Blue Heaven 2024
Events
Blue Heaven 2024
Blue Heaven began with a question: how is comedy experienced through the lens of experimentalism? Or more plainly: who’s on the fringe of funny?
Over a long weekend in February, FringeArts welcomes the most exciting new voices in comedy to Philadelphia for provocative performances, multimedia stand-up, dynamic sketches, and more. Join us in Blue Heaven for a lineup of cutting-edge, genre-bending acts from the next generation of artists redefining contemporary comedy.
Lineup
Thursday, February 15 at 7pm
Crossroads Comedy Hour & Catholic Guilt
CROSSROADS COMEDY HOUR
Join FringeArts and Crossroads Comedy in welcoming Philadelphia favorites Betty Smithsonian, Tata Sherise, and Marcely Jean-Pierre for 3 sets of laugh-out-loud standup!
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Betty Smithsonian (she/her), Best of Philly Up and Coming Comedian 2019*. She is a comic, creator, performer, entertainer and award winning goof. She can be found telling jokes, parading in the streets, confidently speaking on topics she barely understands, and creating stages and spaces for lots of people all over the land. She was once named in the New York Times as a ‘free lance clown.’ She’s on stage regularly at Punchline and throughout the Philadelphia area. She can host your fundraiser, corporate event and/or seder. Her comedy has been described as high energy, life changing, authentic, and lacking any hot takes on boring current events. Co-founder Free Fringe Philly. #eattherich. Cast Member The N Crowd, Award winning short form improv comedy.
KELLY MCCAUGHAN: CATHOLIC GUILT
Nominee: Best Newcomer, Edinburgh Fringe (2023)
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Does daddy Jesus’s naked body on the cross make you wet? Spoiler alert: So will this show (No, seriously-there’s water)! So put on your waterproof panties and get ready to unpack losing our virginity in the most holy way, abortion, a bowling experience that leads to eternal damnation and much more.
Through audience participation, cringy personal recounts, and stand-up adjacent clowny performance, Kelly’s poignant, subversive, hilarious show exposes the impossible standards of Catholicism. We will laugh. We will sin. Will we make it to hell together?
Directed by Kyle Metzger.
★★★★ “This full bore counter-ritual of a one-woman show is something of a revelation (…) fusion of performance art, burlesque, one-woman bildungsroman, and outrage comedy, ‘Catholic Guilt’ is brilliantly performed, genuinely shocking (not an easy feat at the Fringe), and a work of extraordinary boldness.” — The Wee Review
★★★★ “Catholic Guilt is a raunchy, unhinged clapback at every sexual and social hang-up instilled by years of religious indoctrination, which makes for an outrageously entertaining hour.” — Chortle
Kelly McCaughan (HBO, Apple TV+) is an actor, writer, comedian, clown, and theater-maker. Kelly started her career doing comedy with the award-winning sketch comedy group, High Dramma and has performed in comedy festivals in NYC, Montreal, Philly, Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Los Angeles. She was a cast member of Bye Bye Liver: The Drinking Play and her critically acclaimed show, Catholic Guilt (writer, producer, actor), was nominated for best newcomer with the 2023 ISH Edinburgh Comedy Awards. She has a B.A. in theater and studied clowning with the internationally renowned Aitor Basauri, Bouffon with the critically acclaimed Eric Davis, and Improv at Upright Citizens Brigade. www.kelly-mccaughan.
Friday, February 16 at 7pm
Martin Urbano & Stamptown
MARTIN URBANO: APOLOGY COMEBACK TOUR
Nominee: Best Newcomer, Edinburgh Fringe (2023)
Martin Urbano spent his long, lucky career talking about saying anything he wanted. Then allegations surfaced and he stepped out of the spotlight, promising to take a long time to listen.
Now he’s back.
Martin tackles his allegations (and much more) in this long-awaited apology comeback show. He shares his humorous musings on being cancelled, woke Twitter mobs and Uber.
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★★★★★ “Definitely a show that won’t appeal to everyone” Voice Mag
★★★★★ “Sensationally good… 60 minutes of stand-up gold” The Q Review
★★★★ “Knowingly unacceptable jokes” The Times
★★★★ “A sleazy, toxic edge lord with ‘ironically’ sexist, racist and homophobic material” Chortle
★★★★ “You may not like the character of Martin Urbano once this hour is up” The List
Martin Urbano Bio
Martin has written for The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, The Chris Gethard Show, Danny Brown’s show on Viceland and National Lampoon’s Radio Hour. As a standup, he has been seen on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Comedy Central’s Featured, the CW’s Howie Mandel Gala, and This Joka presented by Will Smith (pre-slap). Martin was a New Face at Just For Laughs, named one of Vulture’s Top Comedians You Should Know back in 2019, and has performed at Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, New York Comedy Festival, and the Boston Calling Music Festival
STAMPTOWN COMEDY NIGHT
Top Comedy Pick: New York Times (2022)
The sold-out hit from Edinburgh Fringe returns to Philly! A raunchy, chaotic, full-on fever dream, Stamptown is 90 minutes of pure spectacle featuring the most anarchic and wildly entertaining performance from around the world.
Hosted by the bad boy of clown, Zach Zucker, this show has packed out rooms at Just For Laughs, Netflix Is A Joke, Glastonbury, Edinburgh Fringe, Soho Theatre, Melbourne International Comedy Festival, O2 Arena and Off-Broadway in New York City. Each Stamptown variety act is a totally new show — attend both Friday & Saturday night shows for the full Stamptown experience.
Featuring: Zach Zucker (MC), Courtney Pauroso, Ike Ufomadu, Erin Farrington, Martin Urbano, GiGi Holliday, Jeremy Elder, Addie Weyrich, Cory Peter Lane, Kylie Brakeman, Asher Treleaven, Trevor Livingston, and Natalie Palamides!
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Past acts include David Cross, Reggie Watts, Hannah Einbinder, Aisling Bea, Karen Gillan, Jamie Demetriou, Lolly Adefope, Tom Walker, Natalie Palamides, Cat Cohen, Neil Hamburger, Sarah Squirm, BriTANicK, Mae Martin, Sandy Honig, Randy Feltface and MORE.
★★★★★ “The past, present and future of live entertainment rolled into one magnificently anarchic package” Steve Bennett, Chortle
★★★★★ An absolutely insane night of comedy that is impossible to replicate, which is what makes it such an appealing show to come back to” Broadway World
★ “As funny as anthrax” Dick Bath, Scottish Field
Saturday, February 17 at 7pm
Amusements + Vanessa 5000
AMUSEMENTS BY IKECHUKWU UFOMADU
Vulture’s Comedians You Should Know (2022)
Emmy-nominated comedian and “gentleman-scholar of alt-comedy” Ikechukwu Ufomadu seeks to provide you, the audience, with the finest Amusements he can muster.
Watch as this actor, entertainer and avant-garde soothsayer pursues this goal with serene diligence, defying genre while operating within the bounds of international law.
His signature use of the time-tested tools of words, music, and light multimedia are sure to usher you oh-so-gently into a haze of mirthful absurdity.
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★★★★★ “A thrilling masterclass in bafflement” Voice Mag
★★★★ “Magnificently befuddling satire” Time Out
★★★★ “A fresh, funny act, at once very clever and very silly” Telegraph
★★★★ “Endearingly nonsensical” Guardian
★★★★ “A bizarre and almost unsettling hour” The List
Ike Ufomadu Bio
Ikechukwu Ufomadu is an Emmy-nominated and Drama Desk Award-winning actor, writer and comedian, named a “Comedian You Should and Will Know” by Vulture/New York Magazine and a “Comic to Look Out For” by Time Out New York.
He co-wrote and stars in the indie comedy feature Inspector Ike (BRIC/Factory 25), which won the Jury Prize at the New Orleans Film Festival. He also co-wrote and stars in the short-form series Words with Ike (FX) which was recognized with an Emmy nomination for Best Actor in a Short Form Series.
He recently wrote for the late night series Ziwe (Showtime) and has also written for the Emmy-nominated Tooning Out The News (Paramount Plus) and Paid Off (TruTV).
As an actor, he can be seen in the Oscar-nominated Judas and the Black Messiah (Warner Bros), Los Espookys (HBO), Three Busy Debras, Joe Pera Talks With You (Adult Swim) and more. He was in the world premiere production of Clare Barron’s Dance Nation. As a comedian, he’s performed at venues including The Kennedy Center, SXSW, The Public Theater, Joe’s Pub, Ars Nova, Bushwick Starr, JACK, Netflix Is A Joke and San Francisco Sketchfest.
COURTNEY PAUROSO: VANESSA 5000
Following sold out runs in New York, London, and Edinburgh, LA clown Courtney Pauroso returns as sex robot Vanessa 5000, who — over the course of her product demonstration — grows increasingly conflicted about technology, modernity and her own existence. Directed by Corey Podell.
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★★★★★ “Late-night Fringe entertainment at its best” Comic’s Comic
★★★★ “A masterful, athletic physical performance” Telegraph
★★★★ “Brilliantly bold” Time Out
★★★★ “A powerhouse performance” Chortle
★★★★ “Intensely physical and unexpectedly moving” Fest Mag
★★★★ “Absurdly sexy and completely bonkers” Edfringe Review
Courtney Pauroso Bio
Courtney Pauroso is an award-winning actor, writer and comedian based in LA. She co-wrote and appeared in Two Pink Doors, a series of 5-minute shorts for FX, directed by Dr. Brown, and has several television projects in development with long time collaborator Natalie Palamides, including a series produced by Mark Duplass. She was a series regular on Like & Subscribe, and has also appeared in Jackass Forever, Reno 911, Key & Peele, 2 Broke Girls, Florida Girls, The Opening Act, and Dogleg. She is a former member of the Groundlings Sunday Company and Washington D.C.’s internationally renowned physical theatre company Synetic Theater.
Saturday, February 17 at 10:15pm
Stamptown
STAMPTOWN COMEDY NIGHT
Top Comedy Pick: New York Times (2022)
The sold-out hit from Edinburgh Fringe returns to Philly! A raunchy, chaotic, full-on fever dream, Stamptown is 90 minutes of pure spectacle featuring the most anarchic and wildly entertaining performance from around the world.
Hosted by the bad boy of clown, Zach Zucker, this show has packed out rooms at Just For Laughs, Netflix Is A Joke, Glastonbury, Edinburgh Fringe, Soho Theatre, Melbourne International Comedy Festival, O2 Arena and Off-Broadway in New York City. Each Stamptown variety act is a totally new show — attend both Friday & Saturday night shows for the full Stamptown experience.
Featuring: Zach Zucker (MC), Courtney Pauroso, Ike Ufomadu, Erin Farrington, Martin Urbano, GiGi Holliday, Jeremy Elder, Addie Weyrich, Cory Peter Lane, Kylie Brakeman, Asher Treleaven, Trevor Livingston, and Natalie Palamides!
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Past acts include David Cross, Reggie Watts, Hannah Einbinder, Aisling Bea, Karen Gillan, Jamie Demetriou, Lolly Adefope, Tom Walker, Natalie Palamides, Cat Cohen, Neil Hamburger, Sarah Squirm, BriTANicK, Mae Martin, Sandy Honig, Randy Feltface and MORE.
★★★★★ “The past, present and future of live entertainment rolled into one magnificently anarchic package” Steve Bennett, Chortle
★★★★★ An absolutely insane night of comedy that is impossible to replicate, which is what makes it such an appealing show to come back to” Broadway World
★ “As funny as anthrax” Dick Bath, Scottish Field
Sunday, February 18 at 12pm-4pm
Listen for Laughs: Clown Workshop with Zach Zucker
LISTEN FOR LAUGHS: CLOWN WORKSHOP with ZACH ZUCKER
Often times we enter with such strong ideas that we forget about the most important thing in the room — the audience. We either go too fast without letting them join in or we do too much and scare them off. If you let them, the audience will guide your creative process and tell you exactly what to do.
In this workshop we focus on reading the room by slowing down, unpacking every moment, and listening for the laughs to tell us where to go. Through a series of playful exercises, games and improvised scenes, you’ll be encouraged to take risks, be impulsive, leave your bad ideas at the door, and organically build towards creating a repeatable routine onstage.
This class is for total beginners and experienced performers — you just gotta be cool with looking silly.
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ZACH ZUCKER is an award-winning performer and producer who’s been touring the international comedy circuit for the past decade.
He is the creator of Stamptown, the alter-ego of New York’s greatest comedian Jack Tucker, and one half of Norwegian-American clown duo, Zach & Viggo. Zach has sold out shows at Netflix Is A Joke, Just For Laughs, Glastonbury, Soho Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe, O2 Arena, Comedy Central, Melbourne International Comedy Festival, the West End at The London Palladium and Off-Broadway in New York City.
As a producer he’s worked with acts such as Jordan Gray, Randy Feltface, Michelle Brasier, BriTANicK, Courtney Pauroso, Martin Urbano, Ike Ufomadu, Séayoncé and many more, with the production company receiving three Edinburgh Comedy Award Nominations and one MICF Best Show Nomination in the past two years.
He will appear in the TBS reboot of The Joe Schmo Show, stars alongisde Kiernan Shipka in the MAX feature film Sweethearts, and recently wrapped an upcoming indie horror film Eugene The Marine alongside Jim Gaffigan.
He is a graduate of École Philippe Gaulier in France, frequently collaborates with funk-punk group, Thumpasaurus, and has taught clown workshops at UCB, The Groundling and Second City.
ACCOLADES
Vulture’s Top Comedians You Should Know (2023)
Comedian’s Comedian Award, Chortle Awards (Jack Tucker)
Top Comedy Pick, British Comedy Guide (Jack Tucker)
Top 10 Shows of 2019, Chortle (Jack Tucker)
New York Times Top Comedy Pick (Stamptown)
Evening Standard Top Comedy Pick (Stamptown)
Best Late Night Show In London, Chortle Awards (Stamptown)
Best Comedy Award, Adelaide Fringe (Zach & Viggo)
Best Comedy Award, Brighton Fringe (Zach & Viggo)
Critics Choice Award, Brighton Fringe (Zach & Viggo)
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