Comedy

Colors of stand-up

by Dorie Clark

Move over, Denis Leary and Jay Leno. The Boston comedy scene is about to get a little more colorful. "If you get seven white guys in a room, you're going to hear 'Aren't commercials stupid?' and jokes about the difference between cats and dogs," says Rick Jenkins, owner of the Comedy Studio in Harvard Square. He's hoping to liven up the mix this Saturday night with a "Women of Color Showcase," where performers will tackle everything from dating angst to ethnic idiosyncrasies. "Because of their backgrounds, they all have unique voices," he says.

BALACHANDRA gets funny.

Performers will include Lakshmi Balachandra, an Indian-American venture capitalist who recently gave up IPOs in favor of a full-time comedy career, and Alana Devich, a black lesbian yoga instructor who began doing stand-up this year after a class at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education convinced her she could handle a crowd. "I do jokes about what's happening in my life," says Devich. "I have a persona on stage, but you get a genuine sense of who I am. It's a little edgy, a little sassy." She shakes up expectations with a riff about coming out as black to her parents, but fans of traditional Boston comedy needn't worry - there are still cat jokes, and penis jokes too. In the meantime, she's just enjoying the thrill of her new avocation: "When people ask me what I do, I say I'm a comedian. But I'm certainly not making any money at it yet."

The Women of Color Showcase hits the stage this Saturday at 8 p.m. Sandy Asai, Lakshmi Balachandra, Janet Cormier, Alana Devich, Deb Farrar-Parkman, Malene Welch, and Bethany Van Delf will perform. The Comedy Studio is located at 1236 Mass Ave, Cambridge, upstairs from the Hong Kong Restaurant. Tickets are $7. Call (617) 661-6507.