The 1st Annual LA Scripted Comedy Festival.
March 21st-24th, 2013
On March 21-24, iO West will host the best and the brightest comedy has to offer at the 1st Annual LA Scripted Comedy Festival. The four-day event will feature shows simultaneously on three stages, along with various competition categories for performers, boast celebrity headliners and judges, as well as offer several workshops.
The festival offers comedy performances by groups and comedians from all over the country, internationally and special celebrity guest with shows that are all things scripted comedy including, sketch, solo, variety, storytelling, stand up, podcasts and short films.
In addition to the featured shows, there will be five competition categories for performers: Sketch Cage Match, Stand Up, 24 hour Sketch, Storytelling, and Video Shorts. Participants can enter multiple categories and compete for prizes awarded to the winners of each category. Prizes include stage time at iO West and the iconic Comedy Central Stage, meetings with casting directors, and networking opportunities with celebrity judges.
“This festival is unique because it offers artists an opportunity to showcase their ability not only for their peers, but also for industry insiders that are hungry for new talent,” said James Grace, Artistic Director of iO West. “iO West is one of the first places talent scouts look to find top performers in comedy. Festival participants will be performing for some of the top comedians, writers and network representatives in the business and to be able to provide that opportunity for LA artists is very rewarding for us as a theatre.”
In addition to the performance aspect of the festival, iO West will also be offering numerous comedy writing workshops that cover such topics as: television, screenplay, sketch, talk show, SNL, joke and solo writing as well as stand up, podcasting and storytelling. Performers of all skill levels and experience are welcome to attend. These workshops will be led by current iO West instructors as well as special guests who are currently working in the industry; credits include SNL, Conan, Key and Peele, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Emmys, Shameless, Cougar Town, MADtv and many more.
We are pleased to honor iO alumni Chris Farley by naming The Chris Farley House as the festival’s official beneficiary. A percentage of all festival show and workshop total revenue will be donated to the house, a state-certified residential treatment program for recovering men and women, located in the late comedian’s hometown of Madison, Wisconsin. The facility offers sober, structured living, as well as case management and counseling, to assist with the transition to productive independent living and employment.