LIVE ON STAGE

Tampa Theatre and Live Nation Presents will welcome comedian and television host Bassem Youssef to the Theatre’s historic stage at 7:30pm Friday, Sept. 20.

In Youssef’s one-of-a-kind solo comedy performance, the audience is taken on a personal journey from his career as a heart surgeon in Egypt to finding himself in the middle of the Arab Spring and becoming the host of the largest political satire show in the history of the Arab World. His jokes earned him worldwide recognition as “The Egyptian Jon Stewart,” but also got him arrested and interrogated, and ultimately prompted his escape to America just as the country was going through its very own identity crisis.

Youssef was the host of popular TV show Al Bernameg – the first political satire show in the Middle East. Originally a five-minute show on YouTube, Al Bernameg became the first online-to-TV conversion in the Middle East and the most-watched show across the region, with 30 million viewers every week and more than a million subscribers to its YouTube channel. In recognition of his success, Youssef was named among TIME magazine’s most influential list for 2013 under the “Pioneers” category, was awarded the International Press Freedom Award by the CPJ, and was chosen by Foreign Policy magazine as one of the global thinkers during the same year.

Youssef currently performs his one-man show, The Middle Beast around the globe. The first title in Bassem’s children’s book series, The Magical Reality of Nadia published on February 2, 2021 by Scholastic and is currently being developed as an animated series. Bassem can be seen in Mo (Netflix), Ramy (Hulu), Lioness (Paramount+) and Upload (Amazon). In October, 2023 Bassem’s interview with Piers Morgan saw worldwide acclaim and was shared and reposted on the internet all over the world – it is now the most viewed interview in the history of Piers Morgan Uncensored.

Tickets range from $39.50-$59.50 plus applicable taxes and fees ($47.25-$68.75 total at the Box Office & $51.25-$73.50 total online). A limited number of post-show VIP tickets will also be available in advance for $150 plus applicable taxes and fees ($166.00 at the Box Office and $174.75 online), which include an exclusive post-show Meet & Greet and photo opportunity with Youssef.  VIP TICKETS ARE SOLD OUT