Orly K.G. will be at City Winery with Shahar Cohen this Wednesday night.
As we slog through bleak, dystopian times, what we need most is light. What are the odds that a single comedy show—coming up on Wednesday—features both an opener and a headliner whose names literally mean ‘light’?
“You’re just making that up,” I can hear people reasonably object.
Nope, it’s true!
This Wednesday at City Winery, Chicago’s Orly K.G. will open for fast-rising international star Shahar Cohen. In Hebrew, “Orly” means “my light,” and refers to light that both illuminates and brings order to chaos. “Shahar” translates as the light of dawn – a symbol of hope and renewal.
Orly K.G. is the creator and producer of Bad Momz of Comedy, which began in Chicago, became a national sensation on The Kelly Clarkson Show and now tours to sold-out crowds (with substantial waitlists) throughout the country. Every Bad Momz of Comedy show is unique. Each show features different comics chosen from its roster of more than ninety comedians.
Shahar Cohen has built a following of millions on social media, including TikTok – a platform often hostile to Israeli creators. Yet his apolitical, good-natured and hilarious comedy has broken through, winning fans internationally. He is known for his spoof of Israeli characters and culture while making fun of Americans’ bafflement (and panic) over things like “sugar water”, Hebrew idioms, and frequent sprints to the bomb shelters.
The Chicago Jewish Alliance (CJA), sponsor of Wednesday’s event, saw the show as more than entertainment. “It’s a Jewish tenet to celebrate life and joy,” says Simona Bogode, CJA’s Director of Operations. “We deal with upsetting and difficult things, but we also bring joy to our events. That’s how we stay sane—making time to appreciate life.”
And difficult things abound. Every day brings fresh waves of hate and misunderstanding, shocking even those who thought they could no longer be shocked. In January 2024, Daniel Schwartz was surrounded by a hostile crowd at a Chicago City Council meeting. The experience inspired Daniel to found CJA. “At the time, Jewish artists, comedians, and writers were being canceled by local venues and bookstores,” Simona recalls. “There was such a backlash against the community.”
“I remember the feeling of isolation, of being scared and wanting community and to gather, but not seeing it come to fruition,” Simona continued. “You would find out about a rally or a show of support for the hostages at the very last minute or you missed it. Then you’d see pictures from the event with like ten people because nobody knew about it. People were too scared to gather publicly. Danny said, ‘I’m not doing that.’”
Since then, the Chicago Jewish Alliance has become a driving force for advocacy and community, sponsoring rallies, book fairs and arts events and showing up at City Council meetings and anywhere their voice is needed. When I caught up with Simona and Ethan Slyder, (CJA’s Vice President of Intercultural Partnerships), they had just come from a meeting at Loyola University on behalf of Jewish students who were explicitly excluded from their class’s WhatsApp and study groups.
As Simona explained, CJA has “two main tenets: combating antisemitism in whatever way it manifests within Chicagoland, and supporting Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish homeland.” (NOTE: this definition does not exclude other people’s rights.) CJA is non-partisan and apolitical.
CJA is equally committed to bringing joy and laughter – and light – into these challenging times and it’s that spirit that brings Shahar and Orly to City Winery this coming Wednesday. I was also curious how comedians keep their spirits up and find the funny when times are not funny at all. Orly was scheduled to fly out this Wednesday night for another gig, but postponed to take part in Shahar Cohen’s show. What made this show worth the change of plans? Orly kindly took time out between sold-out shows to share her perspective.
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Teme: How did you first connect with the Chicago Jewish Alliance for this show?
Orly: Simona and I are friends. I happened to get connected with the Chicago Jewish Alliance at her baby shower. We non-pregnant moms were all drinking and kibbitzing and they were like, “Oh, can she open for Shahar?” So I looked him up online. I am so excited to do this show. I wish I could stay for the whole thing. I have a flight the next morning at 6:00 AM to go to West Palm Beach performing Thursday in Boca, which is Jerusalem 2. Then the next night we’re performing in Jupiter, Florida.
Teme: Simona mentioned that you actually changed your plans!
Orly: I did. Shahar’s just lovely and funny. There’s so much seriousness around our people now. I think every religion has those voices that they turn to, reminding us that we’re not just all about the heaviness, we’re also about joy and humor. Right now, we desperately need joy—not to deny or turn away the hard stuff, but to help us get through it. The more we laugh and come together, the better off we are – it’s better than when we fight and tear each other apart.
Teme: How have you been coping these past two years since October 7? For me, all the terrible news has had such an impact – it’s like I’m frozen. I used to do ten or twelve interviews a year, but this is only my second for 2025.
Orly: The only way I can explain it to my non-Jewish friends is that October 7 was like 9/11. We literally were stopped in our tracks. We had so many questions. When you have so many questions, you don’t know how to move forward; it’s hard to get motivated to do things.
At first, I couldn’t believe it. Just like on 9/11, I thought, “How could this happen?” Regarding October 7, I was shocked at how quickly antisemitism turned up. I had always seen snippets of it here and there, but this was really jarring for me. I know it’s always been there, but it was the first time I felt it. As a mom, I was scared for my kids. Then my mother got sick and she passed away last October close to the election. Everyone kept asking me, “How do you feel?” And I’m like, “I actually can’t feel right now.”
Teme: Like overload. I absolutely get that.
Orly: Comedy was a saving grace for me when my mom passed because when I was on stage nobody gave me that pity face. Nobody knew what I was going through because when I’m on stage, I am performing for the people that actually left the house, bought a ticket, found parking, etc. It’s their night. Everyone in that audience has a series of domino events of sadness and frustration that have happened in their lives, too. It’s not my job to go up there and remind them of that. My job is to help them see that we have more in common, that we’re more alike than different and how funny it can be. I don’t talk about current events. The core of who I am is to say “if you feel this way, you’re not alone”, and “It’s funny. We can laugh about it.”
Teme: That’s the beauty of comedy—the power and the magic. How have you been able to stay focused on what’s funny in such difficult times?
Orly: It helps that my family is very funny. My husband’s very funny. My brothers and I totally get along. We have a text thread going on with the spouses and all of us, and it’s actually kind of funny. We found humor amid the sadness.
I don’t think I’ll ever talk about Israel on stage. You may look at me and think “she’s a woman, or she’s married, or she’s Jewish, I can’t possibly relate to her.” And then after I want you to say, “Oh wait, she’s a human just like me and she’s funny.”
Teme: With everything that happened and is still happening, my synapses just kind of blew their fuses and I’ve had trouble rebooting and locating my sense of humor again.
Orly: Two years ago, did you seek comedy as relief or peace?
Teme: I’d happened to interview Yohay Sponder two months before October 7. Much of what he said was prophetic about why we turn to comedy in a crisis. I really needed someone to reflect back to me what I was feeling. So I guess I did turn to comedians, especially him. Now that I think about it, I also started watching I Love Lucy again.
Orly: When my mom passed away, I watched all of Abbott Elementary. It didn’t take away the sadness, but the joy, the funny, and the real human connection of that show really lifted me. We need each other more than we think – and sometimes we just have to get out of that loop in our own head. I’m glad that people are listening and watching comedy on YouTube or Instagram, but when you go in person it’s such a different experience laughing with other people.
Teme: Yes, that connection is very therapeutic.
Orly: It’s bringing the world together and not tearing it apart.
Teme: Right. You’re suddenly in community even though you probably don’t even know the people at the next table. It gives me hope. If people can connect like that, strangers here at this comedy show, there is hope for the world even when it seems like there isn’t.
Orly: I think that’s the title of your article! I’ve had many jobs in my life, and this is the one where I see people come in tired or hungry, but when they leave, they’re on Cloud Nine, like “I needed this laugh more than I thought I did.” I’m like, “We all do!” Leave the house. Put the makeup on. Buy the ticket. You won’t regret it!
Teme: What do you think audiences will take away from the show on Wednesday night?
Orly: Regardless of how you feel about what’s happening in Israel right now, you’re going to see two people go on stage that happen to be Jewish, but also who are funny, having laughs, and bringing people together, even in hard times.
When I looked at Shahar’s comedy, I noticed that none of it was “anti” anything. His comedy is just making fun of culture. If people say to me, why are you opening for this guy, I would say because he is a human being from Israel who’s very funny. Don’t judge someone by where they’re from and don’t judge someone by their religion in a negative way if you know nothing about them. Shahar is doing the same thing I am, which is trying to get people to laugh and realize that we are all human together.
We can grieve the situation in Israel but still come together through comedy. Both can be true. I don’t want people to think, “oh, you’re being joyful about this horrible situation.” Of course we’re not. We’re giving people a night to laugh and to connect. It’s tikkun olam – healing the world through laughter. Let’s treat each other well. We can learn a lot from that.
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Orly K.G. and Shahar Cohen appear at City Winery, 1200 W. Randolph, Chicago on Wednesday, September 17 at 7:30 p.m. Low ticket alert! Sponsored by Chicago Jewish Alliance.
Tickets: Shahar Cohen at City Winery
More about Bad Momz of Comedy:
More about Shahar Cohen:
More about Chicago Jewish Alliance:
Fabulous! I love reading each insightful interview and learning about each comedian.