NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Lincoln Center held its very first all-Spanish-language comedy night on Oct. 2. The event, a part of the Festival of Firsts programming was held during Hispanic Heritage month and showcased a lineup of talented comedians: Fabrizio Copano, Pedro Gonzalez, Francisco Ramos and Carmen Lynch.
"We're already doing comedy in Spanish, so bringing it to a big venue, gives it legitimacy and we had a lovely crowd and it's very important for us to be able to connect with our people directly," said Gonzalez, a Colombian-American comedian.
The performance took place in the intimate setting of the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center.
"There aren't that many shows in Spanish here, we have to self produce a lot of shows so it's nice to have a large audience where we can all, from different countries, show what we do," Spanish-American comedienne Lynch added.
Telling jokes in Spanish is different from telling jokes in English according to Copano a Chilean-American comedian.
"We laugh with a 'ja', with a j-a, and we don't even try, that's the way that it happened ... naturally," Copano joked. "But especially in New York, you have to put like a lot of jokes between jokes, between jokes and here they have guns in the audience sometimes, so that's also a big difference."
Copano, who grew up during the end of the harsh dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, uses comedy to talk about his upbringing during a stifling political climate and his transition to life in America. His routine includes jokes about Latino Trump supporters and even jokes about Mayor Eric Adams who is currently fighting federal bribery charges.
"I hope that if the Turkish government is watching, if they can send me money, I can keep quiet and don't tell jokes about this" Compano said. "So please, I mean, send me money and I won't do it."
This event marked a significant milestone for Lincoln Center and the comedy world. By dedicating an entire evening to Spanish-language comedy, the institution gives recognition to the importance and richness of Hispanic culture and the contributions of Hispanic comedians to the art form.
Standup in Spanish is still a fairly new concept according to Venezuelan-American Ramos and Lincoln Center provides a platform for these artists to share their unique perspectives and humor with a diverse audience.
"I think it's also great to educate the Latino audiences about stand up in Spanish because it's still kind of new people still don't know what to expect.
So I think the more events they do, the more people are gonna get familiar with what stand up is," Ramos said.
The significance of this event extends beyond simply celebrating Hispanic Heritage. It highlights the growing diversity of the American comedy scene and the increasing demand for inclusive and culturally relevant content.