Jokers Will Move Into Hyatt

The “comedy boom” you often hear about refers primarily to the frenzied proliferation nationally of comedy clubs and stand-up comics, and it’s reverberating in Orange County again with the opening this weekend of a new venue in Garden Grove.

The club is Jokers, inside the Hyatt Regency Alicante, about a mile from Disneyland. That puts it just a stone’s throw from Coconuts, the comedy nightspot that opened 16 months ago.

Both Jokers and Coconuts are in hotels and offer shows Friday and Saturday nights. Otherwise, the two operations reflect pretty different approaches.

Coconuts--which, coincidentally, is changing its name to Shtick’s on Oct. 1--presents comics who generally haven’t developed much name recognition or key credits. The plus side is a cover charge of $5, which means you can see a comedy show there for less than you often have to pay for a movie.

Coconuts doesn’t offer dinner service, but appetizers and drinks are available before and during the show. Shows are at 8:30 and 10 p.m., enabling someone to catch either show without it becoming a particularly late evening. Jokers, on the other hand, plans to specialize in presenting so-called “high-end” entertainment--that is, more established comedians with significant credits in film and television, often including “Late Night With David Letterman” and “The Tonight Show.” Not surprisingly, then, the cover charge will be higher--$10 or more, depending on the the headliner.

Dinner will be served in a restaurant next to the showroom before the performance, with those eating dinner receiving priority seating for the first show; appetizers and drinks will be available during the show. Jokers has arranged for the Hyatt to provide free shuttle service to other nearby hotels. The shows will be at 9:30 and 11:30 p.m.

Although Jokers won’t celebrate its official grand opening until the weekend of Oct. 6--with headliner Dave Coulier, a 12-year stand-up veteran who has appeared on “The Tonight Show” and stars on the hit ABC sitcom “Full House”--this weekend’s “preview nights” feature a strong bill, including Mark Schiff and Peter Pitofsky.

Depending on what he’s wearing, Schiff often looks like a cross between Harpo and Chico Marx and is sometimes as funny as Groucho. Not that he’s as acerbic. Rather, Schiff--who boasts all the top credits--deals primarily in universal, everyday topics, with a big chunk devoted to family life.

Pitofsky is a highly unusual physical comic who does amazing things with his body. And with his face: His impression of Dizzy Gillespie snoring is classic.

Mark Schiff and Peter Pitofsky perform Friday and Saturday at 9:30 and 11:30 p.m. at Jokers in the Hyatt Regency Alicante, 100 Plaza Alicante, Garden Grove. Tickets: $10. Information: (714) 971-3000.