Jubilee Theatre gives legendary comic the ‘Last Laugh'

Jackie “Moms” Mabley used laughter to start a revolution. Her life and career as a pioneering stand-up comedian are explored in _I Got the Last Laugh_, now playing at Jubilee Theatre in Fort Worth through Oct. 19.

Starting in the 1920s, Mabley, a Black openly queer performer, made people laugh about racism and sexuality. When she performed at the Apollo Theatre in 1939, Mabley became the first female comic to grace that legendary Harlem stage. After decades on Chitlin’ Circuit, Mabley recorded comedy albums, played Carnegie Hall and appeared on _The Ed Sullivan Show_ and _The Smothers Brothers Comedy House_. A year before she died in 1975, she starred in her only film, _Amazing Grace_.

In James E. Carter’s play, a journalist interviews Mabley, played by Crystal Williams, at the Apollo Th