press clippings

“Who amongst us has suffered the groans and eye rolls of their friends and neighbors?” Spear said as the audience cheered.

“Or or you’ve said ‘No pun intended,’” Olson added. “But you actually did.” The audience roared with laughter.

Read more from KCRW

"A pun contest sounded agonizing, but perhaps, I hoped, there would be something of relevant interest I could dig out of the proceedings and publish... Folks, the Pun-Off is fantastic! I didn’t want it to end. I’m going back next month."

Read more from Beth Spotswood, SF Chronicle

"...we commence with an all-hands marathon on tree puns designed to winnow the field of 12 down to eight. “I’m just hoping to win the poplar vote,” one woman says. “Sounds like birch of contract to me,” says someone else."

Read more from Peter Rubin, Wired Magazine

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“The tension is palpable and the groans audible as performers compete for a bespoke trophy and beleaguered bragging rights at the Bay Area Pun-Off. Launched in an Oakland living room in 2016, BAPO, as it’s come to be called by its committed community of die-hard punsters, attracts a diverse and enthusiastic crowd to a living miracle of an event: a comedy show made nearly entirely out of improvised puns… and it’s actually good! 

Helmed by co-producer/emcees Jonah Spear and Carmen Moon, along with a growing cadre of experienced all-star pun-off champions, Worldwide Puns productions pride themselves on being the warmest crowd in comedy. Its fast-paced, non-stop competitive format is balanced by a friendly audience warm-up and thoughtfully prepared 'puntificator' pieces. The judging is iron-fisted and purely objective - the emcees are the chumps that ump (ire not required) - and the jokes are anything but predictable (other than usually being puns). 

Punslingers range from raunchy professional comics that traveled across the country to compete to giddy elementary school teachers, nerdy engineers, and norm-core dads. 

The show opens with a clarion call to puns: 

How many of you have been punished for wordplay? 

Who among us have suffered the groans and eye-rolls of their friends and family? 

Which of you has claimed, perhaps defensively, “no pun intended,” when, actually… 

Tonight is for you. You are welcome here. We are proud to be the Bay Area’s safe space for wordplay.”