Ventriloquist Paul Zerdin joins the Punchline Comdedy cast

You're the first ventriloquist Punchline has brought to Shanghai. Tell us, what first possessed you to stick your hand up a puppet's butt to get a few laughs? Thank you, what a beautiful question. Um, I actually started as a magician, when I was a kid I got a box of tricks for Christmas, and I kind of took to it quite easily. I knew I wanted to do something with puppets and magic and comedy, and I got a book on how to be a ventriloquist and learned how to do ventriloquism. You're quoted as saying that ventriloquy is a bit of a curse because "you can't stop doing it, it won't leave [you] alone." Yeah, and I can do it anywhere, anytime. I did a hidden camera show a few years ago, and it was just trying to do something different, making the sound of a kid being trapped inside a box. So, it's not like you talk to your puppets when you're alone, then? People have this image that ventriloquists are completely mental, and it's not helped by films that depict them with dummies that tell them to go out and kill people, I suppose. What characters are you bringing with you to Shanghai? I'll have two characters with me, the baby doesn't travel well. I'll also use a dummy from the audience. So far you've got a bratty teenager (Sam), a precocious baby (Baby) and an eccentric, horny old man (Albert). Do ventriloquists suffer from multiple personality syndromes? Are you a bratty, precocious, eccentric, horny guy at heart? I don't know, it's a very good question and probably a bit too in depth to answer, but I think ventriloquists tend to be quite shy people and tend to hide behind the character. Is that how you would describe yourself? Maybe when I first started out. The thing is, with a puppet, you can get away with saying a lot more than on your own. I can't get away with calling someone ugly on stage, but the puppet can and people love it. Do you worry about being politically correct? No, not really. I just try to be as original as I can. How much does the audience reaction factor into how you design your routine? I suppose in a way I'm a bit of a whore; I want to please everyone. Having done many children's shows as well as adult comedy clubs, I've always thought it's better to be clean so that you can get the biggest audience possible. I don't want to offend or upset people, I just want them to have a laugh and appreciate what I'm doing.

Trista Baldwin