The 5 Hottest Transgender Comedians

Alison Grillo

Before she was a comic, she was a waitress. And before that, Grillo likes to joke, she was a waiter. The New York City comedian, who appeared on NBC's Last Comic Standing in 2010, has been slowly making a name for herself at comedy clubs in the city as well as at colleges and universities where she combines comedy with teaching. Grillo hosts the weekly summer stand-up show Up on the Roof, which takes place literally on the roof patio of one of Manhattan's most fashionable boutique hotels every Saturday and features other LGBT comedy regulars, such as Paul Hallasy. A fan of one-line deadpans, Grillo recently told Time Out New York, "Transgender people have become part of the national conversation. We're the awkward pause."

Even better: Grillo and Mike Motz have recently revived her long-running Jokes ‘n’ Gender: A Variety Show at the Peoples Improv Theater. Performing next on Wednesday, March 28 at 9:30 p.m., Grillo goes all out for the show, playing a “character” that she says is "basically herself, an eccentric Upper East Side socialite with man hands."