Sonoma’s Laughfest comedy series expands to Guerneville, Petaluma

“We have so much here, in Sonoma County, but we really haven’t had a very robust comedy scene,” says Brooke Tansley, co-producer of the annual Sonoma Laughfest comedy series, held every October in downtown Sonoma for the last two years.

But beginning this weekend, aided by some of last year’s most popular performers, Tansley will bring the Laughfest brand beyond Sonoma, with a pair of single-night shows in Petaluma and Guerneville.

The Petaluma show will take place Sunday, Jan. 29, at the Big Easy, with the Guerneville show playing at Pat’s Bar on the previous evening, Jan. 28.

Tansley says it has always been her plan to use the momentum of the five-day-long Sonoma series to launch individual shows at various spots across the county. Generally speaking, comedy shows with big names have tended to play at Luther Burbank Center, leaving lesser known acts to fight for audiences at smaller venues.

“Compared to San Francisco or Los Angeles, professional comedy shows have been kind of few-and-far-between in Sonoma County,” she said

The producer, and former member of Amy Pohler’s Upright Citizen’s Brigade comedy troupe, says she still hopes to do some single-night comedy shows in the Sonoma Valley Area, but has struggled to find the right venues.

“The details have to be very specific for this kind of show to work,” she says. “We need a space that seats about 80 people, and has its own liquor license and staff.” A relatively new night spot in Petaluma, fits the bill perfectly, she says.

“The Big Easy is a very cool spot for this kind of show,” she says. “I think the Laughfest style of show will do well there, and will show other venues how this model of comedy show works.”

Just as she’s done in Sonoma, Tansley has booked several varied for one evening of comedy, recruiting artists who played especially well last October as part of the Laughfest event. The host of the Petaluma and Guerneville shows will be stand-up comic Terry Dorsey, originally from Chicago.

“He has a unique perspective on things, coming from Chicago, now living in Northern California,” says Tansley. “His observations on our life here are very interesting, very funny and very kooky.”

Joining Dorsey will be Joe Liss and Marcus Sams, commonly known as Liss ‘N Sams. A two-person Bay Area improv team, the duo has played to packed houses all over the Bay Area, and has twice sold out the San Francisco Sketch Fest. Also on the bill are Erin and Melissa, certified internet sensations known for combining comedy and music in unexpected ways.

“They are basically a ‘comedy band,’” says Tansley, describing Erin and Melissa’s unique approach to comedy and music. “They sing really funny songs about relationships and current events,” she says. “They do a lot of ‘topical humor,’ you might say.”

Erin and Melissa recently had a YouTube video go viral, “(Before You (Pokemon Go),” a surprisingly rich and darkly funny exploration of how a relationship becomes affected by the whole “Pokemon” phenomenon.

“If you haven’t Googled it, you should,” says Tansley.

She says she is optimistic that these shows will pave the way for more.

“If people come out and enjoy it, then we’ll keep doing it,” Tansley says. “From what I’m seeing, people really do want a reason to laugh right now.”

Email David at david.templeton@sonomanews.com