If you didn’t muster the courage to apply for the D.C. Comedy Fest back in January, then at the very least, watch the people who did. Starting tonight, the fest will feature three night’s worth of shows, including an ode to what Bush did right, finalists in a short comedy film fest and auditions for Leno and Lettermen where big-deal bookers like Bob Read of Last Comic Standing will hover in the audience, sniffing out talent.
The venues include some of our favorite in the city. HR-57, recently home to Riot Act Entertainment— who puts on weekly performances downstairs as the jazz flows upstairs– is hosting the Kick-Off Show tonight at 8 p.m. All proceeds from the $35 stand-up benefit go straight to the Brain Tumor Society. Other shows will happen on the mainstage, both before and afterward.
Most of Friday’s line-up is at Warehouse, including “Queer Corner”, a showcase sponsored by One in Ten, the go-to for all things culturally-enriching in Washington’s GLBT community. We’re really pumped for one featured performer, Claudia Cogan, a writer for FakeGayNews.com. It’s an Onion-esque site inspired by the notion that “real gay news” is “too damn depressing.” Cogan’s fine commentary for the site on “Gay Rights and Lack of Parking Linked” and “Socially Inept Lesbian Resists Hot Woman” makes us giggle, and we expect the same from her real-life performance.
Out-of-towners like the founders of Chicago comedy news site Blerds.com will perform Friday. If their jokes are anything like their sassy tennis head shots, we say, bring it. The Brooklyn Comedy Club will perform its trademark “Four Shades of Black,” where black comics prove they do more than stereotypial comedy. That means no cracker jokes. DCCF made addendums like Saturday night’s “Some More Funny Comedians” and the “Leno-Letterman Audition Highlights, Show #2,” since the talent-scouting shows cram way too much talent and not enough breathing time.
DCCF primarily sells tickets by “nightly” and “weekend” passes. Nightly tickets are $25 ($20 for students) and the go-crazy all-weekend “Open Pass” is $45 ($35 for students). Individual show tickets are available, but the website made them sound unappealing: only five bucks more for an all-night pass. Plus, the single tickets don’t get special access to DCCF parties. Lame.
Go here to purchase tickets for the Third-annual D.C. Comedy Fest.
