October 4 at Theatre 78 Костя Пушкин gave a large stand-up show
On October 4 at Theatre 78 Костя Пушкин gave a large stand-up show. We explain who he is and why we won't be retelling his jokes.
Let's start with an honest warning: there will be no jokes here. Stand-up doesn't survive retelling, and Пушкин has another quirk: his live shows noticeably differ from what appears on YouTube. In clubs and bars he allows himself things you won't hear on camera.
So what follows is not a retelling of jokes, but an account of who came to visit, what he talked about on stage, and why it's worth seeing him live.
The seventh-grade teacher
Костя Пушкин is from the Komi Republic. He studied programming in Ukhta, but started in КВН — writing sketches for teams. He began doing stand-up when few people had even heard the word.
Пушкин reached the big stage in 2007 in the first season of «Смеха без правил» on ТНТ. He came with a monologue in the voice of a seventh-grade teacher, reached the final and placed fourth. Next came «Убойная лига»: from 2008 to 2010 he appeared in 24 episodes and won six of them.
Since 2013 Пушкин has been a resident of Stand-Up Club #1. For him it's almost a family affair: his brother Артём Пушкин was in the club's first lineup.
The professor on YouTube
The teacher persona hasn't disappeared over time — it simply grew into a professor. For Stand-Up Club #1, Пушкин invented the quiz «Самый умный комик» and hosts it himself — with a nod to the British show QI by Stephen Fry. He relaunched the project in 2024. You can also see Пушкин in «Разгоны», «Книжном клубе» and the comedy-therapy show «Что у вас случилось».
He doesn't have many solo specials. The first, «Неприличный», came out in 2016. Then there was a pause: around 2020 Пушкин briefly cooled on the stage, and the lockdown delayed his return. The second special, «Это всё шутки», was released on January 10, 2024 — more than seven years later. Reviews noted his precise delivery, the density of jokes, and his constant contact with the audience.
His comedy is described as relaxed and thoughtful, although he can be cringe at times. Пушкин likes wordplay and invented little words, and he often builds monologues from a private everyday story to bigger subjects. He also readily jokes about himself, for example about his height.
An evening at Theatre 78
Пушкин flew to Belgrade on a direct flight from Moscow. He performed at Theatre 78 on Resavska Street, 78.
The warm-up was by Виктор Горский-Мочалов from the Belgrade stand-up community «Опять эти» — the guys themselves organize open mics in Belgrade and Novi Sad. Виктор is originally from Vorkuta, so that night two people from Komi met on the same stage. He took part in the YouTube show «Комитет», performed at concerts of Дениса Чужого, Саши Малого and other visiting comedians, and his strongest material is funny and awkward stories from his own life.
After the opening act, the headliner took the stage with a big solo show. Пушкин talked about feminism, half-jokingly complained that the rainbow is now firmly claimed by gay people, and reflected on which actions should be considered good and which — bad. The latter is exactly the kind of bigger issue he likes to steer conversations toward.
In audience reviews of his tour shows two things come up most often: time flies, and there's plenty of strong language. So for some people a night like this will seem too bold, and for others — that's exactly why to come.
What exactly was said on stage we'll leave to those who were in the audience. For those who didn't make it, there are photos and a tip from the announcement: next time, come see it in person.
Organizer: StandUp_Beo
Photo: PROPHOTOBGD. All photos from the concert are in our photo report.
