Amber Preston's Funny Friends featuring Ellie Hino, John Datoy, and Paula Kosienski comes to the Sanctuary Events Center on Friday, November 29. Local presale begins August 15 from 10AM-10PM using code FUNNY FRIENDS at → bit.ly/46uxCwF. Tickets on sale August 16 at 10AM.All ages | Doors at 6:30PM | Show at 7:30PM
AMBER PRESTON
From fifteen years of stand-up experience to national commercials for Buffalo Wild Wings, Comcast, and pretty much every Midwest insurance company imaginable, actor/comic/producer Amber Preston is as mischievously charismatic onstage as she is onscreen.
Originally hailing from Fargo, North Dakota, Preston earned her Theater Arts degree from the University of Minnesota. Along with musical theater, short films, and improv classes at UCB, she credits roadwork at VFWs and hole-in-the-wall sports bars for enabling her to connect with any audience regardless of age or sobriety level. These days her resume boasts performances at San Francisco’s Sketchfest, the Boston Comedy Festival, the Aspen Rooftop Comedy Festival, and Portland’s Bridgetown Comedy Festival. She’s even placed third at the Great American Comedy Festival and won Best of the Midwest at Gilda’s LaughFest.
Podcast-wise, Preston’s appearances include Doug Loves Movies, The Dork Forest, and WTF with Marc Maron. (Three times!) On the list-making front, she’s been cited as Thrillist’s Best Undiscovered Comedian in North Dakota and one of City Pages’ Top 100 Creatives in Minneapolis. Maron even named her among his Five Comedians to Watch for Vulture, adding, “I like ballsy women who know their way around a stage… She has great jokes and she doesn’t take any shit. She’s the kind of comic who could play a one-nighter at a bowling alley or a thousand-seat theater, and just nail it.”
Now calling Los Angeles home, Preston hosts and produces two live shows offering unique spins on standard stand-up. While Silver Lake’s Southpaw Salon hosts The Cut – an intimate, BYOB community gathering scented with Aveda products – the Hollywood Improv Lab’s Punchline Punchout bolsters comics’ sets with writing challenges. Past competition highlights include punching up the Ten Commandments, reconstructing Abraham Lincoln’s three best Tweets, and rewriting one’s professional bio from his or her parents’ perspective.
In 2020 Preston released her debut album with Stand Up! Records. Building on her natural instinct for engaging improvisation, Sparkly Parts’ saucy skewering of Midwestern charm belies a knack for wringing deceptively blue material from her Red State upbringing.
Scarce as it may seem, in her spare time Preston mentors low-income youth through Stand Up with Comedy. The non-profit organization encourages creativity, self-expression, and exploration of the arts through live performance.
From grandmothers to hardcore comedy geeks, Preston makes it her personal mission to leave diverse audiences wanting more. Getting strangers to laugh is one thing. Challenging preconceived notions is even better. But it’s when new fans want to hang out for beers afterward – and bring their friends along to her next show – that Preston knows she’s created a truly memorable comedy experience.
ELLIE HINO
Ellie Hino is a Minneapolis based stand-up comic with a heart of gold. She appeared in the 2019 and 2021 Limestone Comedy Festivals, Boston’s Women in Comedy festival, and was featured in “best of the fest” at the 10,000 Laughs Comedy Festival. Recently, she’s been lucky enough to feature for Maria Bamford, Jordan Klepper, and Atsuko Okatsuka.
Her debut album, Soft Bones, drops on April 5th, 2024 on the Blonde Medicine label.
Ellie is a super fun mom, a mediocre wife, and an all around delight. Her comedy is silly and honest, sometimes focusing on the naked truths of married life and motherhood. Yeah, she lives in the suburbs now, but she’s like, still cool.
JOHN DATOY
John Datoy is a former Fargo Native now living in Nashville, TN. He has worked alongside Dusty Slay, Mary Mack, and was the opener for Nate Bargatze’s “The Showcase” – a viral series on YouTube. He would like to give a shoutout to one of his favorite Fargo Restaurants, Henry and his crew at Pho D’Licious.
PAULA KOSIENSKI
Paula is a comedian out of Nashville TN. She has a drybar special that will be coming out in 2025 and performed at the Fargo Theatre with Dusty Slay back in June.
Event Venue
670 4th Ave N, Fargo, ND 58102-4786, United States
Tickets
