2019s show I\u2019m \u0424ine<\/a> (spelt with a Cyrillic \u201c\u0444\u201d, pronounced \u201cf\u201d), previewing ahead of a month-long run at the Edinburgh Fringe<\/a>. The expectant crowd had gathered to support Russia\u2019s answer to Michael McIntyre<\/a> in Nezlobin\u2019s first full-hour set performed in English since fleeing Russia in 2022. <\/p>\n

Nezlobin moved with his wife and daughter to Los Angeles after falling foul of the Putin regime<\/a> for supporting LGBTQ+ rights and speaking out against the war<\/a>. As one of a handful of well-known comedians on the relatively new and booming Russian stand-up circuit, Nezlobin doesn\u2019t know if he\u2019ll ever be able to return home. Earlier this year comedian Nurlan Saburov was banned from entering Russia for 50 years<\/a>. Another comedian, Artemy Ostanin, was sentenced to nearly six years in a penal colony for a joke about a war veteran<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Since the early 2000s, I have been travelling to Russia most years to study or research in the archives. However, since Putin\u2019s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 the UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to Russia. <\/p>\n

I used to proudly state that Russia felt like my second \u201crodina<\/em>\u201d (homeland) but now, like many, I am nervous of speaking Russian in public or admitting the extent of my Russian interests. The darkened room of the Pleasance Theatre studio felt like a safe space for us all, something akin to attending group therapy, or \u201claughter therapy\u201d<\/a> as Nezlobin himself calls it. As often happens in challenging times, dark humour proves an essential coping strategy in the face of the Russia-Ukraine conflict<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As an English translator of Russian drama, it was fascinating for me to observe a Russian stand-up comedian operating in English. Drawing on his experience of being forced to leave Russia, live in the US and perform to new crowds, Nezlobin offers jokes for Russians, Brits and Americans alike that can be appreciated on different levels. He warns about the growing parallels between Putin\u2019s Russia and Trump\u2019s America, with both starting down the slippery slope of authoritarianism with attacks on LGBTQ+ rights. <\/p>\n

\n<\/figure>\n

Much material hinges on Nezlobin hamming up his self-described \u201cpoor English\u201d with the biggest laughs for gags about him sounding \u201clike your Uber driver who talks too much\u201d and having the \u201cmost deportable accent of the family\u201d. The audience in London were mostly Russian speaking, but I assume this may not be the case for the 20+ shows in Edinburgh, so it will be interesting to hear how it lands there.<\/p>\n

My fellow literary translators currently trying to justify their existence against AI would have appreciated the line that ChatGPT \u201ccan\u2019t do humour\u201d and so was responsible for anything in the show being unfunny. <\/p>\n

One of my favourite jokes was Nezlobin\u2019s description of transporting the family dog from Moscow to Los Angeles as a \u201cspecial operation\u201d. It\u2019s a riff on the euphemism \u201cspecial military operation\u201d that Putin coined having banned the word \u201cwar\u201d<\/a> to describe the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Another gag for the linguists \u2013 any issues with \u201clanguage barriers\u201d in the show were deemed appropriate as Russia has always had a \u201cproblem with its borders\u201d.<\/p>\n

Many organisations are understandably nervous of showcasing anything associated with Russia, and the priority right now must be supporting Ukraine and combating Putin. The levels of propaganda and indoctrination by Russia, particularly of Ukrainian children in Russian occupied territories<\/a> and in Russian schools as documented by the Oscar-winning documentary Mr Nobody Against Putin<\/a>, are extremely concerning.<\/p>\n

Although it is challenging to counter the spread of misinformation within Russia itself, we can at least support the progressive Russian diaspora now installed across the world. This is why I have chosen to translate contemporary Russian drama into English as a way of continuing to share culture at this time of conflict and mutual suspicion. Hats off to the Pleasance Theatre for giving this opportunity for Russians and Brits to laugh together.<\/p>\n

For a comedian who seeks to call out the malice in Putin\u2019s actions, it is fitting that Nezlobin\u2019s surname means \u201cgood-natured\u201d (literally \u201cwithout malice\u201d) in Russian. When leaving the show, I heard a woman ask her friend in Russian \u2013 \u201cSo, are you \u2018\u0444ine\u2019\u201d? \u2013 followed by a telling silence. Judging by the post-show queue for selfies and the number of poignant hugs I witnessed, I hope that Nezlobin has someone to trauma dump on about the pain he must be absorbing from his fans. <\/p>\n

Sasha Nezlobin\u2019s I\u2019m \u0444ine<\/a> is on at The 10 Dome at \u2060Pleasance Dome in Edinburgh from 5-31 August, 2026<\/em><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Jessica Tipton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was recently party to the world premiere of Russian stand-up comedian Sasha Nezlobin\u2019s show I\u2019m \u0424ine (spelt with a Cyrillic \u201c\u0444\u201d, pronounced \u201cf\u201d), previewing ahead of a month-long run at the Edinburgh Fringe. The expectant crowd had gathered to support Russia\u2019s answer to Michael McIntyre in Nezlobin\u2019s first full-hour set performed in English since […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1291","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1291"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1291\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}