Dubai Comedy Festival: Find out who’s performing

UAE audiences keen to pencil some social activities into their schedules can prepare for four days of laughs. The Dubai Comedy Festival line-up has been announced, with global and local stars set to perform from October 21-24. Here’s who to catch:

Michelle Wolf and Mo Amer: Wolf made headlines when she performed a controversial stand-up comedy set at the 2018 White House Correspondents Dinner. She got her share of criticism for some risque jokes, but success didn’t evade her. She went on to release a Netflix talk show called ‘The Break with Michelle Wolf’ and a special, ‘Michelle Wolf: Joke Show’.

Mo Amer, an American comedian of Palestinian descent, has had a prolific career — he made his Netflix debut with the special ‘The Vagabond’, stars on hit TV show ‘Ramy’ and has toured with comedy royalty Dave Chappelle, having performed over 1,000 shows together. Both the stars will be hosted by Dubai-based comedian Ali Al Sayed, the co-founder of Dubomedy. When and where: October 21 at Dubai Opera (English language show).

Nemr: The Lebanese-American stand-up comic is said to have pioneered the comedy scene throughout the Middle East. He has a number of projects to his credit, including the 2017 comedy special ‘No Bombing in Beirut’, seven comedy shows that he’s written and performed across the globe and multiple TV credits. When and where: October 22, Dubai Opera.

Vir Das: This popular Indian comedian is known for his hard-hitting political takes on Netflix specials ‘For India’ and ‘Abroad Understanding’, and for his roles in Bollywood movies. He has more 1,000 live shows under his belt and brings his ‘See You Outside Tour’ to the city for the first time. When and where: October 22, Dubai World Trade Centre.

Gad Elmaleh: French-Moroccan comedian and actor Elmaleh has starred in movies including ‘Coco’, ‘Priceless’ and ‘Midnight in Paris’, and will be doing his set in French. Elmaleh, who was once voted France’s funniest man, has performed at sold-out world tours and in 2019 released Netflix series ‘Huge in France’. When and where: October 23, Dubai Opera (French language show).

Gaurav Kapoor :Popular on Instagram and YouTube, Kapoor is known for his candid and self-deprecating humour. He’s famous for poking fun at parts of Indian culture and people who buy Royal Enfields, and often ropes in his wife for funny videos. When and where: October 23, The Theatre, Mall of Emirates.

Mina Liccione & The Funny Girls Go Pink!: Dubai-based performing artist Mina Liccione and the Funny Girls return for special stand-up comedy show in honour of Breast Cancer Awareness. The show will be headlined by Liccione (Broadway, Comedy Central, MTV) and will feature Dubomedy’s beloved Funny Girls: Liz Bains, Sameera Khan, Rebecca Howand Nada Karim, hosted by Imah Dumagay. When and where: October 24, The Theatre, Mall of Emirates.