OAKLAND — Dis/orient/ed Comedy, a (mostly) female, Asian American standup comedy tour, comes to the Oakland Asian Cultural Center on Saturday, April 5, at 7 and 9:30 p.m. (two different shows).

Dis/orient/ed Comedy is the first-ever nationally touring standup comedy showcase that features the fresh and diverse voices of Asian American female-identified comics and the diverse friends who love them.

Jenny Yang and Atsuko Okatsuka (Photo by Leva Ann)
Jenny Yang and Atsuko Okatsuka (Photo by Leva Ann)

In cities throughout the country, Dis/o­rient/ed Comedy creates a unique lineup of talent with local, up-and-coming Asian American female comics. This weekend’s show features Shanti Charan, Priya Prasad, Molly Sokhom, D Lo, Zahra Noorbakhsh, Atsuko Okatsuka and Jenny Yang.

While the tour’s focus is on showcasing Asian American female comics, Dis/orient/ed Comedy’s productions feature unique comics of diverse race, sexuality and gender not often seen on mainstream comedy club stages.

Seeking a supportive network of comedians and with a desire to build audiences and community, Los Angeles-raised Okatsuka and Yang and Seattle-based founding co-producer Yola Lu created Dis/­orient/ed Comedy, which debuted in the summer of 2012 to a sold-out audience of nearly 300 in the historic David Henry Hwang Theater in L.A.’s Little Tokyo.

The sold-out tour has taken these fresh voices to colleges and universities such as Wellesley College, Pomona College and Loyola Marymount University, plus standing-room only shows in Seattle, San Francisco, and the Westside Comedy Theater in Santa Monica.

Tickets are $20 general, $12 pre-sale. For more information, visit http://disorientedcomedy.com.

OACC is located at 388 Ninth St. between Franklin and Webster on the second floor of the Pacific Renaissance Plaza in Oakland’s Chinatown. Parking is available underground in Pacific Renaissance Plaza (no validation) or across the street at Franklin 88 Parking Garage on Franklin between Ninth and 10th streets. For more information on OACC, visit http://oacc.cc/.

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