About the Show
M.E. So Funny is a 2-woman sketch comedy show poking fun at Middle-Eastern culture (with love).
Written and directed by Nahreen Tarzi, the show was originally a large cast ensemble created for St. James Syrian Orthodox Church in 2011. As the first sketch comedy show in St. James' history, and probably in Syrian Orthodox history, it was well received by all - kids, adults, and even grandparents who spoke little English.
The annual shows attracted an audience of about 150 people each time, including both members and non-members of the church, the latter of which also enjoyed the show as non-Middle-Easterns.
After 3 years of shows, and much success, Nahreen decided to take the show to Second City, and enlisted her main star and frequent contributor, Canan Tasci. Together, they took the best of the M.E. So Funny scenes, and created a high-energy 2-woman sketch show.
Always packing the house and getting laughs, M.E. So Funny had a successful run at Second City, and was LA Weekly's pick-of-the-week.
Nahreen and Canan are continuing their efforts with the show, bringing it back for more nights in Hollywood, performing it at colleges, and creating YouTube videos of audience favorites. They hope to simultaneously enlighten people about Middle-Eastern culture while making them wet their pants.
For booking inquiries: mesofunnycomedy@gmail.com
Nahreen Tarzi is a is a writer, comedian, and a big advocate of diversity in Hollywood. She served as the Head Writer for the 2018 CBS Diversity Showcase (Comedy), as well as the Head Writer at Frederator Networks.
Nahreen was born in Toronto, Canada, but grew up in Burbank, California. Her parents were born and raised in Aleppo, Syria, where most of the M.E. So Funny sketches are based off of.
She is a graduate of The Second City Conservatory, has also studied at The Groundlings and Upright Citizens Brigade, and has performed stand-up for over 11 years. Nahreen was also semi-finalist for the 2018 Disney-ABC Writing Program.
She has a B.A. in both English (Creative Writing) and Spanish from Loyola Marymount University, with minors in Screenwriting and Journalism.
Nahreen has been writing since she was 8 years old, when her first book, The Man Who Ate the Dinosaur, was a hit with her second grade class. Nahreen enjoys cheeseburgers, books, and gangster rap. She dislikes pansies, flaky people, and onions.
For more information, visit nahreentarzi.com
Canan Tasci is known for having a unique name, laughing at her own jokes, liking donuts and making yummy cupcakes, a puff pastry stuffed with feta cheese and parsley called boreg and amazing hummus – with extra garlic, of course.
Born in Istanbul, Turkey, Canan and her family migrated to the United States when she was a year old. The whole Tasci family moved from Illinois to California a decade later.
She is currently the Communications Specialist at Cedars-Sinai, and has previously worked for a newspaper covering city government, breaking news and education. She also had a running column in that newspaper’s weekly section about her crazy Middle-Eastern family.
This is Canan’s first sketch comedy show. She first started acting in 2011 when she and Nahreen got together to do the M.E. So Funny shows for their church.
For more information, visit @TheCananTasci