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Danville’s new monthly comedy series “Liz Grant & Friends” kicked off Thursday night to a sold-out crowd at the Village Theatre & Art Gallery.
The series features comedian Liz Grant, a former Pleasanton resident and business owner, who will produce and emcee each show, bringing in a variety of comedians and styles to the gallery on 233 Front St.
Thursday’s opening show was headlined by Bay Area comedian Anthony Hill and also showcased comedians Ben Feldman, Mean Dave and Danville resident Greg Riley.
“All the comedians I book are likeable, no insult comics, no aggressive vibes…A group experience in which everyone leaves feeling unified and happy,” Grant said. “That’s what happened last night.”
Grant’s comedy career came early in life — as a class clown. Then she thought to bring her humorous side to the stage.
“When I was a senior, I snuck into Tommy T’s when it was in San Leandro with a fake ID and did an open mic,” she said. “I bombed terribly. Then I became a waitress at the Tommy T’s in San Ramon, got on stage there twice.”
She opened InnerCalm Massage Center in Pleasanton a little afterwards — her massage center experience would provide her with material for her new show Massage Cop, coming to Danville in mid-2018. During this time, she started doing open mics and writing for George Carlin’s website laugh.com.
After attempting unsuccessfully to bring comedy to the Tri-Valley in a few different venues, she moved to San Francisco in 2002 where she did local comedy. Her first one-woman show ran for 23 weeks back in 2009, and she continued to perform one-woman shows until 2014.
Hosting a series in the area has been a dream for a while, Grant said.
“I feel particularly grateful that the town of Danville was willing to collaborate with me on the series,” she said. “I couldn’t afford to do it on my own, and I even ran the numbers three years ago and couldn’t make it work.” Danville is well-suited to comedy, she believes, because its downtown layout offers a relaxed setting, where attendees can grab dinner and avoid stressful traffic and parking-searching situations.
She plans to book comedians who are “likeable, no insult comics, no aggressive vibes,” in the vein of Jimmy Fallon, she said.
“I try to stay away from booking comics that overly emphasize politics, which tend to divide the room and remind everyone of the ‘outside world’ with its problems,” Grant said. “I think comedy should release people from the worries of the world for a bit.”
The shows are PG-16 and cost $17 pre-sale and $20 at the door. Tickets for future shows can be found at the Village Theatre and Art Gallery website.
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