Comedian Brent Weinbach is Friday’s headliner for the Cannon Beach Comedy Festival.

A group of comedians are set to settle in by Haystack Rock for two nights filled with laughter.

At the Cannon Beach Comedy Festival, making its third run since debuting in 2017, guests can expect a lineup of names recognizable from late-night shows and television comedy specials.

The set, kicking off at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, will feature eight comedians, including headliners Kyle Kinane and Brent Weinbach.

“It’s one thing to watch a Netflix special,” Andrew Tonry, program director at the Tolovana Arts Colony, said of the experience of attending a comedy show. “It’s another thing to be in a room surrounded by 150 people laughing.”

The colony, a local nonprofit arts group, will host the festival, which is funded by a grant from the city of Cannon Beach. Tonry has seen both Kinane and Weinbach perform over the years, including at shows in Portland.

Weinbach, who will appear Friday, may be familiar to fans of Comedy Central or “Conan.” He is also a recipient of the Andy Kaufman Award.

Kinane, who will perform Saturday, has been praised for his consistent rhythm, touring throughout the U.S. and appearing on Netflix and Comedy Central specials.

Also set to perform are Shain Brenden on Friday and Arlo Weierhauser on Saturday.

More comedians performing at the festival have yet to be announced.

Tonry said the highlight of the festival is turning people onto comedy that haven’t experienced stand-up before. He put together a smaller show in 2017.

The festival’s first year had a packed house and great response, which prompted it to make a comeback the following year in 2018 when it ran for two days instead of one.

“I also thought, what better to do in the dark winter months?” Tonry said of scheduling the festival in March. “Comedy doesn’t need a nice sunset … a dark theater is exactly what it needs.”

Back then, Tonry said the coast’s comedy scene was small, with the exception of a few comedy shows here and there.

“At the time I wasn’t sure what the audience would be, but comedy was thriving at the time,” he said, nodding to podcasts and television specials that were taking off. “It felt like… a vibrant art form that we should be sharing as well.”

This year will mark the comedy festival’s third run since its debut in 2017. Following a long pandemic hiatus, Tonry said the event has added big-name talent to its lineup.

“If you would’ve told me when I set out, when this grant got accepted, that I would have the headliners I have, I don’t think I would have believed it,” he said. “I can’t wait for it.”

Cannon Beach Comedy Festival

Coaster Theatre Playhouse, 108 N. Hemlock St., Cannon Beach

Admission is $35. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., audience members under 18 must be accompanied

www.cannonbeachcomedyfestival.com