CALENDAR: Charleston Comedy Festival offers 26 shows Jan. 15-18

Staff reports  | You can get ya after ya out Jan. 15 to Jan. 18 at any of 26 shows offered during the 17th annual Charleston Comedy Festival, the Southeast’s premier comedy event.  

The Charleston City Paper and Theatre 99 have teamed up to bring laughter and comedic relief to cure the post-holiday blues.

This year’s event promises to be an even bigger hit than years before with big-name acts—plus more performances, venues, and attendees. Headliners on Jan. 17 include Beth Stelling (7:30 p.m.) followed Francis Ellis (9:30 p.m.), both at the Woolfe Street Playhouse, 34 Woolfe Street.  Pete Dominick will perform at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 18, at the same location.

Performers and comedy troupes from the country’s top comedy hotbeds have been invited to perform during the four-day event featuring stand-up, sketch, and improv performers.

• Click here for a list of all shows and prices.  Don’t let Daddy take the T-Bird away.  Have fun at the festival.

Also on the calendar:

Inauguration day in Charleston:  Noon, Jan. 13, Charleston City Hall, 80 Broad St., Charleston.  Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg and six members of city council will be sworn in with a free reception following in Washington Square.  Then at 6 p.m., the Cannon Street Arts Center, 134 Cannon St., will host an inauguration celebration with live music, dancing, drinks and light fare.  Tickets are $50 each. For more information, go to CharlestonTogether.org.  

Ahead at Gaillard Center:  Enjoy something a little different (perhaps) in January at the Charleston Gaillard Center on Calhoun Street:

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra:  7:30 p.m., Jan. 14.  Led by conductor Mark Wigglesworth and featuring pianist Olga Kern, RPO will perform Dove Sunshine, Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2, and Sibelius Symphony No.2. Tickets are $25 to $119.

From Russians With Love: 7:30 p.m., Jan. 23.  The Charleston Symphony Orchestra will offer an evening of Russian symphonic and popular music, including Flight of the Bumblebee, Firebird, Night on Bald Mountain, and of course, From Russia with Love. Tickets are $25 to $114.

Vintage Market returns:  9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Jan. 19, Park Cafe, Rutledge Avenue, Charleston.  The Holy City Vintage Market will offer vintage galore and more with great deals on affordable, unique and sustainable stuff.   Park Cafe will serve up the brunch goods, including shirred eggs with cauliflower and kale cream, poached eggs, and a parmesan baguette (yum). Don’t forget to sip (a mimosa or Charleston Fog?) and shop, and repeat. More via Facebook.

Charleston Boat Show: Jan. 24-26, Charleston Area Convention Center, 5001 Coliseum Dr., North Charleston.  The 40th anniversary of the show will offer the best in boating to thousands who attend the three-day event. There will be more than 85 boat brands and more than 100 vendors selling marine related products and services.  The Charleston Boat Show tickets range from $5-$20. For tickets and details please visit www.TheCharlestonBoatShow.com.

Black America: Resilient:  Through Jan. 25, 2020, Redux Contemporary Art Center, 1056 King St., Charleston.  The center offers this solo show that highlights the work of Dontré Major, a College of Charleston art graduate whose work takes a look at Black/African Americans in the United States during different periods throughout time. Each photograph is meant to emulate the feelings individuals had during these specific times, and touch on the struggle they went through to be seen as equals.  

North Charleston art shows:  Open daily through Jan. 31, North Charleston City Gallery, Charleston Area Convention Center, 5001 Coliseum Drive, North Charleston.  On display are paintings by Pinopolis artist Katherine Hester in an exhibit titled Ebb and Flow and photographs by North Charleston photographer Jenion Tyson in A Bug’s Eye View: Macro Photograph in the Garden.  Admission is free.  

Lights of Magnolia: 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., through March 15, 2020, Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, West Ashley.  Enjoy nine acres of Chinese lanterns, dragons and more at the venerable garden’s new evening attraction.  The lantern festival includes custom-designed installations of large-scale thematically unified lanterns, a fusion of historic Chinese cultural symbols and images that represent the flora and fauna of Magnolia. Learn more online.  Tickets are $11-$26.  On-site parking is limited, but shuttles are available.  For more information and frequently asked questions, click here.

Early morning bird walks at Caw Caw:  8:30 a.m. every Wednesday and Saturday, Caw Caw Interpretive Center, Ravenel.  You can learn about habitats and birds, butterflies and other organisms in this two-hour session.  Registration is not required, but participants are to be 15 and up. $10 per person or free to Gold Pass holders.  More:  http://www.CharlestonCountyParks.com.

• If you have an event to list on our calendar, please send it to feedback@charlestoncurrents.com for consideration. The calendar is updated weekly on Mondays.