Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
John Mulaney, Chelsea Handler, Marc Maron, Jay Pharoah on bill for huge New England comedy fest
The lineup for the second annual Lil Rhody Laugh Riot — coming next March — is stacked.Â
As the kids say, this year’s Lil Rhody Laugh Riot looks to be 6-7.
(6-7 means “an epic lineup of comedians headed to New England,” right? Help me, I’m from the 1900s.)
Welp, either way, the lineup for the second annual Lil Rhody Laugh Riot was announced Thursday, and it’s all A-listers, baby. Tickets go on sale Nov. 7 for the Providence comedy fest, scheduled for March 26-29 of next year.
The lineup includes John Mulaney, Chelsea Handler, Jay Pharoah, Marc Maron, Andrew Schulz, Bob the Drag Queen, and others, with more artists to be added as the fest nears. It’s presented by The VETS, PPAC and PFM Corp.
Billed as “Providence’s largest comedy festival,” the four days of laughs will be anchored at the city’s Veterans Memorial Auditorium (aka The VETS), with events at satellite venues around PVD, including Providence Performing Arts Center, RI Comedy Connection, and the newly renovated and now-open Uptown Theater (formerly The Columbus).
Advertisement:
The fest got off the ground earlier this year by bringing big names to Lil Rhody. Kevin Hart, Leslie Jones, Aziz Ansari, Matt Rife, and several SNL and Daily Show stars kicked off the inaugural ’25 fest this past March. Some 18,000 people beelined to downtown Providence to take in some 30 live comedy shows at 10 venues, according to fest organizers.
Here’s the current Lil Rhody Laugh Riot rundown for 2026:
- He had a star-studded intervention and hosts a Netflix talk show: Catch John Mulaney March 27 at 7:30 p.m. at PPAC.
- I’ll have what she’s having: Author/comedian/always-solid award show host, Chelsea Handler brings her comedy to The Vets March 28 at 8 p.m.
- Former SNL cast member/actor/impressionist (who, fun-fact, also voices characters on Amazon hit “Invincible,” among other shows) Jay Pharoah is at the Comedy Connection March 27-29.
- He ended his podcast with Barack Obama and has a role in the new Bruce Springsteen biopic: Marc Maron performs March 28 at 7 p.m. at the Uptown Theater.
- Catch alumni of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Bob the Drag Queen & Monét X Change March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the Vets.
- Tom Brady roaster and Netflix “Tires” star Andrew Schulz performs March 28 at 7 p.m. at PPAC.
- Yale alum and former writer for Conan O’Brien Demetri Martin performs March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at the Uptown Theater.
- Andrew Santino, who has a Hulu stand-up special “White Noise” out now, takes stage at The Vets March 27 at 7 p.m.
- Catch lawyer-turned-comedian/author of New York Times bestseller “This American Woman,” Zarna Garg March 28 at 4 p.m. at The Vets.
- Plus: Comedian/podcast host Mark Normand performs March 29 at 7 p.m. at The Vets. Crowd-work comic Jessica Kirson performs March 27 at 7:30 p.m. at the Uptown Theater, and comedian Kristin Key performs March 29 at 7 p.m. at the Uptown Theater.
Lauren Daley is a freelance culture writer. She can be reached at [email protected]. She tweets @laurendaley1, and Instagrams at @laurendaley1. Read more stories on Facebook here.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com