JAMESTOWN — The 25th annual Lucille Ball Comedy Festival opens Thursday with “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah, and comedians Lewis Black and Brian Regan set as featured entertainers for the four-day event.
Festival highlights also include a discussion with the Farrelly Brothers and the critically-acclaimed Story Pirates kids-comedy troupe, as well as a planned roundtable discussion with Kitty Bruce, Rain Pryor and Kelly Carlin, daughters of the comedy legends Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor and George Carlin.
In all, more than 50 events will be held at a dozen venues throughout Jamestown including three late night showcases, a Stand-Up Showcase free to members of the military past and present, and a special exhibition in honor of the 65th anniversary of “I Love Lucy.” Tickets can be purchased at www.lucycomedyfest.com or by calling the festival box office at 716-484-0800.
Black has appeared at the festival before — in 1991. He returns with his iconic ‘comedic yelling and finger pointing’ act on Thursday; while Noah will perform his stand-up act on Friday, and Regan will perform on Saturday.
Kliph Nesteroff, author of “The Comedians: Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels, and the History of American Comedy,” will moderate a discussion with the Farrelly Brothers, the minds behind such films as “Kingpin,” “There’s Something About Mary,” and “The Three Stooges.” Additionally, Bobby and Peter Farrelly will be bringing the iconic Mutt Cuts van from “Dumb and Dumber” to this year’s annual festival, which will then be incorporated into the future exhibit experience at the National Comedy Center.
“Lucille Ball’s vision was that Jamestown would become a destination for the celebration of all comedy and not just about her own legacy,” says Journey Gunderson, Executive Director of National Comedy Center, Inc. “This festival has done just that, attracting more than 10,000 visitors from over 40 states each year — a microcosm of what we will do with the National Comedy Center’s visitor attraction under construction now.”
The National Comedy Center, a non-profit cultural institution, recently announced the acquisition of the George Carlin archives for its collection. The Center is a $50 million project funded by public-private partnership and to date has been awarded more than $3.5 million from New York State, Empire State Development and I Love NY™. Design of the immersive, interactive visitor experience has been provided by renowned creative firm Jack Rouse Associates and interactive specialist Local Projects, who was recently awarded a Cannes International Creativity award for its work on the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.
The National Comedy Center, Inc. embodies Lucille Ball’s vision for her hometown of Jamestown to become a destination for the celebration all of the comedic arts. The organization operates the Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Museum, and for the last 25 years has produced the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival with performers including Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Joan Rivers, Ray Romano, Ellen DeGeneres, Bob Newhart, Paula Poundstone, The Smothers Brothers and more than 100 other comedic artists.
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