Comics are listed in alphabetical order.
Shanin Allen
Kristen Becker
Matt Bergman
Mark Ciemcioch
Mike Cline Jr.
Dan Fisher
Chris Gullo
Patrick Higgins
Andrew Kottler
Rick Matthews
Kristen Becker
Matt Bergman
Mark Ciemcioch
Mike Cline Jr.
Dan Fisher
Chris Gullo
Patrick Higgins
Andrew Kottler
Rick Matthews
Brian Miller
Pat O'Keefe
Josh Potter
Dan Rice
Josh Smith
Jamie Travale
Brandon Trusso
Mark Walton
Chet Wild
Travis Worth
Pat O'Keefe
Josh Potter
Dan Rice
Josh Smith
Jamie Travale
Brandon Trusso
Mark Walton
Chet Wild
Travis Worth
To be listed, please submit your name, a brief bio, picture, and any links (website, facebook, etc) to becker@kristenbecker.com and we would be happy to add you!
Shanin Allen
Getting her start as a "straight man" alongside the legendary P.J. Featherbottom in 1930's Vaudeville, Shanin Allen has done nothing but revolutionize comedy again and again. In the early 80s she broke out onto the standup scene by breaking down the gender barrier and discussing her "monthly visitor" in front of the bewildered suits and squares that happened to stroll into any given New York City comedy clubs. Presently, Ms. Allen continues to help comedy evolve by dishing out clever observations and poignant points of view. After all these years she continues to be a warm-hearted human being, and a cold blooded entertainer.
Kristen Becker - http://www.KristenBecker.com
Kristen Becker started her comedy career in Toronto 8 years ago, and since then has traveled the continent performing and producing shows. Currently she's producing and performing with her Dykes of Hazard Comedy Tour and recently joined the Rust Belt Comedy Tour as well. She has opened for nation acts such as Doug Stanhope, Josh Blue (winner of Last Comic Standing), and Ani DiFranco. Additionally, Kristen beat out 60 contestants (all men) to win the 2006 Queen City Comedian Competition. Becker was named "One of America's Funniest Lesbians" by CURVE Magazine, in a tie for #8 with Lily Tomlin. Locally, Becker has been producing/hosting the Doin' Time Stand-Up Comedy Showcase at Nietzsche's every Tuesday at 8:00pm in Buffalo for the last 3 years.
Matt Bergman - http://www.mattbergman.net
Matt Bergman has been playing clubs and colleges since he began stand-up at the age of 18. Since graduating from college he has hit the road performing at “A” rooms across the country opening for headliners such as Dave Attell, Jeffrey Ross, and Bill Burr. He just recently toured with Mike Birbiglia on his Comedy Central “Secret Public Tour”. Matt now lives in NYC and just turned 24. He shares a bunk bed in the living room with another comic. Matt is also, surprisingly, single.
Mark Ciemcioch
A stand-up comic and graduate of the Second City writing program, Mark has opened for Matt Bergman and Kristen Becker. Additionally, he has written and produced several comedy sketch shows. He also writes for several publications and is an award-winning journalist for the WNY Catholic, which works out because he's going to need the employee discount in the afterlife.
Mike Cline Jr. - http://www.MikeClineJr.com
After a brief hiatus starting in 2005 Mike Cline Jr. has brought back his hard hitting fast paced style of comedy. Mike has opened up for national comics like Nick Siracuse and has performed in many venues regionally in the Buffalo and Rochester area. In September Mike teamed up with fellow Buffalo State Radio veterans Patrick Higgins and Chris Gullo to form the touring comedy group Rouges of Radio. In addition to being on stage Mike can be heard on the air on 91.3 WBNY Buffalo's original Alternative weekly on a variety of shows.
Dan Fisher
Like most stand-up comics, Dan Fisher loved writing from third person perspective at an early age. Luckily for Dan, middle school was unkind to him, socially speaking. The other kids didn't harm him physically. Instead, they remained indifferent to his being. Sometimes, that hurts worse. Dan likes to pretend that his social awkwardness was the reason for his desire to try comedy, but it really wasn't too bad. High school was pretty cool for Dan because everyone at his high school was pretty "chill." During high school, Dan got to do some comedy type stuff on stage and decided that if he could do it in real life, he would be generally happy. In 2006, he summoned the courage to try comedy for the first time. Then he lost the courage for a while, then it came back in 2007, and he tried comedy again. It was fun and he kept doing it over and over again. He has met some really cool people and done comedy for a lot of audiences and will probably be doing it in front of another one soon, and you should be in that audience. You can see Dan on SkunkPost.com, at Nietzsche's on Tuesdays, and Mode Restaurant on Thursdays. End of third person perspective.
Chris Gullo - http://www.ChrisGulloComedy.com
Chris is a Stand-Up comedian from the Buffalo, NY area. Chris has been doing comedy for a little over a year. He has opened up for National Comics Jay Phillips and Jeff Dye .He has played many venues over the Western New York area such as Nietzche's, The Tralf, University at Buffalo, Buffalo State college, Tudor Lounge, Merge, The Wagon Wheel in Niagara Falls and The Otter Lodge in Rochester, NY Just to name a few. Chris is part of the Rogues of Radio Comedy Tour along with Mike Cline Jr. and Patrick Higgins. Chris also is a Radio Personality for 91.3 WBNY and hosts the Morning Madness which airs every Tuesday morning from 9am-Noon and avaliable online at www.wbny.org and he also works for WDOE and WBKX in Dunkirk.Comedy and Radio are chris's biggest passions and it is seen every time he is on stage or on-air. His website is www.chrisgullocomedy.com and you can contact him at chrisgullocomedy@gmail.com.
Patrick Higgins - http://www.PatrickHigginsShow.com
Patrick Higgins is a stand-up comedian from Buffalo, NY. Performing locally in person across Western New York and globally over the airwaves and internet on 91.3fm WBNY (http://www.wbny.org) hosting The Patrick Higgins Show on Monday nights from 10:00pm until 11:30pm (eastern). Patrick Higgins is also one-third of the comedy trio the Rogues Of Radio with Chris Gullo and Mike Cline Jr. who are currently performing at various venues for the Rogues of Radio Comedy Tour. He can be found online at http://www.patrickhigginsshow.com, http://www.roguesofradio.com, and http://www.twitter.com/patrickhiggins.
Andrew Kottler
Andrew Kottler is so new to Buffalo, he is actually thrilled to be here. Andrew started his acting career at the age of 27 in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois where he was lucky enough to work and study with many of the city's hallowed theatres; including Steppenwolf and Second City. In search of fame and fortune, Andrew moved to Hollywood where he spent 6 years sitting in traffic and auditioning for soap commercials. His big break came when he scored the infamous role of "The Chubby Chaser" on CSI Las Vegas. Andrew has also done a couple of movies, and has worked at comedy clubs throughout LA; including The Improv, Ha Ha Comedy Club, and Giggles. You can catch Andrew's monthly radio show at www.thinktwiceradio.com
Rick Matthews - http://www.RickMatthewsComedy.com
Rick Matthews has quickly earned a reputation within the Buffalo comedy community for having a witty (and sometimes twisted) vision of life that differes from those typically bred from a small town background. Rick has opened for the Dykes of Hazard Comedy Tour, guest hosted The Doin' Time Comedy Showcase, and can be seen regularly tearing it up at venues all across the northeast with the Rust Belt Comedy Tour.
Brian Miller - http://www.BrianMillerMagic.com
Brian first became interested in performance at the age of four, when he discovered a boxful of his father's old magician's material in the basement. Brian developed a profound love of the art over many years of study. Entertaining for business, restaurants, and private events since the early age of 16, he quickly gained the the respect of seasoned professionals with his philosophical and psychological approach to performing. Miller believes that, "Magic is a catalyst for personal connections with strangers." A rising star whose show is a wonderful blend of stand-up comedy and magic that critics have called "mystifying", "seamless", and even "masterful", also stating that Brian possesses a "certain energy that is so alive, positive, enthusiastic, and deep." You can be sure your audience will enjoy every minute of his entrancing performance.
Links: www.BrianMillerMagic.com, myspace.com/ExperienceTheWonder, contact@BrianMillerMagic.com
Links: www.BrianMillerMagic.com, myspace.com/ExperienceTheWonder, contact@BrianMillerMagic.com
Pat O'Keefe
Pat O’Keefe started his comedy career in Chicago with a debut at Frankie J’s on Broadway. Pat wrote and has performed his greatest hit “Cog” in Chicago at The Gallery Cabaret in The Bucktown Neighborhood at the Thursday night open mic. Ask for Pat O’Keefe and you may not get a response as he is aka PO BOX in Chicago. Along the way Pat has played guitar at open mics with The Defiant Thomas Brothers and Prescott Tolk. Having relocated to his native Western New York you can see Pat perform his “All Original Acoustic Comedy” at Kristen Becker’s “Doin’Time” comedy showcase on Tuesday nights at Nietchzes.
Links: myspace.com/theonlypobox
Links: myspace.com/theonlypobox
Josh Potter
Josh Potter has been a radio personality on Buffalo's #1 Comedy Talk Show, "The Shredd and Ragan Show," since he was 16 years old. 7 years later, he is still contributing to the show - writing, producing, and on-air as well. He has also contributed radio sketches for morning radio shows across the country via his Spacedock Productions project. Josh has been performing stand-up around Buffalo since October 2007, but didn't really hit stride until August 2008. Now having played at a few colleges (SUNY Geneseo and Canisius College) and a few out of town clubs (Stage 3 in Newcastle PA - The Comedy Club in Rochester, NY - JRs Last Laugh in Erie, PA - House of Comedy in Ontario, CA) opening up for the likes of Jim Florentine (Crank Yankers) Juston McKinney (Last Comic Standing/Jay Leno) and Jamie Lissow (Comedy Central Presents), he now hopes to perform someplace near you!
Links: myspace.com/SpaceDockMusic, myspace.com/SpaceDockProductions, joshpottercomedy@gmail.com
Links: myspace.com/SpaceDockMusic, myspace.com/SpaceDockProductions, joshpottercomedy@gmail.com
Dan Rice
Dan Rice has been writing comedy and fiction for most of his life. He made his move to the stand up stage in early 2006 as an open mic regular before venturing out to work professionaly. Rice was also a regular in the rotating stable of MCs at Buffalo’s COMIX CAFE, before it closed its doors in 2007.
Rice combines observational comedy with an anecdotal flavor that appeals to a broad audience, with an act that is often family friendly. After spending nearly a year on and off the scene for health reasons, Rice is back at the open mics and other rooms honing his act as he gets ready for upcoming dates in the Fall. He has appeared with such local headliners as Matt Bergman, Matt Wayne and Greg Bauch to name a few.
Rice combines observational comedy with an anecdotal flavor that appeals to a broad audience, with an act that is often family friendly. After spending nearly a year on and off the scene for health reasons, Rice is back at the open mics and other rooms honing his act as he gets ready for upcoming dates in the Fall. He has appeared with such local headliners as Matt Bergman, Matt Wayne and Greg Bauch to name a few.
Josh Smith
Josh Smith has been performing since 2001, in which time he has satisfied more audiences than the Buffalo Bills. He has crisscrossed the East Coast colleges, festivals, and comedy clubs of North America, and earned the respect of audiences and colleagues alike, colleagues such as Bobby Collins, music band Finger Eleven, and more. Josh is also on the board of the Buffalo Infringement Festival, and is a widely accomplished poet to boot.
Links: facebook.com/RockStarProphecy, myspace.com/TheRatedRRockStarJoshSmith
Links: facebook.com/RockStarProphecy, myspace.com/TheRatedRRockStarJoshSmith
Jamie Travale - http://www.JamieTravale.com
Jamie Travale is a newcomer to the Buffalo Comedy scene. She has written for years in a variety of genres and her resume boasts a diverse employment history which is in itself comical. A former career college student, Jamie's student loan debt left her with two options: laugh or cry. She chose the former. Elected "Dare to be Different" of her Sr. Class, Jamie has sought to turn this title into and art form, living what many consider a crazy and abnormal lifestyle. A true story teller at heart, she hopes to bring some of her unique experiences and perspectives to the stage creating an atmosphere of absurdity and entertainment.
Brandon Trusso
Brandon Trusso first stepped on stage at Nietzsche’s Doin’ Time Comedy Showcase in 2007. Brandon is a member of Queen City’s Princes of Comedy and recently moved back to town after living in LA where he performed at The Improv, The Laugh Factory, The Comedy Store and The Roosevelt Hotel. He hosted 103.3’s “Summer Edge Fest” at Cozumel Bar and Grill in 2008 and has produced many successful shows in WNY and LA. Brandon currently tours with the Rogues of Radio from Buffalo State College and has opened for Pat McGann. Lastly, Brandon is extremely grateful for all of the advice and support he’s receiced from the veteran local comics and fans in the WNY area.
Mark Walton - http://www.MarkWaltonComedy.com
Mark Walton has enjoyed stand up for as long as he remembers. He technically started in 4th grade when he performed a short set to blank stares in Mrs. Mandiak's class. He waited quite some time before writing, and performing jokes again, but when he got on stage a few years back, the audience had a completely different reaction. Since then, Mark has kept audiences laughing, and has entertained at comedy clubs (Cleveland Improv, Jr's Last Laugh,...), colleges (Rochester Institute of Technology, Coast Guard Academy,...) and even performed at the Lucille Ball Festival.
Chet Wild - http://www.ChetWild.com
Whether it be talking about his trouble with the ladies or concerns regarding late-night infomercials, Wild is making a name for himself by getting people to laugh, whether it's with him or at him. Recently, Chet’s had the opportunity to perform at NYC’s Gotham Comedy Club, Universal Studio Hollywood’s John Lovitz Comedy Club, and The Pittsburgh Improv where he opened for Kyle Cease. You can see Chet nearly every weekend as house emcee at ‘The Comedy Club’ in Rochester where he’s recently worked with such national acts as Dave Coulier, Rich Vos, and Jim Florentine. In Buffalo, Wild produces and performs with Rust Belt Comedy and is a regular at Nietzche's Doin' Time Comedy Showcase.
Links: Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube, and ChetWild.com.
Travis Worth
As a comedian, Travis Worth carries a unique presence to the stage, combining intellect and dry humor with his bizarre viewpoint. A clean comic, yet crosses the line with topics of religion, drugs, television, and his own experiences in life. For the past few years, he has honed his routine within the confines of western NY, and is now seeking bigger and better stages to prove his...worth.