Bust up to 60+ comics at The Riot Comedy Festival in Montrose

Comedian Cipha Sounds performs on stage
Cipha Sounds headlines the Riot Comedy Festival at Rudyard's | Courtesy of the Riot Comedy Club

Laugh your heart out with 60+ comedians at The Riot Comedy Festival and street carnival taking place around Rudyard’s Pub from Thursday, March 23 to Sunday, March 26, 2023.

The Riot Comedy Festival lands in Montrose for the first time this month, featuring more than 60 comedians across three stages for a full weekend of street festival fun and outright hilarity.

Spilling out from its familiar upstairs stage at Rudyard’s Pub to an enclosed 500-person tent on Waugh, the Riot Comedy Festival is decorated with side-splitting stand-up acts well known to the Riot stage, including Joe Machi, Jeremiah Watkins, Cipha Sounds, Steph Tolev, Lara Beitz, Gianmarco Soresi, and many others.

These visiting comics and more—plus some of Houston’s funniest talents—will be teasing laughter out of the gathered crowds looking to take in the first ever street festival around the longtime Montrose hangout.

Find tickets to the Riot Comedy Festival or learn more.

A stand-up comic performs in a dimly lit room in front of an audience
Headliners take indoor and outdoor stages for a weekend of hilarity | Courtesy of the Riot Comedy Club

The Riot Comedy Festival Lineup

Nearly two dozen headlining comedians will visit the Riot Comedy Festival over the weekend, tapping into the city’s love for laughs.

National names like Caitlin Peluffo, Ahamed Weinberg, Francisco Ramos and Steebee Weebee will be joined by homegrown talent and friends of the Riot Comedy Club like Billy D. Washington, Tre Tutson, Victor Tran, Andy Huggins, and Riot co-founder Brian Gendron.

Even more, fans can catch the final rounds of a National Comedy Contest, a roast, sketch and improv shows, live podcasts, music, street performers, and beloved Riot Comedy Club shows like The Interruption, The Gay Agenda variety show, and the Swipe Right dating game show.

Find tickets to the Riot Comedy Festival or learn more.

Comedian Joe Machi with a surprised look on his face as he performs on stage
Joe Machi features as a headliner at the Riot Comedy Festival in Montrose | Courtesy of the Riot Comedy Club

Street Festival Fun in Montrose

For the first time, the area around Rudyard’s Pub will host a block-sized street festival with Waugh shut down between Indiana and Welch Streets.

Festival goers can explore a variety of food and drink options on site, check out street vendors, play games and take in street performers between the 55 shows taking place across two indoor stages and the enclosed, 500-person tent that’s also equipped with 14-foot screens.

The Riot Comedy Festival kicks off on Thursday, March 23 at 5pm, but attendees can get the fun rolling as early as noon from Friday, March 24 to Sunday, March 26. Shows will be expected to go as late as 2am each night.

Find tickets to the Riot Comedy Festival or learn more.

Comedian Brian Gendron performs while holding a stool on stage
Riot Comedy Club founder Brian Gendron at Rudyard’s | Courtesy of The Riot Comedy Club

The Riot Comedy Club Show at Rudyard’s Pub

Since 2020, the Riot Comedy Club has made its home at the fabled upstairs stage in Rudyard’s British Pub, the so-called “living room of Montrose.”

Founded by comedian Brian Gendron and co-producer Zach Lyons, the Riot Comedy Club has grown to producing over 600 comedy shows a year, inviting national and international comics to the mic, as well as showcasing the city of Houston’s best stand-up comedians, storytellers and all-around entertainers.

Order tickets to the Riot Comedy Festival or learn more.

The Riot Comedy Festival 2023 at Rudyard’s Pub

Homegrown Houston comic Victor Tran features in the lineup for the Riot Comedy Festival | Courtesy of the Riot Comedy Club

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