Final schedule set for LaughFest

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - LaughFest will kick off with a celebration downtown Grand Rapids, and come to a close with a free dance party and community event, organizers announced Wednesday.

LaughFest is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. March 10 with a rubber chicken toss at Rosa Parks Circle. Organizers hope to break a Guinness Book of World Records benchmark set in April 2010, when 265 chicken tossers gathered outside of Boston. LaughFest wants to shoot for 500 participants.

From there, 10 designated restaurants will host traveling comedy troupes: 25 Kitchen + Bar, Bar Divani, The B.O.B., J. Gardella’s Tavern, Louis Benton, McFadden’s, Mojo’s, Peppino’s and Republic. LaughFest participants who attend will be entered into special drawings and be eligible for discounts at the LaughScat locations.

A free dance party and concert is set for 9 p.m. March 19, and will feature the local band, Mid-Life Crisis. That event will take place inside the Ambassador Ballroom, at the Amway Grand Plaza, with the band playing until midnight.

LaughFest participants will gather at Calder Plaza for the closing event, where they'll be given a commemorative placard to hold while creating a yellow smiley face that will be photographed from the air.

A full schedule of other events is available on LaughFest's website. Tickets for the shows are available through Ticketmaster or at Van Andel Arena's box office.

LaughFest benefits Gilda's Club, and will feature comedians such as Bill Cosby, Mike Birbiglia, Kathleen Madigan and Margaret Cho. About 200 events are set for 32 venues.