Comedians wonder how 2019 Laughing Skull Comedy Festival contest can exist in Atlanta without any black women

On Thursday, the Laughing Skull Comedy Festival announced the 60 comedians participating in the 10th annual stand-up comedy contest in Atlanta this May, and it didn’t take anyone too long to wonder what was wrong with that picture. As stand-up Sa…

Continue Reading

An improv comedy workshop for inclusion

Jess Kelley-Madera, an independent improv comedy coach, used to perform at the Reckless Theater in New York City until the joint closed when its founder acknowledged his pattern of inappropriate behavior. Kelley-Madera has studied at the UCB and curren…

Continue Reading

David Spade gets Comedy Central late night show in haunted time slot

Comedy Central will let David Spade host a late night show in their seemingly haunted 11:30 p.m. time slot. Spade will follow The Daily Show with Trevor Noah Monday through Thursday in the half-hour series. Since Stephen Colbert left Comedy Central to host The Late Show on CBS, no show has quite solidified itself at 11:30 on the comedy network. The David Spade late night show will feature the Saturday

The post David Spade gets Comedy Central late night show in haunted time slot appeared first on LaughSpin.

Continue Reading

CBS announces Diversity Sketch Comedy Showcase participants

CBS announced the 21 participants they have selected for their annual CBS Diversity Sketch Comedy Showcase. The performers will appear in six shows beginning January 15 at the El Portal Theatre in Los Angeles. The showcase has been a way for emerging talent to be seen by executives, showrunners and casting directors from CBS and other networks for over a decade. While the showcase has strived to highlight underrepresented groups,

Continue Reading

The American Meme: Netflix doc whitewashes meme culture (Opinion)

I have a secret. I love Vine. When Vine shut down last year, I turned to endless compilations of six-second comedy on YouTube. In the right circles, you will hear quotes like, “Stop. I could have dropped my croissant!” or, “Can I please get a waffle?” Which is probably why I was so excited for The American Meme. The Netflix documentary from director Bert Marcus came to the streaming platform last week

Continue Reading

The Nerdist School relaunching as The Ruby LA

The Nerdist School may be dying this Easter weekend, but it’ll rise from the dead next weekend as The Ruby LA, a new, more inclusive training center for comedians on Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard. The Ruby LA’s launch will coincide with a 12-hour comedy festival, The Ruby Assembly, on April 7, 2018. Jen Curran, Lindsey Barrow […]

Continue Reading

NBC announces Late Night Writers Workshop class of 2018

Congrats to the comedians and funny writers named today to NBC’s Late Night Writers Workshop, an annual program “focused on exposing talented sketch and comedy writers to NBCUniversal’s late night & alternative line-up and readying them for a staff writer position.” Alumni include Chelsea Davison (“The Opposition with Jordan Klepper”), Jenny Hagel (“Late Night with […]

Continue Reading

New Study Finds That Only 4.8% of TV Writers Are Black

A new study by a UCLA professor has resulted in some stunning proof that television still has a long, long way to go when it comes to diverse voices behind the camera. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the racial justice organization Color of Change has commissioned UCLA’s Darnell Hunt – who serves as dean of social […]

Continue Reading

The nightly late-night writing staffs for America’s TV talk shows in 2017

Something remarkable happened on Wednesday’s episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. It wasn’t one of the many game shows within Fallon’s talk shows, or something his musical guest performed, or anything from Fallon’s monologue or from his overly enthusiastic interactions with his guests. Nor was it even particularly funny. After Hillary Clinton, the woman […]

Continue Reading

StandUp NBC announces open call dates for 14th annual diversity talent search, with NBCUniversal holding deal as top prize

NBCUniversal’s 14th annual diversity talent search, StandUp NBC, is about to get underway, so mark your calendars for the following open call dates and locations. 2017 SCHEDULE  CHICAGO Open Call: June 10, 2017 Showcase: June 11, 2017 Laugh Factory 3175 N. Broadway Chicago, IL 60657 SAN FRANCISCO Open Call: July 8, 2017 Showcase: July 9, […]

Continue Reading