Who: Jeff Ross, Jessica Kirson, Alex Edelman, Jared Fried, Leah Forster, Gary Guz, T. J. Miller, Eric Tabach, Zarna Garg, Yohay Sponder, Ofer Shechter, Nissim Black, Kosha Dillz, Moshe Reuven, Laivy, Elon Gold, Modi
What: The Chosen Comedy Festival
Where: Coney Island Amphitheater, boardwalk at West Twenty-First St.
When: Tuesday, August 16, $36-$500, doors at 6:30 (festival begins August 12)
Why: So a bunch of Jews walk onto a beach . . . There are a lot of directions for that joke to take, but in fact it’s the setup for a special show at the Coney Island Amphitheater on August 16 as part of Stand Up NY’s inaugural Chosen Comedy Festival. The festival began August 12 at Stand Up NY on the Upper West Side and continues August 13 at 8:00 ($25) with Lauren Hope Krass, Raanan Hershberg, Tom Thakkar, Nicky Paris, Kosha Dillz, and Gianmarco Soresi, followed by a 10:00 showcase ($15) with Jonathan Randall, Nathan MacIntosh, Kosha Dillz, Pat Brown, Danny Polishchuk, and Dante Nero. On Monday night, August 15, at 8:00 ($25), Elon Gold and friends will celebrate with a “Kick Off Party” at Stand Up NY.
The main event, however, is in Coney Island on Tuesday night, a benefit for the Ukrainian Emergency Performing Arts Fund, an organization that “supports independent scene performing artists staying in Ukraine during the time of war.” Hosted by Gold and Modi, the show boasts comedy and music by an all-star lineup that includes Jeff Ross, Jessica Kirson, Alex Edelman, Jared Fried, Leah Forster, Gary Guz, T. J. Miller, Eric Tabach, Zarna Garg, Yohay Sponder, Ofer Shechter, Nissim Black, Kosha Dillz, Moshe Reuven, and Laivy. During the pandemic lockdown, Stand Up NY put on more than five hundred comedy shows in city parks; now they’re heading for the sun and sand to raise money for an important cause that is not very funny.