Lukaba Productions' Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival Opens Today, 1/7

Lukaba Productions' Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival, the world's largest festival exclusively dedicated to the art of sketch comedy, opens Thursday, January 7th and runs through Sunday, January 17th.

Known as SketchFest, the 2010 Festival will showcase over 100 sketch comedy groups performing 150 shows over two weekends. In addition to these performances, the Festival will feature children's programming, workshops, networking opportunities, and other special events.
The Chicago Tribune calls SketchFest "a raging comedic beast" and "a well-organized and immensely likeable event...a rollicking good time." Last year's Festival welcomed over 10,000 audience members and more than 800 artists over the course of 2 weekends of performances.
The yearly home of SketchFest is Theatre Building Chicago, located at 1225 W. Belmont, just west of Racine Avenue, in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood.

Tickets for the Festival remain only $12.50 for each performance slot and will be available through the Theatre Building Chicago box office at 773.327.5252 and through TicketMaster at TicketMaster.com or by calling 800.745.3000. A limited number of All-Festival Passes will also be available at a cost of $150 each. Patrons are encouraged to buy tickets early (and often) because many performances traditionally sell out well ahead of showtime.

The full 2010 performance schedule is available online at ChicagoSketchFest.com with information on each of the 113 sketch comedy groups featured this year. The Festival will provide these sketch artists technical staff and equipment, as well as the opportunity to hone performance skills, network with peers & industry professionals, and perform in front of large, appreciative audiences.
Visit ChicagoSketchFest.com - The festival's official website features the full schedule with performer information, directions, SketchFest Survival Guide, and more.

Lukaba Productions is a Chicago non-profit organization passionately committed to supporting, nurturing, and celebrating the performing arts community in Chicago by providing financial viability to both emerging and established artists. Lukaba's goal is to create a welcoming, dynamic, and energetic environment which encourages the collaboration and innovation of Chicago artists while enriching the community's cultural life.

The venue of the Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival for the last 9 years, Theatre Building Chicago encourages both acclaimed and emerging theatre companies and artists, providing unique space and technical, marketing and consulting services. Since opening its doors on March 15, 1977, Theatre Building Chicago has been Chicago's theatrical crossroads, annually hosting over 1,000 artists in 20 theatrical presentations and 300 special events. For more information, visit TheatreBuildingChicago.org.