The Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor is thrilled to announce that rising star comedian Alex Edelman will headline this year’s Main Event taking place on Sunday, October 25, 2026. The event will take place in-person in Ypsilanti. For security purposes, the precise location of the event will only be shared upon registration.
Bringing the community together is a primary goal of the Main Event, and with the support of the 2026 Main Event Planning Committee, the event will do just that. This year’s planning committee includes a dedicated team of volunteers including Melissa Hauptman, Josh Pasek, and Sierra Imwalle.
This year is also a celebration of the 36th anniversary of the Jewish Federation of Greater Ann Arbor. To commemorate this milestone, all past Board Presidents and Executive Directors of the Jewish Federation with this year’s annual Pillar Award. The Pillar Award is given in recognition to those who exemplify the Jewish Federation’s foundational pillars of Philanthropy, Engagement, and Convening.
“We’re lucky that, compared to many other communities around the country, our Jewish Federation is relatively young,” says Jewish Federation CEO Eileen Freed. “It means that a large number of our community’s founders are still with us. We’re pleased to be able to honor the leadership of the last 36 years and look ahead to the next 36 and beyond.” For a full list of those being honored, visit www.tinyurl.com/2026MainEvent.
With a theme of celebrating the past and building the future, Alex Edelman is the perfect featured entertainer for this year’s Main Event. As a self-proclaimed Millennial and one of the most critically hailed comedians of his generation, Edelman will delight attendees of all ages.
Alex Edelman is best known for solo shows that blur the line between his stand-up comedy roots and narrative-driven storytelling. His last offering, JUST FOR US, played more than 500 performances all over the world before premiering as an HBO original comedy special in April of 2024. Along the way, it made award-winning stops in Melbourne, Edinburgh, London, and numerous sold-out runs in New York, where Edelman joined a small group of comedians who have played on Broadway with a three-month stretch at the Hudson Theatre. He has previously won the prestigious Foster’s Best Newcomer prize at the 2014 Edinburgh Fringe Festival for his debut one man show, MILLENNIAL, only the second American ever to have done so and the first since 1997. In 2024 Alex was the recipient of a special Tony Award, was named to the Time100 list of most influential people, and won an Emmy award.
Edelman appeared in Jerry Seinfeld’s directorial debut for Netflix, UNFROSTED, alongside Seinfeld, Melissa McCarthy, Jim Gaffigan, Amy Schumer, Hugh Grant and more. He is currently developing a movie with A24 that he will write, direct and star in with Marc Platt and Steven Levenson producing. His debut non-fiction collection, I DON’T BELONG HERE, recently sold to Avid Reader at auction. Alex will next be seen starring in Greg Daniels’ spinoff of THE OFFICE for Peacock. He also writes on the show as a Consulting Producer.
Beyond his front-of-camera work, Alex was a staff writer on THE GREAT INDOORS for CBS, a story editor on TEENAGE BOUNTY HUNTERS for Netflix, and the head writer for SATURDAY NIGHT SEDER, which raised over $3.5 million for the CDC Covid-19 Emergency Relief Fund, and featured talent such as Andy Cohen, Billy Porter, Dan Levy, Fran Drescher, Idina Menzel, Jason Alexander, Rachel Brosnahan, and many more. He has written for outlets such as The Atlantic and The Believer, has written and produced documentaries for the US State Department and ESPN’s “30 for 30” series, and spent more than a decade working as a speechwriter for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox.
In addition to its aim as a community-building program, the Main Event is the widest-reaching annual fundraising event of the Jewish Federation’s Annual Community Campaign. With a record-breaking $1.8 million raised for Jewish life in 2026, the 2027 Campaign will be able to meet even more needs in the Jewish community, both locally and abroad. In addition to funding organizations in Washtenaw County like the JCC and Jewish Family Services, funds from generous local donors in support nonprofits in Israel that focus on a strong shared civil society and underserved populations—critical areas that are neglected by the Israeli government.
The Campaign also makes possible the essential work of the Jewish Federation itself. From community-wide security coordination to building bridges with non-Jewish communities, the Jewish Federation is uniquely positioned to meet the needs of the Jewish community as a whole. Main Event attendees will be asked to support the community with a gift or pledge to the 2027 Annual Community Campaign, which began September 1, 2026.
For details and tickets to this year’s Main Event, visit www.tinyurl.com/2026MainEvent or call (734) 677-0100.