Small Town Comedy Festival in Healdsburg

A funny thing happened on the way to Healdsburg. And if local sons Sal Costanzo and Cory Loykasek have it their way, the laughs will keep on coming.

Costanzo, a local high school history teacher and Loykasek, who is pursuing a stand-up and comedy-writing career in Los Angeles, are staging the 2nd Annual Small Town Comedy Festival Friday night, having convinced 30 West-Coast-based comics, rising stars in their field to come to Healdsburg to perform.

Many of these comics typically are paid well at headline clubs all over the country, but they are giving that up to spend a weekend in Sonoma Wine Country.

“It was the time of my life,” said Emily Maya Mills, a Los Angeles-based comedian who attended the event last year and has appeared in the TV series “Parks and Recreation” as well as shows hosted by Conan O’Brien and Ellen Degeneres, “I totally fell in love with the town and the people. I mean, you have no cynical people. How is that even possible?”

Last year, on two weeks’ notice, the event drew 350 people, but the two 30-year-olds, friends since meeting in a youth basketball league when they were nine years old, are hoping to double the turnout this year. There are 10 shows scheduled in five venues around Healdsburg – four tasting rooms and the Bergamot Alley Wine Bar.

Among the comedians expected to perform are Andy Haynes, Dave Stone, Kevin Camia, Christian Duguay, Kate Berlant and Chris Garcia. Garcia is one of many comics who Costanzo and Loykasek have met as Loykasek has been wending his way through a fledgling stand-up career, first in San Francisco and, for the last couple of years, in Los Angeles.

“These are well-known names who headline their own shows,” said Loykasek, who added that a lot of the performers are considered on the verge of stardom. “It’s rare to get so many of them together in such a small event. In three years, these will be the comics everybody is talking about.”

Garcia, who also appeared last year, jumped at the chance to do the festival again.

“You could tell the crowds really wanted to be there to hear you,” said Garcia, who has appeared on Marc Maron’s “WTF Podcast” and on Ira Glass’ “This American Life.” “It was a pretty amazing experience.”

The love is in large part directed at the two organizers, who have worked as hard to assemble the talent as they have in making sure they have a great time once they’re here.

“We know how special this place is and that we had that going for us,” said Loykasek, who will be one of the comics performing.

One reason Loykasek and Costanzo thought a comedy festival could work especially in Healdsburg is the prevalence of tasting rooms there, many of which have event licenses and are available after 5 p.m., when most close for the day.

“They are just perfect venues for what we’re doing,” said Costanzo, who teaches history at Maria Carrillo High School. “We had these spaces available that were just made for doing this.”

The tasting rooms hosting this year include Banshee on Center Street, Thumbprint Cellars on Matheson Street, Sonoma Cider on Mills Street, Hawley Tasting Room on North Street and Bergamot Alley, the popular wine and beer bar on Healdsburg Avenue.

There are two shows scheduled each evening, at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. and the lineups are available at the festival website, which is smalltownfestival.com. Tickets are $20 a show, though organizers said the 7 p.m. show at Bergamot is already sold out.

You can reach Staff Writer Elizabeth M. Cosin at 521-5276 or elizabeth.cosin@pressdemocrat.com.