{"id":202285,"date":"2025-10-04T22:02:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-04T22:02:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/202285\/"},"modified":"2025-10-04T22:02:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-04T22:02:07","slug":"popular-n-j-comedian-issues-apology-for-performance-at-controversial-comedy-fest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/202285\/","title":{"rendered":"Popular N.J. comedian issues apology for performance at controversial comedy fest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jessica Kirson<\/a>, a well-known comedian and Garden State native, shared that she now regrets her involvement in a contentious international comedy show.<\/p>\n

The popular lesbian comedian, who is originally from South Orange, has expressed \u201csincere regret\u201d after participating in the Riyadh Comedy Festival<\/a> in Saudi Arabia. <\/p>\n

\u201cI hoped that this could help LGBTQ+ people in Saudi Arabia feel seen and valued. I am grateful that I was able to do precisely that \u2014 to my knowledge, I am the first openly gay comic to talk about it on stage in Saudi Arabia. I received messages from attendees sharing how much it meant to them to participate in a gay-affirming event,” Kirson said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter<\/a>. \u201cAt the same time, I deeply regret participating under the auspices of the Saudi government.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kirson stated that she was surprised to be invited to perform at the comedy festival as she is openly lesbian.<\/p>\n

The star-studded event, which began Sept. 26 and runs through Oct. 9, has been promoted as the \u201cworld\u2019s largest comedy festival.\u201d The showcase features acts like Dave Chappelle, Bill Burr, Kevin Hart, Pete Davidson, Whitney Cummings, Andrew Schulz, Aziz Ansari and more.<\/p>\n

The Riyadh Comedy Festival has faced backlash <\/a>from comedians who have criticized the Saudi Arabian government\u2019s censorship and murders of journalists. <\/p>\n

Kirson, 55, said she will donate her pay from the event to an undisclosed human rights organization as she is \u201cdeeply sorry to all the fans and followers\u201d that were disappointed by her decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a special relationship with my fans because of the vulnerable nature of my comedy and the trust they place in me as part of the queer community,\u201d Kirson wrote. \u201cTo my fans: I see you. I hear you. Your voice matters to me. I love you all, and I am genuinely sorry for making a poor decision that had repercussions I didn\u2019t fully consider.\u201d<\/p>\n

The comedian, step-sister of actor Zach Braff<\/a> grew up in South Orange, and graduated from Columbia High School in Maplewood. She\u2019s appeared in films like \u201cSchool Dance,\u201d \u201cThe Comedian\u201d and \u201cThe King of Staten Island.\u201d <\/p>\n

If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jessica Kirson, a well-known comedian and Garden State native, shared that she now regrets her involvement in a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":202286,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[116438,65301,24956,8463,30750,116439,292,7069,45148,295,42198,116440,116441,116442,36437,88,3727,116443,40831,36442,309,17341,6135,28345,116444,216,116445,36444,6319,63668,20975,116446,63969,41806,36449,5705,1138,24954,36450,116447,36454,116448,8598,109228],"class_list":["post-202285","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-absence","tag-atmospheric","tag-band","tag-bar","tag-casual-clothing","tag-caucasian-ethnicity","tag-close-up","tag-concert","tag-cool","tag-copy-space","tag-creativity","tag-darkness","tag-differential-focus","tag-durbanville","tag-enjoyment","tag-entertainment","tag-event","tag-head-and-shoulders","tag-hobby","tag-illuminated","tag-indoors","tag-male","tag-man","tag-microphone","tag-microphone-stand","tag-music","tag-musical-equipment","tag-musician","tag-night","tag-nightclub","tag-one-person","tag-one-young-adult-man","tag-performing","tag-rear-view","tag-skill","tag-south-africa","tag-spotlight","tag-stage","tag-standing","tag-technique","tag-unrecognizable-person","tag-western-cape","tag-working","tag-young-man"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=202285"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/202285\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/202286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=202285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=202285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=202285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}