Best of SF Comedy Competition
Event Location
Marin Center Showcase Theater
20 Avenue of the Flags
San Rafael, CA 94903-5204
20 Avenue of the Flags
San Rafael, CA 94903-5204
Event Description
Price: $40 (Marin Center Fees Included)
Ticket Info: https://tickets.marincenter.org/eventperformances.asp?evt=376
THE APRIL FOOLS —
Approaching its 50th anniversary, the San Francisco Stand-up Comedy Competition enjoys a talent pool of past participants that numbers well over a thousand.
“We do our best to stay in touch with our alumni throughout their subsequent careers,” says Jon Fox of Fox Family Productions, “We meet them in their 20s and continue presenting the most worthy for decades thereafter.”
Many hilarious acts do not end up in Hollywood or New York due to day job and/or family situations but Fox nonetheless keeps track of the best. In the case of headliner Mike Baldwin, after making the finals in SF and then winning the sister event in Seattle, he relocated to The Big Apple for a time only to return to Wichita when his grandmother needed him.
Fox is excited about bringing him back to close this outstanding four-act show.
Mike Baldwin simply goes out night after night and delivers top notch comedy. His style is instantly likable, entirely personal and it highlights his attention to detail. His material is crisp and efficient and he supplements that material with subtle but perfect facial expressions, vocal inflections and a genuine smile.
Mike won the grueling, 3-week-long Seattle International Comedy Competition, as well as Indianapolises’s Trial By Laughter. He has three comedy albums: “Bees Can Taste With Their Feet”, “Front To Back”, and “#1 Top Selling Best Comedy Special EVER!!”, all of which shot up the charts online. Mike is best appreciated in person. He is one of the best live acts you will see this year!
OPENING ACT
Marcus Williams is a stand-up comedian cleverly disguised as a structural engineer—because health insurance doesn’t come with a two-drink minimum. A finalist in the 2023 San Francisco International Comedy Competition (he didn’t win, but he made everyone nervous), Marcus has hit the stage at the San Francisco Punchline, Cobb’s Comedy Club, and countless other venues that had a microphone, a light, and questionable fire safety codes. He’s performed in New York, Denver, and pretty much anywhere willing to exchange laughs for stage time. He’s funny as hell—like “laugh so hard you snort in front of a date”.
OUR HOSTESS WITH THE MOSTEST
Candy Shaw (née Churilla) began her comedy career studying improv with Chapel Hill NC’s Transactors Improv Company while also performing in scripted projects. After producing and starring in her play “Sex, Drugs, and Dinner,” she moved to the Bay Area. An improv friend encouraged her to try standup at San Francisco’s legendary BrainWash Cafe open mike. She kept performing and appeared on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” and placed 3rd in California’s Funniest Female Contest. She has opened for Mark Curry, Will Durst, Bobcat Goldthwait, Marga Gomez, Rob Schneider, and Tom Segura.
SF COMEDY COMPETITION PREVIEW
Cathy Zhao is an English-Mandarin bilingual standup comedian based in San Francisco. She blends history, politics, pop culture, and technology trends with her immigrant experience, crafting a unique comedy style. She opened multiple times for Margaret Cho, Natasha Leggero, Bob Nelson, Joe Wong, Will Durst, Crystal Marie, and more. She won Second Place in the East Bay Comedy Competition, and was a finalist in the Rooster Feathers Comedy Competition. She performed all over the world at the most well-known comedy clubs and theaters such as Gotham, SF Punchline, Improv, Laugh Factory. She was the first comedian to perform at SF FBI headquarters.
Ticket Info: https://tickets.marincenter.org/eventperformances.asp?evt=376
THE APRIL FOOLS —
Approaching its 50th anniversary, the San Francisco Stand-up Comedy Competition enjoys a talent pool of past participants that numbers well over a thousand.
“We do our best to stay in touch with our alumni throughout their subsequent careers,” says Jon Fox of Fox Family Productions, “We meet them in their 20s and continue presenting the most worthy for decades thereafter.”
Many hilarious acts do not end up in Hollywood or New York due to day job and/or family situations but Fox nonetheless keeps track of the best. In the case of headliner Mike Baldwin, after making the finals in SF and then winning the sister event in Seattle, he relocated to The Big Apple for a time only to return to Wichita when his grandmother needed him.
Fox is excited about bringing him back to close this outstanding four-act show.
Mike Baldwin simply goes out night after night and delivers top notch comedy. His style is instantly likable, entirely personal and it highlights his attention to detail. His material is crisp and efficient and he supplements that material with subtle but perfect facial expressions, vocal inflections and a genuine smile.
Mike won the grueling, 3-week-long Seattle International Comedy Competition, as well as Indianapolises’s Trial By Laughter. He has three comedy albums: “Bees Can Taste With Their Feet”, “Front To Back”, and “#1 Top Selling Best Comedy Special EVER!!”, all of which shot up the charts online. Mike is best appreciated in person. He is one of the best live acts you will see this year!
OPENING ACT
Marcus Williams is a stand-up comedian cleverly disguised as a structural engineer—because health insurance doesn’t come with a two-drink minimum. A finalist in the 2023 San Francisco International Comedy Competition (he didn’t win, but he made everyone nervous), Marcus has hit the stage at the San Francisco Punchline, Cobb’s Comedy Club, and countless other venues that had a microphone, a light, and questionable fire safety codes. He’s performed in New York, Denver, and pretty much anywhere willing to exchange laughs for stage time. He’s funny as hell—like “laugh so hard you snort in front of a date”.
OUR HOSTESS WITH THE MOSTEST
Candy Shaw (née Churilla) began her comedy career studying improv with Chapel Hill NC’s Transactors Improv Company while also performing in scripted projects. After producing and starring in her play “Sex, Drugs, and Dinner,” she moved to the Bay Area. An improv friend encouraged her to try standup at San Francisco’s legendary BrainWash Cafe open mike. She kept performing and appeared on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing” and placed 3rd in California’s Funniest Female Contest. She has opened for Mark Curry, Will Durst, Bobcat Goldthwait, Marga Gomez, Rob Schneider, and Tom Segura.
SF COMEDY COMPETITION PREVIEW
Cathy Zhao is an English-Mandarin bilingual standup comedian based in San Francisco. She blends history, politics, pop culture, and technology trends with her immigrant experience, crafting a unique comedy style. She opened multiple times for Margaret Cho, Natasha Leggero, Bob Nelson, Joe Wong, Will Durst, Crystal Marie, and more. She won Second Place in the East Bay Comedy Competition, and was a finalist in the Rooster Feathers Comedy Competition. She performed all over the world at the most well-known comedy clubs and theaters such as Gotham, SF Punchline, Improv, Laugh Factory. She was the first comedian to perform at SF FBI headquarters.
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