Joel Chasnoff's Stand-Up to Explore Modern Jewish American Life at Lincoln Theatre in Columbus, 4/30

Joel Chasnoff is not your grandfather's Jewish comedian. With humor that's clever, sharp, and never degrading. His comedy is a smart mix of personal anecdotes and keen observational humor centered on the absurdity of modern American life. Audiences across the spectrum, from students at College of the Holy Cross to U.S. Marines stationed at Okinawa to the rebbes of Lubavitch Yeshivah Flatbush, find Chasnoff's comedy smart, witty, and-most importantly-hilarious.

CAPA and Congregation Tifereth Israel present Joel Chasnoff at the Lincoln Theatre (769 E. Long St.) on Tuesday, April 30, at 8pm. Tickets are $21 and $26 at the CAPA Ticket Center (39 E. State St.), all Ticketmaster outlets, and www.ticketmaster.com. To purchase tickets by phone, please call (614) 469-0939 or (800) 745-3000. Young people aged 13-25 may purchase $5 PNC Arts Alive All Access tickets while available. For more information, visit www.GoFor5.com.

A native of Evanston, Illinois, Chasnoff made his stage debut at age 10, when he played the King of Siam in the Solomon Schechter day school Hebrew version of The King and I. Nine years later, he tried stand-up for the first time when he performed a 30-minute set at Smokey Joe's on the University of Pennsylvania campus. The next two summers, Chasnoff was as an on-field performer with the Philadelphia Phillies in a fruitless attempt to entertain 40,000 of the world's heaviest drinking sports fans.

After graduation, Chasnoff served as a tank gunner in the Israel Defense Forces. His comedic memoir, The 188th Crybaby Brigade, is a brash and gritty depiction of his year in combat that Kirkus Reviews calls "Horrifyingly hilarious."

With stage and screen credits in eight countries, Chasnoff is currently writing the text for Balaboosta: A Cookbook (Workman) with Israeli chef and two-time "Chopped!" champion Einat Admony. His writing has also appeared in The Idiot's Guide to Jokes (Alpha), The Big Book of Jewish Humor: 25th Anniversary Edition (Morrow), and the Daily Forward.

A portion of all proceeds from Chasnoff's book and stand-up performances is donated to Joel's charitable foundation, Project Elijah. Most recently, Project Elijah sent 100 low-income New York City schoolchildren to the circus.

When not on tour, Chasnoff teaches stand-up comedy at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan. For more information, visit www.JoelChasnoff.com.