WITH A MOVE from SE Hawthorne to Lower Burnside, and big-name headliners paired with our local stand-up faves (when else do you get to see Janeane Garofalo AND Bri Pruett’s Mercury-forged sex column in stand-up showcase form?), this year’s Bridgetown Comedy Festival promises to deliver four days of outsized chuckles. From feminist jokes to ’90s cartoon aspirations to comedy specials that outclass even Louis C.K.’s, here are just a few of the shows we can’t wait to make us ugly-laugh until our faces crumple.
Blaria (Jessica Williams and Phoebe Robinson)
New York stand-up Phoebe Robinson and The Daily Show’s Jessica Williams refer to themselves as “Blarias,” or Black Darias, looking at the world through the same jaded lens as the main character of MTV’s beloved animated series Daria. The two have been displaying their point of view, as well as the work of comedians who share it, through their monthly Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre showcase Blaria LIVE! For the first time, Williams and Robinson are bringing the show to the West Coast for this year’s Bridgetown Comedy Fest, and sharing the stage with their friends Michelle Buteau, Baron Vaughn, and Maggie Maye. ROBERT HAM
w/Shane Torres, Nore Davis, Matteo Lane; Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside, Fri May 8, 9 pm, $25
Funny Over Everything
Comedy reunion! In this extra-special edition of Funny Over Everything, noted funny person/local hero Sean Jordan brings two beloved expats of Portland stand-up back where they belong—Ian Karmel (who now files his Mercury column from LA, where he’s a writer on the new Late Late Show on CBS) and Shane Torres (who left us for New York in October, although he’s made some in-town cameos since then, fortunately). Among the troupe of stand-ups joining them is the wonderfully dry Beth Stelling. If you went to last year’s All Jane No Dick comedy fest, you’re probably versed in her deadpan jokes about dating stoners and the joys of working in the food-service industry: Her goofy, pointed humor was one of the highlights of an already uniformly great lineup. If you want to check out a show pairing longtime Portland favorites with gleeful out-of-towners, put this one on your dance card. MEGAN BURBANK
w/Michelle Buteau, Kyle Kinane, Chad Daniels, Noah Gardenswartz; Norse Hall, 111 NE 11th, Sat May 9, 10 pm, $25