On April 23-24, the second annual Chico Comedy Festival will take place. The event will be during the day with many event options for viewers of all ages.
The event will begin with a free show in Chico City Plaza, which will be followed by other late shows in five different locations around the city.
Both events lead up to the grand finale of the comedy weekend, the headliner show at Sierra Nevada Big Room.
The event morphed into a comedy show from a music show, according to DNA, the festival’s founder. With a long background in music, DNA started the event with the focus on music, but as he moved into doing comedy, so has the event.
“Last year I just went for it,” DNA said.
This year, DNA said that he has fine-tuned the event to be perfect for the Chico community.
“This year I think I have perfected what Chico wants,” DNA said. “What they want is a free comedy show, and then onto the bars and the headliner show at Sierra Nevada.”
The headliner show will feature comedians who have traveled from out of town, and those who are from Chico, like comedian Johnny Taylor. It will be his second year performing in the festival.
“It was super unique how they did it,” Taylor said. “They have the comics doing one show after another, walking from one venue to the next.”
In a matter of a few hours, a comic could be in four different shows, which can be chaotic, he said.
Taylor is booked up this year, putting on four shows in two days for the festival. Each of his performances are stand-up comedy, featuring one late-night show on Saturday, which will be a mystery science theater. Taylor will be with two other comedians, adding commentary on the movie.
DNA would love to see more involvement from Chico State students. There are many opportunities for students who are not yet 21 to attend, and room for students who are involved or interested in comedy. DNA is open to talking to students about working together in the future.
“We want to get you involved in this,” DNA said.
For tickets to the event, call 530-592-5250.
Sarah Strausser can be reached at [email protected] or @strausser_sarah on Twitter.
