Cleveland Comedy Festival Back for 9th Year of Laughs!

Back for its 9th year, The Cleveland Comedy Festival returns to Playhouse Square November 16-20 with: comedy performances and contests (spotlighting 48 of the funniest up-and-coming comedians from all over the U.S.), free comedy happy hours and a sneak preview of the comics of tomorrow, as kids ages 10 -17 "graduate" from their four-week stand-up comedy classes.

"The festival always gives us the chance to show off Cleveland's great comedic tradition to local people, as well as comedians who come from all over the country to participate in it," said Cleveland Comedy Festival co-director Joe Hannum.

One of the festival highlights is the annual Contest Final set for 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19, at the Hanna Theatre. The contest has 48 country-wide contestants vying for the top $2,000 prize. (Tickets are $12 in advance; $15 at the door.)

"Many of our comedy contest winners have seen their profiles raised after winning our festival," Hannum said. "After winning our 2013 contest, Brad Wenzel got invited to the Great American Comedy Festival and won that, which is held in Nebraska to honor Johnny Carson."

Other Festival highlights include:

• A Cleveland All-Stars show is set for 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18 at the Hanna Theatre featuring local favorites Jeff Blanchard, Juanda Mayfield, Dave Arena and Bill Squire. (Tickets: $12 in advance; $15 at the door.)

• Mike Polk Jr. returns Saturday, Nov. 19 at 7:30 pm at the Hanna Theatre in another version of "Cleveland Tonight!," with its special theme of "We Can Be Heroes," featuring the music of David Bowie tribute band "Diamond Dogs." (Tickets are $15 in advance; $18 at the door with all net proceeds to aid The Greater Cleveland Food Bank.)

• A bit of theater gets thrown in with "The Madness of Tyler Whidden" set for shows at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19 in Playhouse Square's Kennedy's Theatre. It will showcase a collection of short plays from Cleveland-born playwright and comedian Tyler Whidden, written during his three years as a writer and performer for MidnightMadness. With topics touching on religion, politics, family and rock & roll, this show, starring Cleveland actors, promises to be a hilarious romp through the twisted mind of one of Cleveland's own. (In association with Cleveland's Ensemble Theatre, tickets are $10 in advance; $12 at the door.)

• The Class Clown Graduation, set for 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20 in Kennedy's Theatre, will see kids ages 10-17 perform their debut stand-up, 5-minute routines, perfected over a four-week comedy class, where students learned to hone their comedic talents. "We're always surprised by how well the kids do aftet just a four-week workshop," Hannum added. (Tickets are $10 in advance; $12 at the door.)

• FREE Comedy Happy Hours: 5 pm on Nov. 16, 17 &18 at Playhouse Square's intimate cabaret space, Kennedy's. Free comedy from some of the fantastic Festival comedians. Cash bar.

• LATE NIGHT LAUGHS...Nov. 16 & 17 at 10 pm in Kennedy's. Only $5 per ticket-OR-Late Night Laughs ticket FREE with the purchase of another Cleveland Comedy Festivl show

Tickets for the various Playhouse Square Cleveland Comedy Festival shows are on sale at playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000 or the Ticket Office.

For information on all Cleveland Comedy Festival shows (including their Nov. 17Sachensheim Hall show with Jason Lawhead & Jimmy Shubert) visitwww.clevelandcomedyfestival.com .

The Cleveland Comedy Festival is a 501c3 non-profit arts organization committed to promoting Cleveland's rich comedic history and securing its vibrant future. Festival sponsors include Ambiance, Playhouse Square, Hilarities, oWOW Cleveland, the Funny Stop, the Bop Stop, Sachsenheim Hall and Cuyahoga Arts and Culture.