The first signs of a post-pandemic spring for live entertainment have arrived with news that the Asian Comedy Fest will return for a live/digital hybrid event.
Billed as “a comedy festival with Asians,” the happening — which debuted in 2020 — will unfold in Brooklyn with contributions from Rizzle, a TikTok-esque video sharing platform, on May 27.
Among this year’s confirmed performers are comics Fumi Abe and Mic Nguyen, Michael Cruz Kayne, Bryan Yang, Usama Siddiquee, Fareeha Khan, Youngmi Mayer and Dylan Adler.
The fest is also mounting a contest this year, welcoming submissions from “pan-Asian creators” via Rizzle. Winners will air on the livestream and receive a cash prize.
The show will also feature a dramatic reading of Bling Empire, which will feature Saturday Night Live‘s Bowen Yang.
This year’s festival comes amid a sharp rise in anti-Asian violence, including the March 16 Atlanta spa shootings, which killed eight, six of them Asian women. “Stop Asian Hate” rallies have since sprung up around the country.
