Comedy Festivals of North America
Comedy Festivals of North America
compiled by Amy Martin, senior comedy critic, TheaterJones
To keep up with Amy’s comedy coverage in Dallas/North Texas, follow her Twitter feed.
major = local & regional w multiple national headliners
minor = mosty local & regional w 1 to 2 national headliners
minor = mosty local & regional w 1 to 2 national headliners
| Fest Name | Fest Notes | Month | Location | Website |
| Chicago Sketch Fest | major: improv, sketch | Jan | Chicago, IL | http://www.chicagosketchfest.com/ |
| Charleston Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup | Jan | Charleston, SC | http://www.charlestoncomedyfestival.com/ |
| Riot LA | major: improv, sketch, standup; panels | Jan | Los Angeles, CA | http://riotla.com/ |
| San Francisco Sketch Fest | major: improv, sketch, standup, vid/film; panels, podcasts, workshops | Jan | San Francisco, CA | http://sfsketchfest.com |
| San Diego Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup; competitions; panels, | Jan | San Diego, CA | http://www.sandiegocomedyfest.com/ |
| NC Comedy Arts Festival | major: improv, sketch, standup, vid/film; competitions; panels, podcasts, workshops | Jan | Raleigh/Durham, NC | http://www.nccomedyarts.com/ |
| Traverse City Winter Arts Comedy Festival | major: improv, sketch, standup; awards, workshops | Feb | Traverse City, MI | http://wintercomedy.org/ |
| Laughing Skull Comedy Festival | major: standup, contests, workshops | Mar | Atlanta, GA | http://www.laughingdevil.com/skullfestival/ |
| SXSW Comedy | minor: standup, video, workshops | Mar | Austin, TX | http://sxsw.com/comedy |
| Dallas Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup, workshops | Mar | Dallas, TX | http://www.dallascomedyfestival.com |
| Laughfest | minor: improv, sketch, standup, video | Mar | GrandRapids, MI | http://www.laughfestgr.org/ |
| Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch | Mar | Toronto, Canada | http://www.torontosketchfest.com/ |
| Green Gravel Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup, workshops | Mar | Toledo, OH | http://www.greengravelcomedyfest.com/ |
| Moontower Comedy & Oddity Fest | major: improv, sketch, vid/film; panels, podcasts | Apr | Austin, TX | http://www.comedymoontower.com/ |
| LAughter Fest | minor: improv, sketch, standup, vid/film; competitions; panels, podcasts | Apr-May | Los Angeles, CA | http://www.lacomedyfest.com/ |
| Women in Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup; panels, workshops | May | Boston, MA | http://www.womenincomedyfestival.com/ |
| Canadian Int’l Comedy Festival | major: standup | May | Toronto, Canada | http://cmw.net/comedy/ |
| Bridgetown Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup | May | Portland, OR | http://bridgetowncomedy.com/ |
| Vince Vaughan’s Wild West Comedy Festival | major: standup, vid/film; podcasts | May | Nashville, TN | http://www.wildwestcomedyfestival.com |
| Limestone Comedy Festival | major: improv, sketch, standup; podcasts | May | Bloomington, IN | http://www.limestonefest.com/ |
| 26th Annual Comedy Festival | major: standup; podcasts | Jun | Chicago, IL | http://www.26comedy.com/ |
| Great American Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup; awards, competitions | Jun | Norfolk, NE | http://www.greatamericancomedyfestival.com/ |
| East Texas Comedy Festival | major: improv, sketch, standup; competition | Jun | Tyler, TX | https://www.facebook.com/EastTexasComedyFestival |
| Just For Laughs | major: improv, sketch, standup, vid/film; podcasts | Jul | Montreal, Canada | http://www.hahaha.com/en |
| Lucille Ball Festival of Comedy | minor: sketch, standup | Aug | Jamestown, NY | http://www.lucycomedyfest.com/ |
| Brooklyn Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup | Aug | Brooklyn, NY | http://bkcomedyfestival.com/ |
| High Plains Comedy Festival | minor: sketch, standup; podcasts | Aug | Denver, CO | http://highplainscomedyfestival.com/ |
| Out of Bounds Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch; workshops | Sep | Austin, TX | http://www.outofboundscomedy.com/ |
| Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival | major: improv, sketch, standup; panels, podcasts | Sep | Brooklyn, NY | http://eugenemirman.com/ |
| Just For Laughs | major: improv, sketch, standup, vid/film; podcasts | Sep | Toronto, Canada | http://www.jfl42.com/ |
| Big Little Comedy Fest | minor: improv, sketch, standup | Sep | Cleveland, OH | http://www.biglittlecomedy.com/big-little-comedy-fest.html |
| Cabo Comedy Festival | major: standup; competitions, awards | Oct | Cabo San Lucas, Mexico | http://cabocomedyfestival.com/ |
| Festival Supreme | major: sketch, standup, vid/film | Oct | Santa Monica, CA | http://festivalsupreme.com/ |
| 10,000 Laughs Comedy Festival | minor: sketch, standup | Oct | Minneapolis, MN | http://10000laughs.com/ |
| New York Comedy Festival | major: sketch, standup, vid/film | Nov | New York City, NY | http://www.nycomedyfestival.com/ |
| Comedy Day in the Park | minor: improv, sketch, standup | Nov | San Francisco, CA | http://comedyday.org/ |
| Cleveland Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup; competitions | Nov | Cleveland, OH | http://www.clevelandcomedyfestival.com/ |
| Boston Comedy Festival | minor: improv, sketch, standup, vid/film; awards,competitions | Nov | Boston, MA | http://bostoncomedyfest.com/ |
| Winter Wonderlandia | minor: sketch, standup | Dec | Brooklyn, NY | http://bkcomedyfestival.com/ |
