Los Angeles LGBT Center Presents SELENE LUNA: PRETTY SPECIAL

Selene Luna: Pretty Special is a new, one-hour stand-up comedy show featuring Luna's original, biting, and heartfelt perspective on being a little person, an atheist who's afraid of ghosts, and being married to a "normal-sized" man. This long-awaited show will be filmed live at the Renberg Theatre on Saturday, February 2, at 7pm and will be the first-ever, female little-person stand-up comedy special. Selene Luna: Pretty Special is conceived by long-time collaborators Selene Luna and John Stapleton, written by Luna with additional material by John Stapleton and Jackie Beat, performed by Luna, and directed by Margaret Cho,

Selene Luna: Pretty Special is a tragically funny standup-comedy special showcasing Luna's sharp-witted, outspoken style that is bracingly honest and demystifies stereotypes against people with disabilities. Called "a polished spitfire" by The New York Times, Luna shines a spotlight on the little woman who keeps going despite the cards this BIG world has stacked against her. Luna interweaves the polarizing political and social climate with a funny and inspiring message, from being blessed by local neighborhood homeless people, to illegal immigration, to her terrifying near-death experience while having sex on memory foam.

When asked about the entertainment industry's exploitation of portraying little people as leprechauns, elves, and fantasy creatures, Luna said, "As much as I begrudge some jobs I've had to take for survival, playing a Christmas elf can actually be a pretty good gig. I'd rather be an overpaid holiday clown than look for a straight job." After several national tours as Margaret Cho's opening act, Luna is thrilled her comic cohort is directing her special. On working with Luna, Cho said, "She has been a part of my life in many different capacities. She is awesome, she is hilarious, she's beautiful, and as an entertainer she's so incredibly diverse, you know, culturally. She's so unique, so amazingly adept at bringing her perspective to the stage."

Selene Luna, fresh off her role as the voice of Tía Rosita in Disney-Pixar's Academy Award and Golden Globe Award-winning Coco, is an established presence in Hollywood with multiple roles in movies and TV shows, such as Celebrity Wife Swap, Lionsgate's My Bloody Valentine 3D, and Margaret Cho's The Cho Show. The disabled Mexican-American actress has also broken ground as a featured burlesque dancer in five national tours by the undisputed Queen of Burlesque, Dita Von Teese. Luna's most celebrated stand-up comedy credit has been opening for several of Margaret Cho's national tours. Last year, Luna successfully produced Don't Laugh at Us!,! A 'Special' Comedians Comedy Special, the first-ever standup comedy show featuring an all-disabled lineup.

General admission tickets are $20 and may be purchased online at www.lalgbtcenter.org/theatre or by phone at (323) 860-7300. Net proceeds from all ticket sales will support the full range of free and low-cost programs and services offered by the Los Angeles LGBT Center.