SF Sketchfest kicks off 22nd edition with packed weekend of comedy
The 22nd edition SF Sketchfest brings together another stellar line-up of talent to 12 venues for 19 days of hilarious improvisation, live podcasts, tributes, stand-up and ensemble comedy over the course of nearly 200 shows.
Plenty of national names will be making appearances this year as SF Sketchfest presents such television and film legends as the sold-out opening night tribute to comedian and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" actor JB Smoove, a rare appearance with actor, writer and filmmaker Albert Brooks, "Saturday Night Live" veteran and comic acting great Bill Murray performing with his cover band Blood Brothers, iconic pop music parodist "Weird" Al Yankovic, the entire cast of groundbreaking sketch comedy shows "The Kids in the Hall" and "The State" -- who appear collectively and in a variety of combinations -- and actor and singer Tim Curry (The Rocky Horror Picture Show, It, Legend) appearing in conversation with legendary local drag queen Peaches Christ. There will also be tributes to such talents as actors Kathryn Hahn and Richard Kind, live script readings of the film Airplane! and Napoleon Dynamite, salutes to the television shows "Futurama" and "Childrens Hospital," a wide array of staged podcasts and talk shows, appearances by stand-up talents Will Durst, Todd Barry, Dulcé Sloan, Brendan Scannell, Todd Glass, Moshe Kasher and Natasha Leggero and a sold-out show by "Flight of the Conchords" actor Rhys Darby, celebrated improv troupes The Upright Citizens Brigade, The Groundlings and SF favorites Killing My Lobster.
The fest kicks off a packed opening weekend Thursday evening with a mix of stand-up and sketch improv showcases at the Eclectic Box in the Mission District and the Lost Church in North Beach as well as sold-out events BriTANicK at the Great Star Theatre featuring founders Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher with guest Demi Adejuyigbe Is Going To Do One (1) Backflip and the Cobb's Comedy Club appearance by JB Smoove in conversation with fellow comedic actor Gary Anthony Williams.
One of the highlights of the Friday schedule is Porchlight: A Storytelling Series, the long-running San Francisco event hosted by writer/editor Arline Klatt and author/actress Beth Lisick. This year's show at the Great American Music Hall will include stories told by musician Merill Garbus of experimental Oakland music project tUnE-yArDs, actors Michael Hitchcock and Gary Anthony Williams, Bay Area funk icons Dawn Silva and Gail Muldrow, author and writer/executive producer of the Netflix show "Unbelievable" Ayelet Waldman and special effects artist and former "MythBusters" host Adam Savage with music from Red Room Orchestra band leader Marc Capelle (Fri/17, 8 p.m. $30-$35). Additional Friday shows include the Groundlings' improvisational show Cookin' with GAS based on audience suggestions at the Gateway Theatre special guest Ana Gasteyer.(Fri/17, 8 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. $47-$58) and Jack Tucker's raunchy and raucous over-the-top burlesque chaos show Stamptown at Club Fugazi (Fri/17, 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. $49.50-$58; Tucker does his own surreal stand-up at the venue the following evening). Another returning event is the hit variety show Asian AF -- a regular draw at the UCB Theatres in New York and Los Angeles -- that features show creator Will Choi and two dozen stand-up and sketch comedy talents at the Great Star Theater (1/17, 9:30 p.m. $37-$48).
Saturday presents the 22nd edition's first full day of entertainment, starting with a sold-out afternoon live read of the disaster parody classic Airplane! at the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre. A preposterous, gag-a-minute spoof of the popular '70s Airport disaster film series, the 1980 hit was co-written and directed by Jim Abrahams and brothers David and Jerry Zucker. Having already made their mark with the 1977 sketch comedy film Kentucky Fried Movie, the team focused the b-movie parody approach of that effort on Airplane! to great commercial and critical success, paving the way for later creative endeavors Top Secret! and the Naked Gun movies. Already the subject of last year's oral history book -- "Surely You Can't Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane!" -- the movie's 45th anniversary is marked by this live reading of the script featuring lead actor Robert Hays, the Zucker Brothers and unannounced guests at the Palace . Unfortunately, lead actress Julie Hagerty will not be appearing due to the recent fires in Los Angeles.
Other early attractions on Saturday include Moshe Kasher and his comic wife Natasha Leggero offering relationship advice with a staging of their podcast The Endless Honeymoon with guests Rachel Dratch ("Saturday Night Live," "King of Queens") and Simon Helberg ("Poker Face," Annette) at the Great Star Theater (Sat/18, 4 p.m. $46) and two sold-out shows with always hilarious Celebrity Autobiography at Cobb's. Featuring a line-up of actors and comics reading verbatim excerpts from the memoirs of various rock stars and Oscar winners the show includes creators Dayle Reyfel and Eugene Pack along with noted actors Pamela Adlon, Richard Kind, Ralph Macchio, Cedric Yarbrough and Jennifer Tilly and original "SNL" cast member Laraine Newman.
Saturday evening's programming includes more sold-out events with a pair of performances by rising comedian Chris Fleming at the Great American (with third show also sold out on Sunday) and an edition of Theme Park Improv at the Great Star Theater where the cast including Simon Helberg ("The Big Bang Theory"), Michael Hitchcock("Best in Show"), John Michael Higgins ("Pitch Perfect"), "Glee" co-creator Ian Brennan, "SNL" alumni Dratch and Gasteyer, Jessica Makinson ("South Park"), Oscar Nuñez ("The Office"), and SF Sketchfest founders Cole Stratton (Pop My Culture podcast) and Janet Varney ("Stan Against Evil") take a single suggestion of a theme from the audience, and extemporaneously create an entire set of fast-paced long-form scenes and characters. The show will also feature special guest monologist Kevin Pollak ("The Usual Suspects").
Sunday afternoon's schedule begins at 1 p.m. with another sold-out event, The Groundlings: 50th Anniversary All-Star Improv Show and Panel at the Great Star Theater featuring alumni from the comedy collective spanning across decades including Gasteyer, Nuñez, Newman, Hitchcock, Newman, David Crabb, Phil LaMarr, Mindy Sterling, and Julia Sweeney. Other early highlights include the improvised freewheeling take on current events Journos: A Stream of Consciousness News Hour with Brandon R. Reynolds and Stephen Jackson at the Lost Church (Sun/19, 3 p.m. $25), San Francisco political satiriest Will Durst headlining at the Punch Line (Sun/19, 4 p.m. $30.75) and the tribute to character actor Richard Kind (Argo, Inside Out, "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Only Murders in the Building") in conversation with Pollak at Cobb's (Sun/19, 4 p.m. $37).
Later shows include the the popular podcasts Hello from the Magic Tavern and The Flop House: A Podcast About Bad Movies and a sold-out 20th anniversary script reading of the cult classic film Napoleon Dynamite at the Great Star with original cast members Jon Heder, Efren Ramirez, Jon Gries, Tina Majorino and Diedrich Bader along with special guests. For more information on the SF Sketchfest including the full schedule and tickets, visit the festival's website.
