LOCALS can expect lots of laughs on Thursday, March 3, when The Melbourne International Comedy Festival Outta Town comes to the Hamilton Performing Arts Centre.

Kicking off at 7.30pm, locals aged 16 or older will be treated to stand up from comedians Lewis Garnham, Claire Hooper, and Rhys Nicholson.

Comedian, Lewis Garnham said it was an incredible feeling to be back on stage and booking shows again.

“I'm enjoying performing more than I ever have in my career at the moment,” he said.

Mr Garnham said locals would not be disappointed with the level of comedy provided by the show and expressed his excitement about returning to the south-west.

“They can expect top shelf stand-up comedy,” he said.

 “I’m very excited about getting outta town - I love Western Victoria.

“I've been to Hamilton a few times.

“One time my girlfriend and I got in an argument in the car and I was feeling all stressed and we drove from the middle of the Grampians to Dunkeld so that I could buy cigarettes.

“Nowhere in Dunkeld would sell cigarettes so we drove to Hamilton and found some there.

“In a way Hamilton doused the fire of that argument between my girlfriend and I, so I'll always have a soft spot for the town based on that.”

Festival director, Susan Provan AO said the increase in regional shows was an exciting development for the festival.

“We are excited to be partnering with Visit Victoria to deliver greatly expanded opportunities for comedy fans in the coming months,” she said.

“The series of comedy weekends in Regional Victoria will be a wonderful opportunity to bounce back and reconnect with our audiences and is a great excuse for a weekend getaway.”

Partnering with Visit Victoria, The Melbourne International Comedy Festival aims to bring an expanded program of comedy shows to metro and regional areas across the state.

The Melbourne International Comedy Festival Outta Town started on February 11 and will continue until March, with shows in Geelong, Mildura, Swan Hill, Warrnambool, Ballarat, Portland, Bendigo, Wangaratta, and Wodonga.

The aim of this new initiative is to bring more comedy to a wider audience and expand into a broad range of venues, boosting regional tourism, providing more shows and greater access for audiences in rural areas.

A spokesperson from the festival said the regional shows provided people with an opportunity to have a sneak peek of what will be on offer when the festival officially starts in Melbourne on March 30.

For more information about the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, visit comedyfestival.com.au.