With a résumé that spans over 26 years, Kathleen Madigan continues to hit the stage with her award winning stand-up routines, bringing laughter to the masses with a long list of appearances on nearly every late night show and touring all over at packed theatres and opera houses.

On Nov. 13, Madigan will bring her witty and edgy humor to the Gallo Center for the Arts in Modesto.

Along with the long list of appearances on late night television like "The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore," "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "The Late Show with David Letterman," "The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson," and "Late Night with Conan O’Brien," Madigan has also made five appearances on "Ron White’s Salute To The Troops" as well as two USO tours to Iraq and Afghanistan and USO shows in the states.

Outside the laughter, competing on the second season of NBC’s "Last Comic Standing, "winding up in the top three, and being a judge on Season 5 was a reality experience that was not all fun and games for Madigan.

“Well it was kind of like a minimum security prison because we had to live in a house together but unlike those houses like the 'Real World' we didn’t have phones, no television, no newspaper, and, most importantly, making me and John Heffron another Midwest person, very sad, no alcohol,” expressed Madigan on her experience on "Last Comic Standing." “Reality TV is not something I would do again.

“I did it once and that is enough.”

As a judge on the NBC show, Madigan explained that producers and network executives also had input on who would stay and who would go, which she didn’t quite understand when she signed up to be a judge.

Despite the unfavorable experience, Madigan stated that “it is always good to be on TV telling jokes, no matter what the situation is. The outcome was good; it just wasn’t the experience it could have been.”

Being from the Midwest she spends her time between her home in Los Angeles and the Ozarks where her parents live.

Not really caring for the “perfect weather” in southern California, Madigan prefers thunderstorms and lighting – something more dramatic – rather than “the consistent just weird mall weather.”

Growing up in the Midwest, Madigan explained that they were so sheltered that she had no idea that being a comedian could be a career.

Now with widespread exposure due to her many television appearances, performing at festivals in Canada, Ireland, England, Hong Kong, Australia and essentially in theatres throughout the U.S., Madigan also has done specials like “Madigan Again” which premiered on Netflix, released four CDs, two DVDs, and starred in two HBO specials and three Comedy Central specials.

Chuck Martin will be Madigan’s opening act at the Gallo and she describes him as a solid featured act that writes and directs for shows like “Arrested Development” and still enjoys performing stand-up comedy.

“I want you to get your money’s worth because some headliners will pick an opener that is not as funny as they are, I think that is not very fair to the crowd,” said Madigan. “I am pretty confident I can follow any opening act so I only get funny people.”

Madigan will bring her comedic storytelling skills to the Gallo and review topics like family, politics, current events, and sports, to name a few.

“Being a comedian was really just an accident that just kept going for 26 years which is great,” stated Madigan. “I am one of the luckiest people walking around and completely aware of it every single day of my life.”

Kathleen Madigan at the Gallo Center for the Arts
8 p.m. Nov. 13
Tickets: $20 to $40; purchase at

or 209-338-5062