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San Diego's Top Weekend Events: Funny Ladies

Rachel Bloom, in a photo from her CW television show, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend."
Rachel Bloom, in a photo from her CW television show, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend."
San Diego's Top Weekend Events: Funny Ladies
Top Weekend Events: Funny Ladies GUEST:Nina Garin, editor/producer, KPBS/Arts Calendar

Four women will be in San Diego this weekend. The problem is they are all performing on the same night in different venues. How do you choose? On this weekend preview arts calendar editor Nina Garin, is here to help you decide. Welcome. These four comedians are pretty high profile. It's Rachel Bloom, Tig Notaro, Maria Bamford and lean-to Lauria. They are each kind of an off key quirky Collaro Etsy. They attack similar audiences. It's a tough choice for fans of these comedians. You are here to tell people. Let's start with Tig Notaro She has very dry humor . She is masterful at working with silence and timing. She has been around for a while. What got her in the spotlight was when she went on stage, just after getting a breast cancer diagnosis. We actually have a clip of her doing a little bit of funny cancer greeting cards. The outside says, what is it? So you have cancer, sad face and you open the card and it says, thank goodness, I've been looking for a reason to shave my head. [ Laughter ] I can't believe that's what you have not laughed at tonight. That was straight from the funny cancer greeting cards. Is her stand up depressing? It comes from a dark place, cancer and when she did the stand up she had lost her mother and had a break up and was sick. Her life has been much better lately and she also addresses funny things. I suggest people look up this story about her meeting Taylor Dane. Tig Notaro perform Saturday at The Observatory. Next we have Lea Delaria A lot of people know her as Big Blue on "Orange is the New Black" , she is the first openly gay woman to appear on Arsenio Hall. She will perform more of a jazz concert. She is a really great jazz musician with the beautiful voice. She has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center and Hollywood bowl. It's going to be a combination of jokes and socks. Let's hear her sing "Luck be a lady.". [ MUSIC ] That was Lea Delaria from "Orange is the New Black" and she will perform in San Diego Saturday night as are all of these comedians at UCSD Mandeville Auditorium. Maria Bamford is another comedian performing this weekend. We ran an interview with her Wednesday, for those that did not here, can you give us a quick refresher about who she is. She is known for being completely wacky and very unexpected. She has a Netflix series called "Lady Dynamite" which is loosely based on her life. It talks about her staying in the site check -- psychiatric wards overcoming mental illness. It's all over the place but that's what people like about her. Even people who have not seen "Lady Dynamite" might still recognize or she appears on quite a few TV shows. Yes, she's been on arrested development and she does a lot of in them -- she is there a lot in the comedy world. Maria Bamford also Saturday at the Balboa Theatre. Finally we have one of your favorites. Rachel Bloom. I'm so excited. I recently talked about her for our New Year's Eve show about things to binge watch. She is the creator of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and she made funny YouTube videos before that. She is a truly known as a standup. She will be here doing it. What can people expect from her performance, I guess it's not standard is it? I expect a lot of funny songs, that's what she's known for. She also used to write sketches. They were feminist and they don't sugarcoat the female experience. They brought a sketch that she wrote for a child called "Robot chicken" It's just like mommy the realistic playtime kit for girls complete with toy microwave in three plastic TV dinners also a dust covered law degree to bury in the closet just like mommy. This baby doll is so heavy. That's emotional weight that baby will drag you down right into a dark pit of depression just like mommy. [ Laughter ] That's a sketch written by Rachel Bloom Will Wilson port -- perform in Encinitas on Saturday. How are people going to choose between these comedians? If you go to Rachel Bloom, I think it's if you like musicals and we'll talk about the female body. If you want to go to Tig Notaro, you like the formula of comedy equals tragedy in time and sarcasm . Tran -- Maria Bamford if you like funny voices and Lea Delaria if you like jokes and jazz and an old-fashioned evening. There is your choice. I've been speaking with arts calendar editor Nina Garin, . Thank you. Midday edition is produced by Marissa Cabrera Michael Lipkin and Brooke Ruth. Art segment producers are Beth Accomando and Nina Garin. Midday edition senior producer broken -- Meghan Burk and Emily Jankowski.

Fans of quirky, offbeat comedy will have a difficult time figuring out what to do on Saturday night. It turns out four high-profile comics will perform in San Diego on the same night.

Which one will you pick?

An Evening With Rachel Bloom

Comedy, Theater

Best if you like musicals and real talk about the female body.

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You might wonder what to expect from a live show with Rachel Bloom.

Best known for her CW musical TV show, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" and music video parodies, Bloom isn't known as a stand-up comedian. But she's got plenty of jokes to share, satirical songs to sing, and controversial statements to make. And yes, you'll also hear songs from the TV show.

This performance at La Paloma Theater is a rescheduled event.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday. La Paloma Theater, 471 South Coast Highway 101, Encinitas. $20 to $25; find tickets.

Comedian Tig Notaro.
Publicity photo
Comedian Tig Notaro.

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Tig Notaro

Comedy

Go if you believe in the formula comedy = tragedy + time. Also: sarcasm, perfectly-timed punch lines.

Tig Notaro, a stand-up comic and TV writer for many years, got mainstream attention after performing a heartbreaking routine shortly after her cancer diagnosis.

Since then, she's worked on projects like "Transparent," released an Emmy Award-winning stand-up comedy special, "Tig Notaro: Boyish Girl Interrupted," and created and stars in a semi-autobiographical Amazon show, "One Mississippi."

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday. The Observatory, 2891 University Ave., North Park. $35; find tickets.

Comedian Maria Bamford.
Associated Press
Comedian Maria Bamford.

Maria Bamford

Comedy

If you like the unexpected, non-linear jokes and funny voices.

Quirky comedian Maria Bamford is known for her work in shows like "Arrested Development," "Louie," "BoJack Horseman" and "Adventure Time" among many others. She also stars in "Lady Dynamite," a Netflix series that's loosely based on her life.

Her San Diego performance will tackle issues including mental health, religion and her new marriage. (You can hear more from her recent interview on Midday Edition.)

Details: 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Balboa Theatre, 868 4th Ave., downtown. $27.50 to $32.50; find tickets.

Lea DeLaria

Comedy, Theater, Jazz

For those who like a blend of jokes and jazz.

Find San Diego's best arts events on the KPBS/Arts events calendar.

Comedian Lea DeLaria is best known for playing "Big Boo" on "Orange is the New Black."

But did you know she's also a jazz musician? She was the featured vocalist at the 50th anniversary of the Newport Jazz Festival, and has performed in Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Chicago Symphony, Hollywood Bowl, the Royal Albert Hall, and the Sydney Opera House.

For her ArtPower debut, DeLaria will perform her unique jazz singing and pepper it with witty commentary.

Details: 8 p.m. Saturday. Mandeville Auditorium, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla. $20 to $55; find tickets.