The Portland Queer Comedy Festival is an annual five-day comedy festival that takes place in Portland, Oregon. [1] [2] [3] Multiple venues are used throughout the festival's stretch, and upwards of 50 comedians perform. [4] [5] [6] Comics such as Bruce Villanch, Irene Tu, Mary Jane French, Danielle Radford, [7] Guy Branum, [8] Jeffery Jay, [9] [10] Corina Lucas, [11] Scott Thompson, [12] and James Adomian have participated. [13] [14] [15] Drag queens such as Valerie DeVille and Bolivia Carmicheals have hosted bingo games as part of the fest. [16]
The festival was founded in 2017 by comedian Belinda Carroll [17] [18] and entertainment venue owner Andy Barrett, both queer activists. [19] [20] [21] [22]
The fest includes traditional standup showcases, industry panels, podcasts, drag bingo, parody game shows, and strip shows. [23] [24] [25]
Peterson Toscano is a playwright, actor, Bible scholar, blogger, podcaster, advocate against global warming, and for gay rights activist. Toscano spent nearly two decades undergoing ex-gay treatment and conversion therapy before accepting his sexual orientation and coming out as a gay man. He has since shared his experiences internationally through various media outlets, especially plays. His talks and performances use comedy and storytelling to explore LGBTQ issues, religion, and climate change.
Matthew Glave is an American film and television actor best known for his roles in The Wedding Singer, Picket Fences, Baby's Day Out, ER, Stargate SG-1, Army Wives, Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce, and Angie Tribeca.
A comedy festival is a celebration of comedy with many shows, venues, comedy performers and is held over a specific block of time. Normally, each festival has a diverse range of comedy themes and genres.
Funny or Die is a comedy video website and film/television production company owned by Henry R. Muñoz III that was founded by Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Mark Kvamme, and Chris Henchy. The website contained exclusive material from a regular staff of in-house writers, producers and directors, and occasionally from a number of famous contributors including Judd Apatow, James Franco and Norm Macdonald. The associated production company continues to make TV shows including truTV's Billy on the Street, Comedy Central's @midnight and Zach Galifianakis' web series Between Two Ferns.
James Adomian is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and impressionist. He is best known for his work on Comedy Bang! Bang!, Chapo Trap House, Last Comic Standing, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson where he impersonated President George W. Bush until 2009, and for portraying Bernie Sanders during the 2016 Trump vs. Bernie tour. He voices Talking Ben in the Talking Tom and Friends animated series.
David Joshua Rubin is an American conservative political commentator. He is the creator and host of The Rubin Report, a political talk show on YouTube and on the network BlazeTV. Launched in 2013, his show was originally part of TYT Network, until he left in 2015, in part due to widening ideological differences. Previously, Rubin hosted LGBT-themed talk shows, including The Ben and Dave Show from 2007 to 2008 and The Six Pack from 2009 to 2012, both of which he co-hosted with Ben Harvey.
Myq Kaplan is an American stand-up comedian. Born Michael Kaplan in Livingston, New Jersey, he is based in Boston and New York City.
LGBT culture in Portland, Oregon is an important part of Pacific Northwest culture.
The Bridgetown Comedy Festival is a stand-up comedy festival located in the Hawthorne district of Portland, Oregon that took place every spring from 2008 to 2017, featuring standup comedy showcases, live podcasts, panel discussions and improv comedy. It was created in October 2007 by comedians Andy Wood and Matt Braunger and filmmaker Kimberly Brady.
Bossanova Ballroom is an event space and former theater located at 722 East Burnside Street in Portland, Oregon's Buckman neighborhood, in the United States. It features a dance floor, two stages and bars, and a game room. The venue has hosted comedy shows, and the queer event Blow Pony.
Kevin Bertin, better known by the stage name Monét X Change, is an American drag queen, singer, podcaster, and reality television personality. She is known for competing on the tenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race (2018), on which she placed sixth and won Miss Congeniality, and for winning the fourth season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (2018–2019) along with Trinity the Tuck. She later returned to compete in the seventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, an all-winners season. Monét X Change released her debut EP, Unapologetically, in 2019. Later that year, she debuted her own web talk show The X Change Rate, on the BUILD Series. She is a staple for many Drag Race-related domestic and international tours, such as Werq the World, A Drag Queen Christmas, and Drive 'N Drag.
Funny Story is a 2018 tragicomedy film, directed by Michael J. Gallagher and co-written by Gallagher and Steve Greene. It stars Matthew Glave, Emily Bett Rickards and Jana Winternitz. The film premiered as an official selection at the 2018 Slamdance Film Festival on January 21, 2018.
Holocene is a music venue and nightclub in the Buckman neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, in the United States. The venue, which opened in June 2003, is a former auto-parts warehouse with an industrial, modern interior. Holocene hosts a variety of events, and was named the city's "Best Place to Dance" by Willamette Week readers in 2017.
Dana Goldberg is an American comedian. She is especially known in the gay community, as Goldberg herself is gay. She is a weekly guest on The Stephanie Miller Show on SiriusXM and hosts her own podcast, Out in Left Field With Dana Goldberg on Advocate.com. She hosts an annual show in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In 2013, she was named a finalist in the Advocate's Stand Out: The National Queer Comedy Search. In 2017, she hosted the Los Angeles Resist March. Also in 2017, she performed at Trevor Live in New York City on a bill featuring John Oliver and Imagine Dragons. In 2019, she spoke at Lambda Legal's annual National Liberty Awards. In television, Goldberg has appeared on LOGO with her comedy special One Night Stand Up: Episode 4, filmed at San Francisco's Great American Music Hall.
Belinda Carroll is an American standup comedian, writer, activist, actress, and singer. She is the founder of the Portland Queer Comedy Festival, organizer of the Portland Dyke March, and is a co-organizer as well as date auction host and fundraiser emcee of the Butch Voices Portland Regional Conference.
Irene Tu is an American comedian, actor, and writer. She has appeared at comedy festivals such as SF Sketchfest, the Portland Queer Comedy Festival, Bridgetown Comedy Festival, and Comedy Central’s Clusterfest, and on shows such as Take My Wife and Funny How? In 2016, she was named one of KQED's Women to Watch and SFist listed her as one of the Bay Area’s 11 Best Stand Up Comics. In 2017, the San Francisco Chronicle dubbed her as an "artist on the brink of fame." In 2019, Vulture by New York Magazine placed her on their list The Comedians You Should and Will Know in 2019, tracking "23 comics that industry insiders are watching closely." The same year, SFist listed her as one of 13 San Francisco Standup Comedians to Go See Now.
Karinda Dobbins is an American comedian. She co-produces the monthly comedy show The Resistance! alongside Dhaya Lakshminarayanan, has regularly opened for W. Kamau Bell, and additionally opened for Trevor Noah, Gina Yashere, Michelle Wolf, and Dave Chappelle. She has performed at festivals such as the Desi Comedy Fest, the Portland Queer Comedy Festival, Bridgetown Comedy Festival, and Comedy Central's Colossal Clusterfest. In 2019, SFist named her one of their 13 San Francisco Standup Comedians to Go See Now.
Straight Up is a 2019 independent film written, produced and directed by James Sweeney. Sweeney stars in the film with Katie Findlay, Dana Drori, James Scully, Tracie Thoms, Betsy Brandt and Randall Park. The film premiered at the Outfest on July 23, 2019. The film was released in a limited release by Strand Releasing on February 28, 2020.
Kevin Cook, known by the stage name Poison Waters, is an American drag performer. Since the 1980s, she has been an emcee, entertainer, and community activist. She is a longtime hostess at Darcelle XV Showplace and has participated in fundraisers, LGBT events, public service announcements, and other community activities throughout the Pacific Northwest. Cook has also taught at Portland Community College.
Flawless Shade is the stage name of Tajh Jordan, an American drag queen and make-up artist based in Portland, Oregon. A former Miss Gay Oregon, Flawless Shade has been featured in campaigns by Adidas, GLAAD, and Top Level Design. Jordan competed on WOW Presents Plus's competition series Painted with Raven.
