The Comedians with Disabilities Act makes its debut at SF Sketchfest at the Alameda Comedy Club!

The Comedians with Disabilities Act (CWDA) debuted in 2010 and has been going strong since. February 1, 2024 at the Alameda Comedy Club CWDA will make its SF Sketchfest debut.  CWDA is a collection of comedians with disabilities, both seen and unseen. It was the brainchild of comedian Michael O’Connell.  Michael passed away in 2016, but his comedy troupe lives on.  Michael’s legacy allows comedians with disabilities to develop their voices to receptive audiences across the country.   

Steve Danner and Nina G are part of the original CWDA but have been joined by a cast of other talented Disabled comedians over the years.  In addition to Nina and Steve, the SF Sketchfest show features CWDA regulars: Mean Dave, Michael Beers, Loren Kraut, Jade Theriault along with Hayden Kristal who will be joining the troupe for her first CWDA show! Ticket information at: https://sfsketchfest2024.sched.com/event/1VUpj?iframe=no.

SF Sketchfest is a comedy festival taking place January 18 through February 4 in venues across San Francisco and the surrounding area. The multi-day festival will host more than 200 shows featuring major comedy stars and the best up-and-coming acts for sketch, stand-up, alternative comedy, music, improv, films, tributes, all-star reunions, live podcasts, and workshops. Now in its 21st year, SF Sketchfest is an internationally recognized, eclectic, and critically acclaimed festival that offers audiences a wide variety of special programming and the rare opportunity to see their favorite performers in intimate live settings.  The CWDA show will take place at the Alameda Comedy Club (in Alameda) on February 1.   

SF Sketchfest featuring CWDA follows a trend in the larger entertainment industry: increase representation of the Disabled experience.  Images of people with disabilities have traditionally been underrepresented and when they are it is often what many in the Disability community call “inspiration porn.”  The images are rarely complex, with Disabled individuals often being represented as “courageous,” “overcoming obstacles” and “inspiring others.”  CWDA flips the script on all these images.  The CWDA comedians speak about the awkward interactions they have with non-disabled people, reflections about their own disability experience as well as not talking about their disability at all.  Their disabilities don’t solely define these comedians but they also acknowledge the impact that it has had in their lives.  

“CWDA being part of SF Sketchfest is a big deal because it shows that the disability experience is on the radar of comedy festival producers.  The entertainment industry is finally seeing that there is a lot of talent in our community and that people want to hear about our experiences from us and not filtered through a Hollywood lens that doesn’t challenge the status quo” adds comedian and lead producer of CWDA, Nina G.  “That is why Disabled comedians are so important.  They challenge how society thinks about disability and can help to change people’s attitudes while also being hilarious and entertaining!” 

These comedians are hilarious!  This diverse group is formed each with a different disability experience and perspective.  The following line up will be featured at SF Sketchfest. 

Michael Beers won the Norman G. Brooks Comedy Competition at the Hollywood Improv in 2005. He was also the previous winner of Funny Fest (Calgary Comedy Festival) and has opened for comedians like Gilbert Gottfried. He is a sought-after keynote speaker on topics like humor, disability advocacy, education and community building. 

Jade Theriault is a Forbes-recognized comedian who combines provocative thought with moving furniture. Jade is a regular at Alameda Comedy Club, Punch Line SF, Cobbs Comedy Club, Tommy T’s, and the San Jose Improv where she opened for Jesus Trejo. Festival credits include SF Sketchfest, The Art of Female Comedy Festival (Wichita, KS), Palm Springs International Comedy Festival and the Westside Comedy Festival in Santa Monica, where she was honored for Best Joke of the Night. Jade starred in Malic Almaya’s “RUN! ” (2018), featured in Jeff Giordano’s “Romantic Chorus” (2021), and was on an episode of MTV “Decoded” (2018). 

Nina G is a comedian, author of Stutterer Interrupted and co-author of Bay Area Stand-Up Comedy: A Humorous History.  In May 2023 her album debuted at #1 in Comedy on iTunes and Amazon.  Her first comedy special, Nina G: Stutterer Interrupted, debuted in October 2023.  She has shared the stage with comedy legends like Don Novello (aka Father Guido Sarducci), Mort Sahl and Disability activists like Judi Heumann and Jim Lebrect.   

Mean Dave, a favorite in the San Francisco Bay Area, hosts several CWDA shows. Dave is in his tenth year of addiction recovery, which he ingeniously weaves into his humor. He’s a regular at Punch Line SF & Sacramento, Cobbs Comedy Club, Laughs Unlimited, SJ Improv and has opened for many notable comedians like Josh Blue, Big Jay Oakerson, and Eddie Pepitone as well as performed at clubs and colleges across the U.S. 

Steve Danner’s comedy career began as an audience member at a comedy club. The comedian on stage started riffing with him. After Danner showcased his own riffing skills, the comic approached Danner after the show and suggested he give comedy a try. That soon launched a career as a comedian and producer. He’s opened for many headliners such as “Last Comic Standing” winner, Felipe Esparza. 

Hayden Kristal’s quick wit and cheerful self-deprecation has earned her a spot as an “America’s Got Talent” semifinalist, roles on Adult Swim/HBO Max’s “Tuca and Bertie”, and over a million followers on social media, but her true talent lies in naming horses things you might name a shelter cat.  Hayden lives in rural Colorado with her four-legged friends Squidward, Chicken Elizabeth Nugget, Donkey Devito, and Debbi from Accounting. 

In February, CWDA will have multiple shows in Northern California.  Each show will have a different line up with Michael Beers headlining in Sacramento and Santa Rosa.  Information on all shows is below: 

February 1, 2024:  SF Sketchfest at the Alameda Comedy Club: 2431 Central Avenue, Alameda. 

February 2, 2024 at the Veterans of Foreign Wars: 2784 Stockton Boulevard, Sacramento. 

February 3, 2024 at Barrel Proof Comedy: 501 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa. 

February 15, 2024 at Woodhouse Blending and Brewing: 119 Madrone St, Santa Cruz.

Ticket information and updates at www.ComediansWithDisabilitiesAct.com.

ABOUT SF SKETCHFEST 

SF Sketchfest, co-founded and directed by David Owen, Cole Stratton, and Janet Varney, produces the eclectic San Francisco Comedy Festival, the longest-running comedy festival in the U.S. SF Sketchfest is an internationally recognized and critically acclaimed event that mixes major comedy stars and the best up-and-coming comedians from around the world for over two weeks of sketch, stand-up, alternative comedy, music, improv, films, tributes, live podcasts, workshops, and panel discussions. SF Sketchfest offers its audiences the rare opportunity to see their favorite performers in intimate live performances and discussions.

In past years, SF Sketchfest has featured renowned comedy artists such as Aziz Ansari, Fred Armisen, Dan Aykroyd, Maria Bamford, Dave Barry, Mike Birbiglia, Jack Black, Rachel Bloom, Carol Burnett, Dana Carvey, Cheech & Chong, Margaret Cho, Billy Crystal, Noel Fielding, Zach Galifianakis, Ricky Gervais, Christopher Guest, Eddie Izzard, Monty Python’s Terry Jones, Key & Peele, Eugene Levy, Michael McKean, Kate McKinnon, Tig Notaro, Conan O’Brien, Catherine O’Hara, Patton Oswalt, Penn & Teller, Amy Poehler, Paul Reubens, Mort Sahl, Amy Schumer, Amy Sedaris, Garry Shandling, Harry Shearer, Robert Townsend, Aisha Tyler, George Wallace, Reggie Watts, Keenen Ivory Wayans, Robin Williams, and “Weird Al” Yankovic. The festival has also hosted film and television stars including Alan Arkin, Will Arnett, Candice Bergen, Bruce Campbell, Lizzy Caplan, Dick Cavett, Bud Cort, Ted Danson, Laura Dern, Danny DeVito, Sally Field, Nathan Fillion, Jeff Goldblum, Elliott Gould, Jon Hamm, Neil Patrick Harris, Bill Irwin, Ricky Jay, Rashida Jones, Cloris Leachman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jane Lynch, Parker Posey, Paul Rudd, Jason Schwartzman, Adam Scott, Jason Segel, Tony Shalhoub, and Gene Wilder; ensemble comedy groups The Kids in the Hall, Mr. Show, “Mystery Science Theater 3000,” The State, “Drunk History” and the Upright Citizens Brigade; reunions of the casts of “Best in Show”, “Airplane!” “Wet Hot American Summer”, “Animal House”, “Twin Peaks” and “Party Down”; musical guests David Byrne, Bill Frisell, Ben Gibbard, Tenacious D, Aimee Mann, The Monkees, Bob Mould, Rhett Miller, Nellie McKay, Robert Glasper, and many more.  

Video sample of the Comedians with Disabilities Act

Changing the image of Disability through comedy

Big news!  The Comedians with Disabilities Act and Friends album is out.  Disabled Comedy Only is the first ever compilation of Disabled comedians on a single album.  Monumental! The recording was done independently and without any Jumpstarts or GoFundMes.  As artists with disabilities we retained complete control over our material, our image and our brand.  No abled bodied people dictated what we should or shouldn’t say.  Please support independent comedy fighting for visibility, equity, and disability justice through comedy.

Please support the album by purchasing it at: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/comedianswithdisabilitie

and sharing our videos!

Thank you for the support!

Comedian who stutters goes beyond the punchlines

Check it out!  Comedy Spot Nation featured my upcoming one person show!

http://www.comedyspotnation.com/nina-g-comedian-who-stutters-goes-beyond-the-punch-lines/

THE “COMEDIANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT” TOUR ROLLS INTO NAPA Thursday Feb. 27 at Bui Bistro’s Comedy Night @ Bui Bistro

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tim Wolcott
Tel. 707-337-8582
Email: timwolcott79@gmail.com

THE “COMEDIANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT” TOUR ROLLS INTO NAPA Thursday Feb. 27 at Bui Bistro’s Comedy Night @ Bui Bistro.

A blind man. A stuttering woman. A wheelchair user. A little person. While this may sound like a description of a support group, it is, in fact, the lineup for the “Comedians with Disabilities Act”, a comedy tour that the San Francisco Examiner called “The most unconventional comics to pop up in 2011”. Made up entirely of performers with different disabilities, the troupe is bringing their “special” brand of humor to Comedy Night @ Bui Bistro, hosted by local comedian Tim Wolcott, on Thursday, Feb. 27 at 7pm.

The foursome, all of them working northern California comedians, met each other through the comedy club circuit and decided to band together to treat audiences to a unique and unforgettable experience.

“Lots of able-bodied comedians out there tell blind or wheelchair jokes and get the audience to laugh AT people with disabilities,” said Michael O’Connell, the group’s wheelchair representative and founder of the troupe. “But wouldn’t it be more fun for the crowd, we thought, to be invited to laugh WITH people with disabilities instead? That’s guilt-free fun right there.”

Since their first sold-out show in Sacramento, the group has been in growing demand, getting booked at such lauded venues as the Laugh Factory in Hollywood and San Francisco’s Punch Line comedy club. Their comedy comes from the lifetime of experiences each has had due to their individual challenges. They see the tour as not only a chance to entertain, but to educate people on disability issues.

“We’re all comedians first,” said Napa native Steve Danner who identifies as a Little Person, “and it’s a comedy show. But who says you can’t make people laugh and send them home with something to think about too?”

Danner’s comedy career began as an audience member at a club. The comedian on stage that night decided to have some fun at his expense, and Danner’s skills in heckling back at him led the comic to approach Danner after the show and suggest he give comedy a try. He did so, and soon began a career as a prolific comedian and producer, delighting crowds at clubs and comedy rooms all over the west coast with hysterical tales centered heavily on his dwarfism. His comic journey keeps him on the road much of the time, but as Danner is fond of saying, “Shrimpin’ ain’t easy!”.

Michael O’Connell was diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy at two years old and began using a wheelchair in 1995. But it wasn’t until years later that a friend dared him to try doing comedy at an open mic night at a Sacramento club, and after ending up winning the competition that first night on stage, he never looked back. He’s played comedy clubs from Seattle to L.A. (including the Hollywood Improv and the Jon Lovitz Comedy Club), been featured in newspapers and on radio and television, and counts several Hollywood celebrities among his fans. His business card reads “100% Comedy, 0% Stand-Up”.  Michael is unable to attend this show but you can check out his comedy at http://www.michaeloconnell.com/michaelocomedy.

Sacramento’s Eric Mee was only eighteen years old when, while protecting a young child, he was stabbed in the chest. Complications resulting from his injury led to the loss of his eyesight. Choosing not to let this drastic life change get him down, he began joking about his condition and giving speeches to groups that were always filled with humor. After many suggestions, he turned his talents to stand-up comedy, and now brings his manic energy and outrageous tales to the stage, both at clubs and college campuses.

Touting herself as “the America’s only female comedian who stutters”, Nina G. hails from the Bay Area and has spent a lifetime dealing with both speech and learning disability issues. A key note speaker and disability advocate, Nina turned her talents to the stand-up stage to help raise disability awareness through comedy, and performs her award-winning work at some of the industry’s hottest clubs (the Hollywood Improv and the San Francisco Punchline) and has shared the stage with some of its biggest names (Dave Chappelle).

The Comedians with Disabilities Act will be joined by special guests Steve Lee and Queenie TT.   Steve Lee, a Hong Kong native, originally came to the US as an exchange student.  His comedy integrates his experiences as a first generation Asian American with a disability.  Queenie is a motivational speaker and a body esteem educator with lymphedema.  Combining comedy with motivational speech, Queenie empowers women to make healthier choices for their lives by embracing the power of self-love.

The show will be hosted and produced by local standup comic, Tim Wolcott. Tim started his standup career in 2003 while attending Pacific Union College, where he also helped form the improv/sketch comedy group, Desperate 4 Attention. After a few years of the journeyman comic life, living in Los Angeles and Tampa, Tim returned to St. Helena’s restaurant scene and the San Francisco/Bay Area comedy scene in 2009. He has since performed at venues all over the bay area, including at San Francisco’s historic Purple Onion.  Tim began producing his own shows in June of 2013, at La Condesa in St. Helena.  This will be the second show he’s produced at Bui Bistro, a French/Vietnamese restaurant in downtown Napa.  The show begins at 7pm and has no cover.

If you’d like more information on this event, or to schedule interviews with any of the comedians please contact Nina G at NinaGbooking@gmail.com or Tim Wolcott at timwolcott79@gmail.com.