Comedian Will Attempt to Tell Jokes After 24 Hours Without Sleeping in INSOMNIACT

Comedian Shawn Wickens will stay awake for a full 24 hours prior to his stand-up show: Insomniact. The debut of this publicity stunt/performance art piece is Saturday, December 17, 2016 - 6pm at The PIT Loft, 154 West 29th St, 2nd floor New York, NY 10001. Tickets are $5 and available at thepit-nyc.com/event/2016-12-17-shawn-wickens-insomniact.

"I'm not doing this because it'll be easy. I hate not getting sleep. I don't function well without it and this might be the grumpiest performance I ever give." Wickens credits the mental strain of trying to craft a perfect set with inspiring the idea. He also feels sometimes the dumb ideas are the right ones to pursue. "I'll be outlining the show and writing new material during the 24 hours prior to the show. I might be delirious but hopefully a good crowd will help me get through it." Comedian Will Cheng will host the night.

Shawn Wickens has performed at the Charm City Comedy Festival, North Carolina Comedy Arts Festival, Steel City Improv Theater, New Movement Theater, Boston Comedy Arts Festival, Del Close Marathon and more. He is co-founder of the ironically-titled Bad Theater Fest. "We noticed colleagues obsessing and worrying about their work getting a negative reception from the audience. That fear would often sabotaged the final product. Bad Theater Fest is about creating and performing fearlessly. Stop worrying and just make something fun."

The Cleveland, Ohio native is a New York City window washer and also teaches theater and filmmaking. His parody book "Ooh, The Place's You'll Go #2" is available on Amazon. More info on twitter @shwickens.