Latest news with #MargaretCho
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
New York Comedy Festival to Feature Louis C.K., Margaret Cho and ‘Strangers With Candy' Reunion
Laughs are loading for this year's New York Comedy Festival. The festival will feature more than 200 comedians at 100 shows at venues across the five boroughs for 10 days from Nov. 7-16. This year's headliners include such acts as the Basement Yard, Hannah Berner, Michael Blackson, Louis C.K., Margaret Cho, Alex Edelman, Chris Fleming, Pete Holmes, Morgan Jay, Ismo, Ryan Long, Nurse John, Yohay Sponder, Trevor Wallace and more. More from The Hollywood Reporter Christopher Guest Reveals the "Brutal" Backstage Dog Show Moment That He Couldn't Include in 'Best in Show': "It's Too Much" 'Giggly Squad' Podcast Renews Ad Partnership With Acast Margaret Cho Says Ellen DeGeneres Was "Really Weird and Not Nice" to Her for Most of Her Career Also on the lineup is a special reunion for Strangers with Candy creators and stars Stephen Colbert, Paul Dinello and Amy Sedaris. The event, to be held at Town Hall on Nov. 8, is billed as a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the show's cancellation. Strangers with Candy aired for three seasons on Comedy Central and became a cult classic thanks to its risqué humor and wild storylines. It cast Sedaris as Jerri Blank, a 46-year-old ex-drug addict who returns to high school to do it a second time as a freshman. As the show grew in popularity, it snagged high-profile guest stars like Will Ferrell, Andy Richter, Tim Meadows, David Cross, Paul Rudd, Winona Ryder and more. It currently streams on Paramount+. 'We're thrilled to unveil this year's incredible lineup — a dynamic mix of global headliners and rising voices that reflect where comedy is right now and where it's headed. We're proud to continue to bring New York City the very best of the best' said Caroline Hirsch, founder and owner of the New York Comedy Festival which launched in 2004. 'In a constantly shifting landscape, we stay committed to spotlighting new voices, championing fresh perspectives, breaking form and shaping a festival that sets the standard both creatively and commercially.' Added the Basement Yard's Joe Santagato: 'I have no idea how many planets had to align for this opportunity to be given to two kids from Queens but we are so excited and will give New York the best possible show we can.' Beyond headliners, the New York Comedy Festival is expected to reveal details for additional events in the coming months for its Stand Up for Heroes, New York's Funniest Stand Ups presented by Threads, Comics to Watch, live podcast recordings, panel discussions and more. More information can be found here. Tickets are available to the general public starting July 21 at 11 a.m. ET. Bread Financial serves as the official sponsor of the festival and the Bread Cashback American Express Credit Card is the official card, and holders have early access to purchase pre-sale tickets beginning July 16. Additional sponsors include Threads, Hard Rock Hotel New York (the official host hotel for a fourth year), ABC7, iHeart Radio, NYC Media & Entertainment, NYC Tourism + Conventions, Founded in NYC, New York Magazine, New York Post, Vulture and The Wall Street Journal. Since it landed on the scene, the NYCF has hosted top talents like Judd Apatow, Bill Burr, Margaret Cho, Larry David, Kevin Hart, Jo Koy, Nick Kroll, Bill Maher, Trevor Noah, Conan O'Brien, Amy Schumer, Sarah Silverman, Wanda Sykes, Tracy Morgan and many more. The 2025 lineup thus far is below. Friday, Nov. 7 7 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. – Ryan Long at the Venue at Hard Rock Hotel New York 8 p.m. – Nurse John: The Short-Staffed Tour at The Beacon Theatre Saturday, Nov. 8 7 p.m. – A celebration of the 25th anniversary of the cancellation of Strangers with Candy with Stephen Colbert, Paul Dinello and Amy Sedaris at Town Hall 7 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. – Ryan Long at the Venue at Hard Rock Hotel New York 7 p.m.– Trevor Wallace: The Alpha Beta Male at Beacon Theatre 8 p.m. – Hannah Berner: None of My Business Tour at Carnegie Hall Sunday, Nov. 9 7 p.m. – Ismo: Woo Hoo! World Tour at Town Hall Thursday, Nov. 13 7 p.m. – Yohay Sponder at Town Hall 7 p.m. – Morgan Jay: The Goofy Guy Tour at The Beacon Theatre 8 p.m. – The Basement Yard: From the Basement to the World Tour at Madison Square Garden Friday, Nov. 14 7 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. – Michael Blackson: America Is Fkd Comedy Tour at the Venue at Hard Rock Hotel NY 7 p.m. – Pete Holmes: The Pete Here Now Tour at Town Hall 7:30 p.m. – Louis C.K. Ridiculous at The Beacon Theater Saturday, Nov. 15 6 p.m. – Alex Edelman: What Are You Going To Do at Carnegie Hall 7 p.m. and 9:45 p.m. – Michael Blackson: America Is Fkd Comedy Tour at the Venue at Hard Rock Hotel NY 7 p.m. – Margaret Cho: Choligarchy at Town Hall 7:30 p.m. – Louis C.K. Ridiculous at The Beacon Theater 8:45 p.m. – Chris Fleming at Carnegie Hall Best of The Hollywood Reporter Hollywood's Most Notable Deaths of 2025 Harvey Weinstein's "Jane Doe 1" Victim Reveals Identity: "I'm Tired of Hiding" 'Awards Chatter' Podcast: 'Sopranos' Creator David Chase Finally Reveals What Happened to Tony (Exclusive) Solve the daily Crossword
South China Morning Post
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Comedian Margaret Cho on Asian representation and finding humour in ‘a horrible time'
Margaret Cho has racked up five Grammy Award nominations and performed stand-up for more than four decades, but there is still one stage on her wish list. 'I would like to do something high-stakes like a show that takes place before they sent gladiators to fight at the Colosseum,' she jokes during a phone interview when asked in which epoch she would like to perform. 'Maybe that wouldn't be the best for my health, but I would ask for a guarantee that I could leave before getting eaten by an animal.' Cho may have missed her shot to perform for Roman emperors by a millennium or two, but she will be on stage for the Belly Laughs Comedy and Food Festival, which takes place at Los Angeles' Peacock Theatre on July 12 and 13. She will be joined by more than 30 Asian stand-up comedians, including Hasan Minhaj Kumail Nanjiani , a surprise guest and two recent additions: Bobby Lee and Vickie Wang. The event is billed as a celebration of Asian-American culture. In addition to laughs, the fest will also showcase more than 20 of LA's Asian restaurants.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Belly Laughs Comedy Festival Spotlights Asian American Food and Culture This Weekend
Belly Laughs Comedy Festival Spotlights Asian American Food and Culture This Weekend originally appeared on L.A. Mag. Both food and laughter collide this weekend as Belly Laughs Comedy and Food Festival prepares to host a lineup of comedy performances from over 30 of the top Asian American comedians and flavorsome eats from more than 20 featured restaurants. A weekend celebrating culture, comedy, and cuisine, this festival will also include live cooking demonstrations, karaoke, and various other interactive experiences—all representations of the diverse and vibrant culture and flavors within the AAPI community living in the curated by MAMA's NIGHTMARKET, food vendors from all over LA showcase brilliant cultural flavors and gastronomic innovations with restaurants including Holy Basil, Guzzu Bento-Ya, Mayura, and Bopomofo, and more. A weekend full of food, fun, and laughter, Belly Laughs Comedy and Food Festival will be sure to entertain the masses, with evenings full of cultural pride, clever comedy, and community togetherness. July 12th—Hasan Minhaj, Kumail Nanjiani, Zarna Garg, Nimesh Patel, Jonnie Park (Dumbfoundead), Andrea Jin, Jason Cheny, Irene Tu, Dylan Adler, Kiran Deol, Sabrina Wu, James Tom, Tien Tran, Robin Tran, Tatyana Guchi, and D'LoJuly 13th—Hasan Minhaj, Margaret Cho, Bobby Lee, Joel Kim Booster, Hari Kondabolu, Asif Ali, Joe Wong, Jenny Yang, Helen Hong, Fumi Abe, Ismael Loutfi, Aaron Chen, Nori Reed, Paul Ogata, Yudhi Sharma, and Vickie Wang. Bopomofo, Biriyani Kabob House, Bobapop, Borneo Kalimantan Cuisine, Chef Tuệ Nguyễn & Điđi, Feng Mao, Good Alley, Guzzu Bento-Ya, Heng Heng Chicken Rice, Hermanos Empanadas, Holy Basil, Jilli, Kanomwaan Thai Gelato, Kolkata Chai Co, Kuramoto Shavery, Mayura, Riviera Seafood Club, Standstill Tea, Tenkatori, and Yum SະlutFrom Saturday, July 12, to Sunday, July 13, from 3PM—11PM; Tickets are available through This story was originally reported by L.A. Mag on Jul 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
The Independent
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Asian American, Pacific Islander comics are the main event in an LA comedy and cuisine festival
With the Belly Laughs Festival, an ambitious Asian American and Pacific Islander-centered comedy festival, the food is as important as the talent line-up. Every detail is intended to send a message of unabashed cultural pride. 'It's like we grew up kind of shying away and hiding our Asian-ness,' said Viv Wang, a volunteer festival producer with Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment, or CAPE, who helped conceive the idea for the event. 'It just made a lot of sense to have comedy and food — these two ways that people can connect and just celebrate being Asian and having a place to feel cool to be Asian.' For one weekend, Belly Laughs is mounting an unprecedented gathering of 30 AAPI stand-up comics — from headliners to newer scene-stealers — in downtown Los Angeles. There will also be 20 food and beverage vendors set up in the spirit of a Taiwanese night market. The L.A. Live entertainment complex will be a playground where ticketholders can watch marquee names like Kumail Nanjiani and Margaret Cho, while simultaneously enjoying anything from biriyani to boba. With federal immigration crackdowns nationwide, the participating comedians — most hailing from immigrant families — are being thoughtful about striking the right balance of politics and humor. Festival to whet appetites for the funny and food Organizers, including Nederlander Concerts and Gold House, are aiming to draw between 6,000 to 8,000 people over the two-day tentpole event. Tickets are still available. Comedians will be split between two stages. The entertainers lending their star power include several comics-turned-actors like Hasan Minhaj, Bobby Lee, Joel Kim Booster and Sherry Cola. A majority of the talent also identifies as LGBTQ+. It's an impressive statement in an industry that has historically tried to put Asian comedians in boxes and often relegated them to 'ethnic nights' like 'Wonton Wednesdays' or 'Asian Invasion." Asif Ali, one of the stars of the new Hulu series 'Deli Boys,' has never taken part in any AAPI-focused event save an occasional comedy club night or as part of a mainstream festival. But Asian American comics were never the main event for an audience of thousands. So there was no hesitation on Ali's part to join in the festival. 'Just to be a part of something like this was so cool,' said Ali, who performs Sunday. 'To have it be of this scope and in LA and have it tied in with food — which I think is such a slam dunk — is great.' Comedian and writer Hari Kondabolu called it 'our Lollapalooza.' 'Like I don't know if people understand ... I don't know if this will happen every year, if it will happen again. But like this is a pretty cool moment in time to be a part of something like this,' Kondabolu said. MAMA, a community group dedicated to promoting immigrants and their cultures through night markets, is the curator of the event's food stalls. There will be no national restaurant chains. But an array of Asian cultures will be represented — Indonesian, Malaysian, Singaporean and Chinese among them. 'They're completely different because they're very conscientious and focused on immigrant-owned businesses, first gen businesses,' Wang said. 'All of the food has a story.' Organizers vow festival will not be impacted by feds Putting on a new festival is never easy but the timing of current events has made it a 'helluva year' to do it, said Wang. Los Angeles residents have been on edge since Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids erupted in and around downtown in June. Ensuing protests prompted curfews and event cancellations. On Monday federal officers and the National Guard descended on a mostly empty park in a largely immigrant neighborhood. For those who might be worried about an ICE presence around the festival, organizers plan to 'make sure that people will be kept safe,' said CAPE executive director Michelle Sugihara, noting L.A. Live is private property. It's a good bet that the political turmoil in Los Angeles and beyond will be fodder for the comedians. Ali, who took part in protests last month, doesn't plan to shy away from it. While the federal government's immigration policies are no laughing matter, he sees comedy as a way to keep attention on the issue. 'I think our job as comedians is to remind people that things that are happening are terrible,' Ali said. 'You're not laughing at something happening. You're laughing at sort of the insanity of it all.' Some people may struggle with going out and eating and laughing at a time of conflict around Los Angeles. But festival organizers and comedians insist that having a good time doesn't mean forgetting about the issues. 'Now more than ever, being around people for whatever reason — whether it's to protest, whether it's to help, whether it's to laugh or grieve ... I think it's pretty safe to say it's always better to be in the company of like-minded people,' Ali said. ' People need to feel that they're not alone.' Why having an AAPI-focused festival matters There have been times when Ali felt like an Asian American comic who references his culture even briefly gets branded 'that guy who just talks about being Asian.' Something like Belly Laughs shows how reductive that thinking is, he said. It's also comforting for comedians like him to see how many peers have found success. 'When you are in spaces where you aren't the majority or even a larger-sized minority, I think it's important for people to know that they are normal,' Ali said. 'The effect of festivals like this is that it makes all those comics who feel like that, who feel that pressure — myself included — to look around and to see a whole lineup of people and to watch their sets and listen to their material." The festival is a long overdue celebration of how today's AAPI comics are not dealing with the stereotyping and limits as their predecessors, Sugihara said. The Belly Laughs roster reflects that spectrum. Take Cho, 56, who Asian American comedians consider 'Mother," alongside comedians in their 20s. 'For us, it is about the whole lifecycle of an entertainment career,' Sugihara said. 'That's whether you're emerging or you're a veteran, and all of us can be a community together and help each other.' The hope is that there will be a demand to do this next year as a complement to the biennial Netflix Is A Joke Fest. Sugihara has already heard from people in other states such as Hawaii who want to duplicate Belly Laughs.
Associated Press
09-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Asian American, Pacific Islander comics are the main event in an LA comedy and cuisine festival
With the Belly Laughs Festival, an ambitious Asian American and Pacific Islander-centered comedy festival, the food is as important as the talent line-up. Every detail is intended to send a message of unabashed cultural pride. 'It's like we grew up kind of shying away and hiding our Asian-ness,' said Viv Wang, a volunteer festival producer with Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment, or CAPE, who helped conceive the idea for the event. 'It just made a lot of sense to have comedy and food — these two ways that people can connect and just celebrate being Asian and having a place to feel cool to be Asian.' For one weekend, Belly Laughs is mounting an unprecedented gathering of 30 AAPI stand-up comics — from headliners to newer scene-stealers — in downtown Los Angeles. There will also be 20 food and beverage vendors set up in the spirit of a Taiwanese night market. The L.A. Live entertainment complex will be a playground where ticketholders can watch marquee names like Kumail Nanjiani and Margaret Cho, while simultaneously enjoying anything from biriyani to boba. With federal immigration crackdowns nationwide, the participating comedians — most hailing from immigrant families — are being thoughtful about striking the right balance of politics and humor. Festival to whet appetites for the funny and food Organizers, including Nederlander Concerts and Gold House, are aiming to draw between 6,000 to 8,000 people over the two-day tentpole event. Tickets are still available. Comedians will be split between two stages. The entertainers lending their star power include several comics-turned-actors like Hasan Minhaj, Bobby Lee, Joel Kim Booster and Sherry Cola. A majority of the talent also identifies as LGBTQ+. It's an impressive statement in an industry that has historically tried to put Asian comedians in boxes and often relegated them to 'ethnic nights' like 'Wonton Wednesdays' or 'Asian Invasion.' Asif Ali, one of the stars of the new Hulu series 'Deli Boys,' has never taken part in any AAPI-focused event save an occasional comedy club night or as part of a mainstream festival. But Asian American comics were never the main event for an audience of thousands. So there was no hesitation on Ali's part to join in the festival. 'Just to be a part of something like this was so cool,' said Ali, who performs Sunday. 'To have it be of this scope and in LA and have it tied in with food — which I think is such a slam dunk — is great.' Comedian and writer Hari Kondabolu called it 'our Lollapalooza.' 'Like I don't know if people understand ... I don't know if this will happen every year, if it will happen again. But like this is a pretty cool moment in time to be a part of something like this,' Kondabolu said. MAMA, a community group dedicated to promoting immigrants and their cultures through night markets, is the curator of the event's food stalls. There will be no national restaurant chains. But an array of Asian cultures will be represented — Indonesian, Malaysian, Singaporean and Chinese among them. 'They're completely different because they're very conscientious and focused on immigrant-owned businesses, first gen businesses,' Wang said. 'All of the food has a story.' Organizers vow festival will not be impacted by feds Putting on a new festival is never easy but the timing of current events has made it a 'helluva year' to do it, said Wang. Los Angeles residents have been on edge since Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids erupted in and around downtown in June. Ensuing protests prompted curfews and event cancellations. On Monday federal officers and the National Guard descended on a mostly empty park in a largely immigrant neighborhood. For those who might be worried about an ICE presence around the festival, organizers plan to 'make sure that people will be kept safe,' said CAPE executive director Michelle Sugihara, noting L.A. Live is private property. It's a good bet that the political turmoil in Los Angeles and beyond will be fodder for the comedians. Ali, who took part in protests last month, doesn't plan to shy away from it. While the federal government's immigration policies are no laughing matter, he sees comedy as a way to keep attention on the issue. 'I think our job as comedians is to remind people that things that are happening are terrible,' Ali said. 'You're not laughing at something happening. You're laughing at sort of the insanity of it all.' Some people may struggle with going out and eating and laughing at a time of conflict around Los Angeles. But festival organizers and comedians insist that having a good time doesn't mean forgetting about the issues. 'Now more than ever, being around people for whatever reason — whether it's to protest, whether it's to help, whether it's to laugh or grieve ... I think it's pretty safe to say it's always better to be in the company of like-minded people,' Ali said. 'People need to feel that they're not alone.' Why having an AAPI-focused festival matters There have been times when Ali felt like an Asian American comic who references his culture even briefly gets branded 'that guy who just talks about being Asian.' Something like Belly Laughs shows how reductive that thinking is, he said. It's also comforting for comedians like him to see how many peers have found success. 'When you are in spaces where you aren't the majority or even a larger-sized minority, I think it's important for people to know that they are normal,' Ali said. 'The effect of festivals like this is that it makes all those comics who feel like that, who feel that pressure — myself included — to look around and to see a whole lineup of people and to watch their sets and listen to their material.' The festival is a long overdue celebration of how today's AAPI comics are not dealing with the stereotyping and limits as their predecessors, Sugihara said. The Belly Laughs roster reflects that spectrum. Take Cho, 56, who Asian American comedians consider 'Mother,' alongside comedians in their 20s. 'For us, it is about the whole lifecycle of an entertainment career,' Sugihara said. 'That's whether you're emerging or you're a veteran, and all of us can be a community together and help each other.' The hope is that there will be a demand to do this next year as a complement to the biennial Netflix Is A Joke Fest. Sugihara has already heard from people in other states such as Hawaii who want to duplicate Belly Laughs.
