We recently connected with Janice Rodriguez and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Janice, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

As the executive producer of Las Locas Comedy, a Latina forward comedy collective based in Chicago, there were several conversations with our production team and other comedians over the years about putting together a festival that focuses on Latina comedic talent. Then I remembered that I had bought the LatinaComedyFestival.com domain name 6 or so years before we started talking seriously about it. Looking back, it seems like everything just came together at the perfect time!

Then in the summer 2022, the talks with festival cofounder Jess Martinez became more frequent and serious. When we realized that National Latina Day was happening in August, we decided to make a showcase that would feature as many Latina comedians from Chicagoland in a marathon-style showcase. So the festival really started with just one sold out showcase on August 20th, 2022 at Lincoln Lodge in Chicago! The feedback was really great and the energy of the show was palpable – we knew we had something that was important and needed in the comedy space.

In 2023, we grew to over 36 Latina performers from across the country- performing in 6 showcases at venues across the city. We moved the festival to early October to coincide with Hispanic Heritage Month and had multiple sold out showcases. We were featured on several Chicago media programs and had an amazing response from both festival attendees and the selected performers. We’re in full swing of producing the 2024 festival and have set the dates for October 3rd-5th, 2024 in Chicago.

The Latina Comedy Festival holds deep significance to me for several reasons. Firstly, it provides a platform for Latina comedians from across the country to showcase their talent and perspectives, which may otherwise be overlooked in mainstream comedy circuits. By amplifying their voices, the festival is contributing to diversity and representation in the comedy industry.

Secondly, the festival likely fosters a sense of community and solidarity among Latina comedians and their audiences. Creating spaces where people can connect, share experiences, and celebrate their culture is invaluable, especially in industries where minorities may feel marginalized.

Additionally, the festival has the potential to challenge stereotypes and misconceptions about Latinx individuals, showcasing their multifaceted identities and humor. In doing so, it promotes understanding and acceptance across cultural boundaries.

Overall, the Latina Comedy Festival isn’t just about laughter—it’s about empowerment, representation, and fostering a sense of belonging for Latinx comedians and audiences alike.

Janice, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I always call this my ‘origin story’ about how I got started in comedy. In late 2014, I was running my own very successful experiential marketing staffing company but it’s probably better to say that it was running me! So I decided to make a New Years resolution for 2015 to do something I always wanted to do that was really just for me. I’ve always loved stand up comedy so I went to my computer and typed in “standup comedy classes for women Chicago’ and Fem Com popped up. I quickly signed up and loved the class and my teacher comedian and founder of The Kates – Kelsie Huff. I then went on to attend a few more classes to hone my performance and writing skills while going to open mics, performing at shows, which led to me eventually co-founding Las Locas Comedy and Latina Comedy Festival.

While starting in comedy, I didn’t see a lot of performance or community building opportunities for Latinas in stand up comedy. I’m so proud that for the past 7 years, Las Locas Comedy has been producing high quality Latina-centered stand up comedy showcases across Chicagoland and the USA. We’ve provided a platform for up and coming Latina comedians and been part of a network of Latina producers from across the country. We’ve been able to promote and book comedians from across the country and really work on a common mission of raising the visibility of these extremely talented Latina stand up comedians. The next evolution of that mission is the Latina Comedy Festival which returns to Chicago for its third year October 3rd-5th, 2024. We look forward to hosting 30+ Latina comedians from across the country to perform at showcases at various venues across the city. This festival will continue to focus on networking, talent development, and giving exposure to talented comedians that may not be part of the national conversation – yet.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Pay us what we’re worth. I think in theory most people agree that artists should be paid for their work but there are still these systems and beliefs in place that artists should volunteer or give away their product or service. There are people and organizations who will use entertainers to generate revenue but don’t want to compensate the entertainers fairly. I see it getting better and I’m happy to see creatives having these important discussions behind the scenes. It shouldn’t be awkward for creatives to ask about compensation and we should demand to be paid and respected like any other service business. I know that it gets complicated for artists because some will say- well I’m not a business – I’m an artist/actress/singer etc. But at some point you have to fund your creative career and it should be encouraged and accepted that you as an artist should make a living from your talent.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

The biggest pivot I’ve had to do in both my professional and creative careers was to deal with all of the fallout from the pandemic. While my staffing business came to a complete halt, so did live comedy as we knew it. But with comedy there was a bit more flexibility and adaptability to an online environment. As awkward as it was at times performing online, looking back, it was an important step in my journey to meet other comedians from across the country and the world. Without meeting these comedians during the pandemic, I personally wouldn’t have met some amazing Latina comedians and producers who have allowed me to travel and perform in other markets and get the momentum to start and keep growing both Las Locas Comedy and Latina Comedy Festival. During the pandemic, I also was able to work on additional side projects like the Defending Indiana podcast and develop those skills further. I also had to pivot professionally from event marketing to digital marketing and have increased my knowledge and execution of digital and social media marketing initiatives for both clients of mine and my own creative projects. So while the pandemic was very hard on a personal, creative, and professional level, I do look back and see that I did the best I could with that time to lay the foundation of what I’m doing today.

Contact Info:

• Website: funnychica.com , laslocascomedy.com, latinacomedyfestival.com
• Instagram: @jvrspeaks @latinacomedyfestival @laslocascomedy
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laslocascomedy, https://www.facebook.com/latinacomedyfestival, https://www.facebook.com/janicevrodriguezcomedy
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janice-v-rodriguez-a43710
• Twitter: @jvrspeaks @laslocascomedy
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jvrspeaks, https://www.youtube.com/@LasLocasComedy, https://www.youtube.com/@LatinaComedyFestival
• Other: https://linktr.ee/jvrspeaks https://linktr.ee/laslocascomedy https://linktr.ee/latinacomedyfestival