Writer and comedian Erin Judge presents her debut novel Vow of Celibacy. After much introspection and years of struggling with empty conquests, plus-sized fashion designer Natalie makes a vow of celibacy, signed and witnessed by her best friend Anastaze. Soon, she finds herself on the catwalk instead of behind the scenes, despite her mother's fat-phobic diet commentary, and her life begins to take a new shape. Clever, sexy, and compassionate about body image, bisexuality, and female friendship, Vow of Celibacy is one of 2016's most charming debuts.
Erin will read, sign, and perform a little stand-up with a fab lineup of local comedians: Nato Green, Natasha Muse, Kelly Anneken, and Jenny Chalikian—so come ready to laugh!
RSVP appreciated but not required. If you cannot attend the event, but would like to request a signed copy of Vow of Celibacy, order below and put your request in the comments field.
Erin Judge spent half her childhood in Brooklyn and the other half in Plano, Texas, and somehow grew up to be a plus-sized bisexual nightclub entertainer who also writes literary fiction. Erin’s first stand-up comedy CD, So Many Choices, was released by Rooftop Comedy Productions in 2012. She tours nationally with the Pink Collar Comedy Tour, has headlined the Women in Comedy Festival, and has appeared on Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham and NBC’s Last Comic Standing. Her work as a stand-up comic has been written about in the pages of The New York Times, Time Out New York, and The Boston Globe. Her writing has been featured in Salon, Thought Catalog, the Dallas Observer, and The Boston Phoenix, among others. Erin lives in Los Angeles and performs all over the world.
Nato Green was summed up more or less accurately by The East Bay Express as, “erudite and acerbic, a San Francisco-raised father, union organizer, gastronome, bibliophile, and political sparkplug.” His first comedy album, The Nato Green Party, was released by Rooftop Comedy. Nato has been named San Francisco's Best Comedian by the SF Weekly, Huffington Post, SFist, and CBS. Nato is the creator of Iron Comic, the Iron Chef-spoofing comedy game show he sometimes co-hosts with Moshe Kasher. Nato has a regular column in the San Francisco Examiner, and his humor commentaries have appeared in VICE, Truthdig, Huffington Post, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, The Rumpus, and The Bold Italic. He also hosts FSFSF, a short spotlight on Bay Area comedy that airs every weekday during NPR's All Things Considered on 91.7FM KALW. He had a podcast The Nato Sessions, produced by 3200 Stories. Nato wrote for Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell on FX and toured nationally with W. Kamau Bell & Janine Brito as Laughter Against the Machine.
Natasha Muse is like the C3P0 of San Francisco comedy: a bunch of small bears once mistook her for a golden god but in reality she’s a bumbling robot (as well as a mom, a transsexual, and a firm agnostic). The SF Weekly once declared her a “Comedian to Watch” in 2014, and in 2016 they upgraded her to an “Artist to Watch.” Natasha features at the SF Punchline and Cobb’s Comedy Club, and has worked with such comedy luminaries as Maria Bamford, Roseanne Barr, Janeane Garofalo, Wyatt Cenac, and God. Natasha’s comedy is so good, it’s not even funny.
Kelly Anneken is what happens when Kim Kardashian looks like Bette Midler and tweets like Roseanne. This Oakland-based funny person and all-around swell gal performs standup comedy and is a regular at the Punch Line San Francisco, Cobb’s and Rooster T. Feathers. Kelly has appeared at Iowa’s Green Gravel Comedy Festival and Boston’s Women in Comedy Festival. She has shared a stage with Jim Gaffigan and Anthony Jeselnik at Austin’s Moontower Comedy Festival and has appeared “in conversation” with Tig Notaro, Amy Schumer, John Waters, and Carey Elwes. Her debut comedy release “Twenty Minutes to Sell” is available wherever digital recordings are sold. Kelly is well-known as the co-host of the internationally popular Downton Abbey podcast “Up Yours, Downstairs.” She has served as executive director for feminist sketch troupe Femikaze and managing editor of online humor journal Hobo Pancakes. Her writing has also been published by The Mary Sue, KQED Pop, and The Tusk.
Jenny Chalikian is a stand-up comedian and freelance writer who regularly performs in and around Boston. She has headlined in venues such as DSI, the Idiot Box, MOTORCO Music Hall, and the Charlotte Comedy Zone. She has also performed several times along side the ladies of the Pink Collar Comedy Tour. In 2013, Jenny performed in the North Carolina Comedy Arts Festival where she opened for featured comic April Richardson. She also was a guest on Small Town Funny, a podcast created by John Sideris and Michelle Maclay where comics talk about how they write jokes and their experiences performing on-stage. Most recently, she competed to be Carolina’s Funniest Comic. She was honored to perform along side the four other finalists in the final round at the Carrboro Arts Center.
