Your favourite comic fete 'NZ International Comedy Festival with Best Foods Mayo' is back for another year of side-splitting madness! Featuring a plethora of award-winning comedians, this 25-day feast will be filling venues across Auckland and Wellington from April through to May.
Leading this year's star-studded bill are three of your favourite comic performers Paul Sinha, Josie Long, and Felicity Ward. Joining them is returning Finnish delight, Ismo Leikola, who will be hitting both cities alongside promising up-and-comers Takashi Wakasugi, Alanta Colley, and Pub Choir. Meanwhile, Heath Franklin "Chopper" will be joining a sumptuous feast of international wunderkinds—Saturday Night Live and 30 Rock sensation Tracy Morgan, USA's Josh Wolf, Brits Ben Elton, Dane Baptiste, Jamali Maddix, Laura Lexx, Tom Deacon, and David Baddiel—who are making their way to Tāmaki Makaurau for the 2020 programme. Also included in the list are talented comics Becky Lucas, Cassie Workman, Gen Fricker, Matt Okine, Fiona O'Loughlin, Aaron Chen, Sam Campbell, and Aboriginal Comedy Allstars—a four-piece ensemble who are bringing their exceptional indigenous comedy to NZ for the first time.
With homegrown comedy on a meteoric rise, a contingent of local heroes are also set to shine in this year's Comedy Fest—featuring 2019 Festival Director's Award winner Eli Matthewson, 2019 Billy T Award nominee Donna Brookbanks, Frickin Dangerous Bro's Jamaine Ross, the mastermind behind Aunty Johanna Cosgrove, 2018 Billy T Award nominee Li'i Alaimoana, local legend Ben Hurley, and globe-trotting surreal circus acts Laser Kiwi. Also performing alongside them are masterful comic Tape Face, sell-out festival favourites Two Hearts (Laura Daniel & Joseph Moore) and dynamic duo The Fan Brigade.
The 'Best Foods Comedy Gala' is just one of eight annual delights from the NZ Comedy Trust, with proceeds all helping the not-for-profit charity continue to grow the booming comedy industry in Aotearoa. To ensure that there's truly something for everyone, the Trust has produced this year's lineup of hilarious shows—'The Basement Theatre Preview Show' that whets the comedic whistle with a tease of their programme before the fest officially launches, 'Stand Up For Kids' which offers a chance for our smallest comedy fans to giggle in a show tailored to 4-8 year olds, the 'Class Comedians Showcase' where next generation of comedy legends get their turn at the mic, Mother's Day story-telling show 'Dialogue' (hosted by 2019 Billy T Award winner, Kura Forrester) that does a bit of comedy "done different", the 'Best Comedy Show on Earth' which promises another huge lineup, Wellingtonians 'Late Laughs' which features their own curated bill of festival excellence, and 'Electric Kiwi Last Laughs' (hosted by Michele A'Court) which closes the Comedy Fest with a bang as the 2020 Fred and Billy T Awards are handed out.
Book your seats fast and let NZ Comedy Fest tempt your cravings for some comedy treats this fall!
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