The Comedy Express

07/08/20 • 110 min

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Keith Robinson is the quintessential comedian’s comedian, admired by his fellow artists – his great art of inherently subverting his audience, shaking them out of their cozy assumptions to fresh perspectives sustains his comedic prominence. His commanding stage presence has gained him appearances on MTV, VH1, HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, TBS’s family comedy series Are We There Yet, The Chelsea Lately Show on E! and Late Night with Conan O’Brien. In his teens, Keith began cultivating his wit with his "back of the bus funny," subsequently working the comedy circuit in his hometown Philadelphia and securing a spot as one of the finalists on Ed McMahon’s Star Search. He did not take home the $100,000 prize, but his career as a comic and actor mushroomed. He now merits a coveted comedic and acting career on the stage, screen, and television. Keith’s impressive record of accomplishments include his self-titled special on Comedy Central, a standout regular on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn, writer and central performer on The Wanda Sykes Show and writer for the Chappelle Show. He was seen in Kevin Hart's record-breaking movie, "Laugh at My Pain.” Most recently he can be seen in Judd Apatow’s movie “The King of Staten Island.” One of New York Comedy Cellar’s elite, where he frequently hosts, Keith Robinson has a reputation, best described by Cringe Humor for "being the best at impromptu zingers and one-liners that annihilate his colleagues." His first hour special, recorded live in New York at The Gramercy Theater: Kevin Hart presents Keith Robinson in Back of the Bus Funny, is now released on iTunes, Hulu, Amazon, and Google Play.

Zainab Johnson, a stand-up comedian, actress, and writer is quickly being propelled as one of the most unique and engaging performers on stage and screen.

Zainab was named one of Variety’s Top 10 Comics To Watch in 2019, she hosted one of the host for Netflix's new show "100 Humans", she can be seen as a series regular on the new upcoming series from Greg Daniels a half hour comedy titled “Upload” an Amazon original series premiering May 1st, and she made her first late night stand up appearance on NBC's Late Night with Seth Meyers. Zainab had a breakout appearance on HBO’s All Def Comedy (2017) and has made appearances on NBC’s Last Comic Standing (2014), Arsenio (2014), BET’s Comic View (2014), AXSTV’s Gotham Comedy Live! and just recently starred in a new web series titled Avant-Guardians. She is a regular at the Improv Comedy Club in LA and the Comedy Cellar in NY. Zainab has performed in the Montreal Just For Laughs Festival as one of the 2014 New Faces of Comedy and returned numerous times since. She also had a breakout performance at the Melbourne Comedy Festival in 2018.

Ralph Harris is one of today’s hottest comedic and acting talents! He made his feature film debut in "Dreamgirls," a film that has struck gold (of the Golden Globe variety). Ralph’s jump to the big screen comes after years of successful television work, including appearances on "Seinfeld," "Parenthood," "Nick Freno," "Living Single" and "In Living Color." No stranger to late night, Ralph has been featured on "The Tonight Show Starring Jay Leno" and "Late Night with Conan O’Brien." However Ralph is probably best known for his starring role in the ABC-TV sitcom “On Our Own,” which aired during the immensely popular TGIF block on Friday nights, and which currently airs in syndication on TV One. You can also catch Ralph on TV in airings of his two previously recorded Cable TV specials – "Comedy Central Presents" and the "HBO Half-Hour Comedy Special." He also served as the Host of the Culinary Competition, “My Momma Throws Down” on the TVOne network. When he’s not filming, Ralph continues to tour the country and perform to sold-out audiences as a stand-up comedian, his first career and love.

Always hosted by Marina Franklin - One Hour Comedy Special: Single Black Female ( Amazon Prime, CW Network), Trainwreck, Louie Season V, The Jim Gaffigan Show, Conan O'Brien, Stephen Colbert, HBO's Crashing, and The Breaks with Michelle Wolf

Zainab Johnson, a stand-up comedian, actress, and writer is quickly being propelled as one of the most unique and engaging performers on stage and screen.

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The Firecrackers

Calise Hawkins is a stand-up comedian and writer. She has performed her standup on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon (NBC), Russel Simmons Presents Live At The El Rey (Comedy Central), Gotham Live (Fox), Stand Up in Stilettos (TV Guide Channel), Nick Mom’s Night Out (Nickelodeon), among others. She has written for Comedy Central’s @midnight and Hood Adjacent, Adult Swim’s Soft Focus, AMC’s Unapologetic with Aisha Tyler, and MTV’s Totally Clueless, Girl Code, and Charlemagne’s Uncommon Sense. She was also a cast member of Oxygen’s Funny Girls.

Joyelle Nicole Johnson is a Brooklyn based stand up comedian, writer and actress. She can be seen on the final season of HBO’s Crashing and is currently the warm up comic for Hasan Minhaj’s Patriot Act on Netflix. Joyelle made her network TV debut last year on Late Night with Seth Meyers and most recently wrote for the final season of Broad City.

She has performed on Comedy Central’s digital series Comics to Watch, Wyatt Cenac’s Night Train for Seeso, Laff Tracks for TruTV as well as being a panelist for Refinery 29/Facebook Watch’s After After Party and MTV News. Joyelle was selected for the 2018 FOX Comedy Showcase, was a finalist in NBC’s Stand Up for Diversity Showcase and has performed at festivals like Sketchfest, Bonnaroo, The New York Comedy Festival and Bumbershoot. And while transitioning to the headliner that she is today she regularly features for Hannibal Buress and has opened for Dave Chappelle, Maria Bamford & Russell Peters.

She also combines her dream of comedy and activism by touring with Daily Show creator Lizz Winstead’s Lady Parts Justice League

Yamaneika Saunders has been captivating audiences with her dynamic stage presence for over a decade and across the entire country. Born and raised in Baltimore, MD, Yamaneika has since tackled both the New York and LA comedy scene by combining her high energy improv skills with a unique vulnerable perspective on life. This mix forces her to go beyond the typical humor one would expect to hear, and allows her to connect to audiences from any background. A semi-finalist on Last Comic Standing, one of the stars of Funny Girls on Oxygen and panelist on The Meredith Vieira Show, Yamaneika is finally bringing her talents to the world stage; let’s just hope they can handle her….Prior to that Yamaneika was a series regular on Comedy Central's animated online series In Security. Yamaneika has been a guest star on shows including but not limited to HBO’s Crashing, The Jim Gaffigan Show, Comedy Central's The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, and TruTV shows Comedy Knockout and Friends of the People. Her voiceover work can be heard on Inside Amy Schumer. A former panelist on The Meredith Vieira Show, her stand-up has been featured on NBC's Last Comic Standing and Netflix, Season 2 of Jeff Ross's Roast Battle on Comedy Central. Yamaneika has comedy specials on Comedy Central and Netflix’s “Degenerates” , and you can get her new comedy album: “Damsel In Distress”! You can also hear her on her weekly podcast Rantin' and Ravin'.

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Soy Boricua!

Sara Contreras, a top female comedian, actor, and writer since 1995—and one of Showtime’s 2008 ALMA-nominated (Best Comedy Special) Original Latin Divas of Comedy—continues to be a comedic showstopper at premier comedy clubs and venues across the country. Sara will be touring as part of the Latin Divas of Comedy 10th Anniversary tour in Florida in June and a Texas tour is yet to be announced. She will be sharing the stage with legendary comedian Paul Rodriguez and Last Comic Standing Winner Felipe Esparza in Honolulu. Sara regards her performance as part of the Not That Time of the Month all-female comedy tour in Iraq/Kuwait in March 2011 as the most rewarding experience of her professional life.

She is the Head Writer for Manhattan Neighborhood Network’s Colors of Rhina and has appeared as a commentator and writer for MTV3. Sara received an impressive N.Y. Times review for her work as a writer/monologist in the off-Broadway production Jose Can Speak in 2005. Her first screenplay Searching for Sosie is under consideration as a 6-part television mini-series, and her highly regarded one-woman show Lifelines was part of the NYC ONE Festival in 2012. She was also a creator and writer for Lugar Heights, a Latino animated series featured on Galavision.

Sara was cast for the television web-series All My Children in 2013. Television credits include Amazon’s Mozart in the Jungle, 4 episodes on NBC’s Law & Order: SVU, Third Watch, and Conviction; Comedy Central’s Comic Groove; Metrochannel’s New Joke City; A& E’s American Comedy: What’s So Funny; ABC’s The View and New York Comedy Festival; SiTV’s Funny is Funny; and TNC’s Que Loco. Sara taped with Marlo Thomas for the web-series Auntie Marlo & Kate and Univision’s Spanish-language stand-up comedy special Los Locos y Revueltos. Film credits include Nick the Doorman (2012) with Nick Turturro and Close Your Eyes (2013), which was part of the Tribeca Film Festival.

Sara was a featured radio personality for the WRKS 98.7 Kiss Morning Show and has been a featured comedian for nationally syndicated radio personalities Luis Jimenez and Wendy Williams. Commercial work includes Mastercard and Fleet Bank. She can be seen performing on The Comedy Jump-Off and Only in The Hood DVDs, as well as Original Latin Divas of Comedy on Netflix. Sara was a participant in the Latin Producers Academy of the National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP). Sara has performed at the New York Comedy, Marshalls Women in Comedy, Urban Comedy, and the Toyota Comedy Festivals. She has been critically acclaimed for her work with the N.Y.-based “Sistas Doing Comedy,” D.C.-based “DiverCity,” and the L.A.-based “Hot & Spicy Tamales” comedy troupes.

Mia Jackson is a New York based comedian originally from Georgia. In 2017, Jackson was selected as a New Face by the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival and Atlanta's Creative Loafing named her the Critic's Choice Best Stand-Up in the city. She has toured nationally with Amy Schumer and is a featured comic at festivals and clubs across the country. Her first stand up special aired in October 2018 as part of Unprotected Sets on EPIX. Jackson has appeared on NickMom's Night Out, Viceland, Comedy Central's This Week at the Comedy Cellar and was a semi-finalist on Season 9 of NBC's Last Comic Standing. Her Comedy Central half hour special debuted in November 2019.

Pat Brown has been seen on CBS’s Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Fuse’s Uproarious, Axis’s Gotham Live, NBC’s Comic’s Unleashed and BET‘s ComicView, TVOne’s made for TV movie-WHITE WATER, the independent film SOMEBODIES, and the web series UNREQUITED. Pat has won both the Las Vegas Comedy Festival and the She Devil Competition. She has been featured in Time Out Magazine, After-Ellen, Splitsider and Punchline Magazine. Her critically acclaimed album “The Pat Brown Sex-Tape” has been described as “provocative and conceptual” by Laugh and is streaming on all platforms. You can watch her stand up on Two Dope Queens on HBO!