The Bentzen Ball is a comedy festival held in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, first in 2009, and then in 2013. It is produced by the D.C.-based online magazine and event company ''

Brightest Young Things ''Brightest Young Things'', or BYT Media Inc., is an online magazine and event production and marketing agency based in Washington, D.C. and New York City. Founded in 2009 by Svetlana Legetic, a former Architecture Designer from Serbia, ''Brighte ...

'' (often abbreviated as BYT) and curated by

Tig Notaro Mathilde O'Callaghan "Tig" Notaro (born March 24, 1971) is an American stand-up comedian, writer, radio contributor, and actress. She is known for her deadpan comedy. Her acclaimed album ''Live'' was nominated in 2014 for the Grammy Award for Be ...

. Named for Ollie Bentzen, a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

man who allegedly laughed himself to death during a screening of the film ''

A Fish Called Wanda ''A Fish Called Wanda'' is a 1988 heist comedy film directed by Charles Crichton and written by Crichton and John Cleese. It stars Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, and Michael Palin. The film follows a gang of diamond thieves who double- ...

'', the inaugural festival featured 60 comedians and 26 shows from October 22, 2009 to October 25, 2009. The second festival was held October 10–13, 2013, and was jokingly billed as the "Fifth Annual Bentzen Ball," referring to its hiatus.

History

2009

The 2009 Bentzen Ball consisted of 26 shows and 60 comedians. The festival opened on October 22 with an opening night headlined by

Patton Oswalt Patton Peter Oswalt (born January 27, 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and writer. He is known as Spence Olchin in the sitcom ''The King of Queens'' (1998–2007) and for narrating the sitcom '' The Goldbergs'' (2013–present) as ...

with

Rory Scovel Rory J. Scovel (born August 6, 1980) is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He released his first stand-up comedy album ''Dilation'' in 2011. He has since released the stand-up specials ''The Charleston Special'' (2015), ''Rory Scovel Tries ...

and

Kyle Kinane Kyle Christian Kinane (born December 23, 1976) is an American stand-up comedian, actor and voice actor from Addison, Illinois. Career Kinane's first television appearance was on ''The Nanny'' playing "Young Roger Clinton". His debut album ''Dea ...

at the Lincoln Theatre and closed with a

Sarah Silverman Sarah Kate Silverman (born December 1, 1970) is an American comedian, actress, and writer. Silverman was a writer and performer on ''Saturday Night Live'', and she starred in and produced ''The Sarah Silverman Program'', which ran from 2007 to ...

headlined-show featuring

Chelsea Peretti Chelsea Vanessa Peretti (born February 20, 1978) is an American comedian, actress, television writer, singer, and songwriter. She is best known for portraying Gina Linetti in the comedy series ''Brooklyn Nine-Nine'' and writing for ''Parks and R ...

Steve Agee Steven Douglas Agee (; born February 26, 1969) is an American comedian, actor, writer and musician, known for roles including Steve Myron on the Comedy Central series ''The Sarah Silverman Program'' and as John Economos in the 2021 superhero fil ...

Laura Silverman Laura Jane Silverman (born June 10, 1966) is an American actress and the older sister of actress and comedian Sarah Silverman. She acted in '' Sarah Silverman: Jesus Is Magic'' and ''The Sarah Silverman Program'' portraying a fictionalized versi ...

and

at the 9:30 Club on October 25. Shows were also held at the

Studio Theatre A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black ...

, HR-57 Center for the Preservation of Jazz and Blues, Bohemian Caverns and

Black Cat A black cat is a domestic cat with black fur that may be a mixed or specific breed, or a common domestic cat of no particular breed. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) recognizes 22 cat breeds that can come with solid black coats. The Bombay b ...

as well as a drop-in open mic show at

Ben's Chili Bowl Ben's Chili Bowl is a landmark restaurant in Washington, D.C., located at 1213 U Street Corridor, U Street, next to Lincoln Theatre (Washington, D.C.), Lincoln Theatre, in the U Street Corridor (a.k.a. Cardozo/Shaw neighborhood) of Northwest, W ...

hosted by Justin Cousson and Vish Bhatt.

2009 performers

Todd Barry Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

Mary Lynn Rajskub Mary Lynn Rajskub (; born June 22, 1971) is an American actress and comedian who is best known for portraying Chloe O'Brian in the action thriller series '' 24'', and the character Gail the Snail in ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia''. Rajskub ...

* Jimmy Dore * Morgan Murphy *

Dave Hill David John Hill (born 4 April 1946) is an English rock musician. He is the lead guitarist, a backing vocalist and the sole continuous member in the English band Slade. Hill is known for his flamboyant stage clothes and hairstyle. Early life B ...

Reggie Watts Reginald Lucien Frank Roger Watts (born March 23, 1972) is an American comedian, actor, beatboxer, and musician. His improvised musical sets are created using only his voice, a keyboard, and a looping machine. Watts refers to himself as a "disinf ...

Matt Braunger Matthew Braunger (born August 1, 1974) is an American actor, writer, and stand-up comedian. His most recent special ''Finally Live In Portland'' was launched by Comedy Dynamics in 2019. Outside of performing stand-up, Braunger is noted for bein ...

Natasha Leggero Natasha Leggero () (born March 26, 1974) is an American comedian, actress and writer. She rose to fame after appearing as the host of the MTV reality television series '' The 70s House'' in 2005, and as a regular roundtable panelist on Chelsea Ha ...

Nick Thune Nicholas Ivan Thune is an American actor, comedian, and musician. Life and career Thune was born in Seattle, Washington and grew up in Redmond. Thune moved to Los Angeles to pursue his career in stand-up. His early stand-up shows focused on word ...

Paul Rust Paul Robert Rust (born April 12, 1981) is an American actor, comedian and writer. He starred in the 2009 film ''I Love You, Beth Cooper'' and in the Netflix series ''Love''. Early life Rust was born in Le Mars, Iowa, the son of Jeanne and Bob R ...

* Ian Edwards *

* A.D. Miles *

Nick Offerman Nicholas David Offerman (born June 26, 1970) is an American actor, writer, comedian, producer, and carpenter. He is best known for his role as Ron Swanson in the NBC sitcom ''Parks and Recreation'', for which he received the Television Critics A ...

Kyle Dunnigan Kyle Dunnigan (born May 25, 1971) is an American comedian, actor and writer, best known as a writer for ''Inside Amy Schumer'', and for his role as Craig in ''Reno 911!'' Career Dunnigan was a member of the Groundlings Sunday Company and receive ...

Jen Kirkman Jennifer Ann Kirkman (born August 28, 1974) is an American stand-up comedian and screenwriter, podcaster, and actress. She is known for her regular appearances as a round-table panelist on ''Chelsea Lately'' for 70 episodes from 2008 to 2014. ...

Jackie Kashian Jackie Kashian (born July 20, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian. Early life and career Kashian, who is of Armenian and Irish descent, was born in South Milwaukee, Wisconsin and raised by her father, Elliot, and her stepmother, Nancy, along ...

Jesse Thorn Jesse Thorn (born April 24, 1981) is an American media entrepreneur and public radio and podcast host/creator. He is the owner and founder of the Maximum Fun podcast network, and the host and producer of the podcasts ''Judge John Hodgman'' and '' ...

Brendon Walsh Brendon Michael Walsh (born July 27, 1978) is an American stand-up comedian and podcaster originally from Philadelphia. Career Walsh started performing stand-up comedy in Austin, Texas in 2002. He has appeared on ''The Price Is Right'', ''Pre ...

* Cynthia Levin *

David Huntsberger David Huntsberger is an American comedian, known as co-host of the '' Professor Blastoff'' podcast and host of the ''Reactor'' television show on the SyFy channel. Huntsberger is a frequent guest on the podcasts '' Alison Rosen is Your New Best F ...

Lizz Winstead Lizz Winstead (born August 5, 1961) is an American comedian, radio and television personality, and blogger. A native of Minnesota, Winstead is the co-creator of ''The Daily Show'' along with Madeleine Smithberg, and served as head writer. Ear ...

Adam Cayton-Holland Adam Cayton-Holland (born June 2, 1980) is an American stand-up comedian from Denver, Colorado best known for his work with the comedy trio The Grawlix and their sitcom television series ''Those Who Can't.'' Cayton-Holland is also a writer who ha ...

Duncan Trussell Charles Duncan Trussell (born April 20, 1974) is an American actor and stand-up comic, known for his podcast ''The Duncan Trussell Family Hour''. He appears on the Netflix series ''The Midnight Gospel'', and starred alongside Joe Rogan in the SYF ...

Ruby Wendell Ruby Wendell is an American actress and comedian. She has appeared on ''Last Comic Standing'' and has acted in independent films such as ''The Mother of Invention'', ''I'm Not Like That No More'' and ''Ashes''. Biography Ruby Wendell was born ...

Seth Herzog Seth G. Herzog (aka The Zog) is an American comedian. Besides being active in New York City performing comedy, Herzog was the subject of the short film ''Zog's Place''. He has also had small roles in such films as ''Safe Men'', ''The Ten'' and ''T ...

* Andy Wood *

Aparna Nancherla Aparna Nancherla (born August 22, 1982) is an American comedian and actress of Indian descent. She has appeared on ''Inside Amy Schumer'' and has written for ''Late Night with Seth Meyers'' and ''Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell''. Nancherla re ...

*Jeff Klinger * Jeff Maurer *

2013

The 2013 Bentzen Ball opening night was headlined by Notaro once again, joined by

Doug Benson Douglas Steven Benson (born July 2, 1962) is an American comedian, marijuana rights advocate, television host and actor, best known for hosting the podcasts and TV series ''Doug Loves Movies'' (2006-present), ''The Benson Interruption'' (2010-20 ...

Wyatt Cenac Wyatt John Foster Cenac Jr. (; born April 19, 1976) is an American comedian, actor, producer, and writer. He was a correspondent and writer for ''The Daily Show'' from 2008 to 2012. He starred in the TBS series '' People of Earth'' and in Barry ...

, Everything is Terrible,

Heather Lawless Heather Lawless is an American actress, comedian, and voice actress. Early life Lawless was born in Georgia, and raised in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. She graduated from the University of Georgia. Career She began her career as ...

and others on October 10 at the 9:30 Club. A live episode of

Doug Loves Movies Douglas Steven Benson (born July 2, 1962) is an American comedian, marijuana rights advocate, television host and actor, best known for hosting the podcasts and TV series ''Doug Loves Movies'' (2006-present), ''The Benson Interruption'' (2010-20 ...

was taped as part of the festival at the Sphinx Club on October 11, and the festival closed with an

Ira Glass Ira Jeffrey Glass (; born March 3, 1959) is an American public radio personality. He is the host and producer of the radio and television series ''This American Life'' and has participated in other NPR programs, including ''Morning Edition'', ...

and Friends show at the Lincoln Theatre on October 13. Other acts who performed at the 2013 festival were

Nick Kroll Nicholas Kroll (born June 5, 1978) is an American actor, voice actor, comedian, writer, and producer. He is known for creating and starring in the Comedy Central series ''Kroll Show'', ''The Oh, Hello Show'', the FX comedy series ''The Lea ...

Garfunkel and Oates Garfunkel and Oates is an American comedy folk duo consisting of actresses Riki Lindhome, who performs as Garfunkel, and Kate Micucci, who performs as Oates. Their fast-paced songs typically combine raunchy observational comedy with sweet-sou ...

Moshe Kasher Mark Moshe Kasher (born July 6, 1979) is an American stand-up comedian, writer and actor based in the Los Angeles area. He is the author of the 2012 memoir ''Kasher in the Rye: The True Tale of a White Boy from Oakland Who Became a Drug Addict, C ...

Megan Mullally Megan Mullally (born November 12, 1958) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. She is best known for playing Karen Walker on the NBC sitcom ''Will & Grace'' (1998–2006, 2017–2020), for which she received eight Primetime Emmy Award no ...

Brody Stevens Steven James Brody (May 22, 1970 – February 22, 2019), known professionally as Brody Stevens, was an American stand-up comedian and actor. He starred in the Comedy Central reality series '' Brody Stevens: Enjoy It!'', and was known for appearan ...

Kate Flannery Kate Destiny Flannery (born June 10, 1964) is an American actress. Following her early theatre work, Flannery had her screen breakthrough playing Meredith Palmer on the NBC series ''The Office'', which won her two Screen Actors Guild Awards. Sh ...

Sara Schaefer Sara Schaefer (born July 10, 1978) is an American stand-up comedian, writer, and author. Personal life Schaefer was raised in Midlothian, Virginia, the daughter of Billie and William "Bill" Schaefer. Her mother started the charity Pennies for He ...

Martha Kelly Martha Kelly (born February 24, 1968) is an American stand-up comedian and actress from Los Angeles, California, best known for co-starring in the FX comedy series ''Baskets''. In 2022, Kelly was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstan ...

Rachel Dratch Rachel Susan Dratch (born February 22, 1966) is an American actress, comedian, and writer. After she graduated from Dartmouth College she moved to Chicago to study improvisational theatre at The Second City and ImprovOlympic. Her breakthrough ro ...

Michael Hitchcock Michael Hitchcock (born July 28, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and television producer. Early life Hitchcock received his Bachelor of Science degree from Northwestern University and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Un ...

Janet Varney Janet Varney (born February 16, 1976) is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer, known for voicing Korra in the Nickelodeon animated television series ''The Legend of Korra'', co-starring as Sheriff Evie Barret in the television seri ...

Jessica Makinson Jessica Makinson (born November 29, 1978) is an American actress, comedian, and improviser known as a series regular for several Comedy Central programs, for voice-over work for animation, and as a sketch player for late night talk shows. Earl ...

Cole Stratton Cole Stratton (born September 21, 1976) is an American actor, comedian, podcaster, writer and producer, best known as one of the Co-Founders of SF Sketchfest, the San Francisco Comedy Festival and the co-host of the Pop My Culture Podcast. Early ...

, Graham Elwood, Brandon Wardell, Andy Wood,

Jena Friedman Jena Friedman is an American comedian and writer. She is the host of the comedic true-crime series ''Indefensible'' on ''AMC Plus''. She has been a field producer at ''The Daily Show with Jon Stewart'' and has written for ''Late Show with David ...

, and others, plus DJ sets by

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a d ...

and

Animal Collective Animal Collective is an American experimental pop band formed in Baltimore, Maryland. Its members consist of Avey Tare (David Portner), Panda Bear (Noah Lennox), Geologist (Brian Weitz), and Deakin (Josh Dibb). The band's work is characterized ...

Record label

In 2016, Notaro released the first comedy album on Bentzen Ball Records on July 8, ''

: Just Putting it Out There''. Later that year on August 5, the second release on the label was Tig's own third album, '' Boyish Girl Interrupted'', released jointly with

Secretly Canadian Secretly Canadian is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana, with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin. Secretly Canadian is a label included in Secretly Group, which ...

References

External links

Official Bentzen Ball siteOfficial Bentzen Ball Records siteBrightestYoungThings
{{Authority control Tig Notaro Comedy festivals in the United States Festivals in Washington, D.C. Record labels established in 2016