Sandra Valls, above, and Poppy Champlain, below, headline the tour of lesbian comics.
Queer Queens of Qomedy mines humor out of serious business
You might think practicing standup comedy in the Trump Era would be a slam-dunk — I mean, the man is laughable, right? Well, it’s a lot more complicated than that.
“We are going through some really challenging times, so the queer community needs to be empowered and validated,” says Sandra Valls, a Laredo native and one of the comediennes on the Queer Queens of Qomedy Tour (Q3), which returns to Hyenas on Sept. 9. “We need to see that we’re still queer, we’re still here and, yeah, get used to it! We’re not going anywhere.”
Comedy is so vital because, Valls, says, “when done well, it actually helps to change the world, to make it a little brighter. Comedy transforms negative into positive. This show is empowering to our community simply because it exists. Oh, and we’re also super funny.”
Valls, who has been named one of the funniest, and baddest-ass comics to watch out for, by magazines like Latina and Curve, has appeared on two Showtime specials and has also appeared on Comics Unleashed and BET’s Comic View. She believes being funny can be about really political and sensitive subjects.
“By exposing the ugly truth, it gives you another perspective on it and therefore makes you more empowered to face it, change it, or walk away from it,” she says. “Comedy validates. Comedy challenges social norms. Comedy challenges preconceived ideas. Comedy helps bring social justice. Plus, laughter heals. It makes you feel good. And when you feel good, you raise your vibration. And when you raise your vibration you are more able to deal or change your life.”
More than anything, Valls says she loves both making people laugh and empowering people through comedy. “I love live shows because in that moment in time, we are united, we are all connected, we are all one. And that is truth. We are all one.”
Poppy Champlin, the creator and host of Q3, has been traveling the country for 12 years now, exposing fresh comic voices — women, LGBT, people of color — to a variety of audiences.
Q3 “is a positive, uplifting and wickedly funny comedy show,” Champlain says. “People leave being fans for life.” With everything going on in the world today, comedy is vital for our very survival “to relieve the pain of life. Living is hard and getting harder. Comedy soothes it makes it bearable when it seems to be spinning out of control.”
Crist Guzman, who hails from Dallas, will also be performing on this leg of the tour, which takes a swing through Texas with stops in Austin and San Antonio
Champlin’s favorite part about performing, and the reason she loves putting on this show, is the laughter.
She simply loves to hear it. “I love to know I am doing this to and for them, and it returns to me. It fulfills me, and makes me happy.” She believes that it’s harder than ever to create great comedy, which is precisely why you should come to Q3.
“It is not an easy craft to master, and we make it look easy. Come see the pros.”
— Jenny Block
