The Montclair Comedy Festival opened on Saturday and runs through Saturday, November 21, with a show nearly every night in downtown Montclair. This is the festival's second fall edition, following its first in November 2025 and a Spring Fling weekend this year, and it has grown to eight straight days of stand-up, improv, sketch and variety across four downtown rooms.

Who is on the bill

The 2026 lineup came out of an open call that closed on October 10. A selection committee of more than ten people, a mix of comedy professionals and people from outside the industry, watched and rated every submission. Three headliners anchor the week: Todd Chappelle on Thursday's variety show, Becky Veduccio, whose credits include America's Got Talent and Netflix, on Friday night, and Myq Kaplan closing the festival on Saturday. Past headliners include Laz Vic at the 2025 festival and Judy Gold at the Spring Fling.

The schedule

  • Sunday, November 15, 7 p.m., DiRasa House of Diversified Arts: 7 ate 9, eight comics doing nine minutes each, plus a host.
  • Monday, November 16, 7:30 p.m., Montclair Brewery: Open mic, with three-minute sets from comics who submitted to the festival. Free for performers and the audience, with registration.
  • Tuesday, November 17, 7:30 p.m., DiRasa: Spotlight Showcase, a stand-up night.
  • Wednesday, November 18, 7:30 p.m., DiRasa: Wild and Wacky Wednesday, a competition of five-minute sets. Judges and the audience pick one comic for Saturday's closing show.
  • Thursday, November 19, 7:30 p.m., DiRasa: All Mixed Up!, a variety show with storytelling, singing, improv, sketch and stand-up, headlined by Todd Chappelle.
  • Friday, November 20, 7 p.m., DiRasa: Yip! Yep! Yup!, an improv showcase with several groups back to back.
  • Friday, November 20, 9 p.m., DiRasa: Friday FIRE, stand-up headlined by Becky Veduccio.
  • Saturday, November 21, 10:30 a.m., DiRasa: Pretenderrific, a family and sensory-friendly improv show hosted by Natty B.
  • Saturday, November 21, noon and 2 p.m., RecRoom: Two free one-hour seminars for comics: crowd work with Becky Veduccio, then promotion and social media with Melanie Vesey.
  • Saturday, November 21, 7 p.m., The MC Hotel: Hot Out of the Gate, a stand-up competition.
  • Saturday, November 21, 9 p.m., The MC Hotel: The BIG Show, headlined by Myq Kaplan with festival picks.

Tickets

Most ticketed shows are $25 plus fees and tax, and the Saturday morning family show is $15. A Festival Pass at $100 plus fees covers every ticketed event in the fall festival, which works out cheaper than buying five shows separately. The open mic and the seminars are free but need a reserved spot. Tickets are sold through Eventbrite, linked from the festival's website.

Getting there

Every venue is downtown and walkable from the others, so a double bill on Friday or Saturday is easy on foot. NJ Transit's Montclair-Boonton Line stops at Bay Street station, a short walk from Bloomfield Avenue.

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