Yannis Pappas, Maurica Rodriguez and More Come to TN's Sidesplitters Comedy Club, Now thru 6/2

Appearing this weekend at Sidesplitters Comedy Club in Tennessee is YANNIS PAPPAS, featuring Maurica Rodriguez May 24 - 27.

Brooklyn, NY native YANNIS PAPPAS is becoming known as one of the most powerful and exciting comedians working today. A graduate of The American University in Washington D.C. he has become an international headliner and internet sensation that tours the country and the world. He has toured every country in Scandinavia once a year for the past three years to rave reviews and recently debuted his one man show at the Zulu Comedy Festival in Denmark where he received a 5 star review from the national paper and sold out many solo stand-up shows. He is a regular in many clubs in NYC and produces and hosts a long running stand-up show at BAR 4 in Brooklyn.

He plays “Power” on the upcoming television series “Girlhattan” on Karmaloop set to air in January 2012. He was a featured panelist on the hit show “Best Week Ever” on VH1 and he and his writing have been featured on Comedy Central, BET and MTV. Yannis, along with Director Jesse Scaturro, co-founded and compose DITCH – a comedy Production Company that produces filmed and live comedy. Their work can be viewed at Ditchfilms.com and youtube.com/ditchfilms and their office and studio is in Brooklyn, NY. Among the many characters and films they have produced, Yannis’ character “Sneaker Keeper” is an underground legend with sneaker aficionados in NYC and has made the rounds on my influential pop culture blogs. The “Sneaker Keeper” was featured on Funny or Die’s homepage.

His character “Mr. Panos” has been featured on television in Greece and Cyprus and has become a sensation on the internet where it has amassed thousands of devoted international fans and millions of views. His latest character “Maurica Rodriguez” has also become a viral sensation on the internet with thousands of fans and over a million views and counting. “The Yannis Pappas Show” featuring Yannis’ standup and characters live debuted at the Times Square Art Center in NYC on the weekend of May 20th, 2011 and sold out — 9 shows in days with over 3,000 tickets sold. Yannis was recently selected as a “New Face” for the prestigious showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal and his character Mr. Panos was featured on a Canadian Just For Laughs television special.

Appearing next weekend is HYPNOTIST RICH GUZZI, May 31-June 2. The Hypnotist on the Bubba the Love Sponge Show and John Boy & Billy radio shows. Watch as Rich invites volunteers from the audience to get hypnotized on stage and be amazed at what happens next as he give them suggestions to do the most outrageously funny things you can possibly imagine.

The Rich Guzzi Comedy Hypnosis Show is actually three shows in one because Rich is part standup comic, part master hypnotist and part motivational speaker. He becomes the Swiss army knife of the stage every night as he relentlessly tours the country and cutting the crowd to ribbons.

The show becomes a rock concert when Guzzi invites people from the audience on stage to participate in the hypnosis part of the performance. “It’s not your average comedy show” says Rich “When I did only stand up, the attention was all on me and what I was going to say next, now everyone is focused on their friends on stage. It becomes personal, making it thousands of times more powerful and of course, funny!”

Don’t be misled, Rich Guzzi is still a standup comic and that is what sets his hypnosis show apart from the rest which is quite evident as soon as he hits the stage. Even his preliminary talk about hypnosis hits the funny bone hard and with all the jokes and facial expressions added throughout the show there is no mistaking his comedy roots.

Rich also makes time in his show to bring awareness to the benefits of hypnosis. “In the end, all I really want to do is help people” says Guzzi in his unmistakable New York accent. “I am like a cross between Tony Robbins and Tony Soprano and the show as funny as it is its still only a demonstration of what you can do with this powerful tool.”

The late shows contains extreme adult content and a closed door policy will be in effect once the performance has started. It is advised that you arrive early. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

For more information, visit www.SideSplittersComedy.com.