WQXR Classical Comedy Contest Seeks Funny Musicians and Musical Comedians

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Deadline for Submissions is October 10; Winner to Perform a Second Set During New York Comedy Festival

The tradition of mixing classical music and comedy is long and grand – really! From Victor Borge’s musical slapstick and Danny Kaye conducting orchestras to Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd singing Ride of the Valkyries and Adam Sandler’s “Opera Man” skits, comedians have found humor in a genre better known for its high-brow seriousness than its comic potential.

Classical 105.9FM WQXR and legendary comedy club Carolines On Broadway have come together for the WQXR CLASSICAL COMEDY CONTEST, a one-of-a-kind talent contest for performers of all shapes and sizes who combine classical music and humor. Think of Flight of the Conchords headlining Carnegie Hall, or The Lonely Island meets Yo-Yo Ma. This is a singular opportunity for all those comedians with classical music training, or classical musicians who tell a mean joke, or simply for comedians who find classical music funny, to show off their unique talents.

Finalists will perform at Carolines on Broadway on Tuesday, November 8 as part of the New York Comedy Festival. The winner will go on to perform a second set during New York Comedy Festival.

Complete details and a video invitation by Robert Klein may be found here: www.wqxr.org/comedy.

The deadline for entering the WQXR Classical Comedy Contest is Monday, October 10, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. Contestants may enter the contest by providing a five-minute video of their act, name, and a few other details at WQXR.org/comedy. WQXR staff will judge all the entries and announce the semi-finalists at noon on Monday, October 17. Semi-finalist videos will be posted on WQXR.org for comment by the general public and a group of finalists will be selected.

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