"Knock Knock?" Who's there? "Avon." "Avon who?" "Avon to be alone!" I thought I'd give you that one because this year's Shanghai International Comedy Festival is full of Shakepearean humor! It's also being touted as its biggest and best yet, with the number of programs increasing by more than 30 percent.

This year's festival starts in November and will be heavy on works by Shakespeare in honor of the 400th anniversary of the Bard's death. They include an Italian adaptation of "As You Like It" and two versions of "A Midsummer's Night Dream" -- one produced by South Korea-based Yohangza Theater Company and the other by Shanghai Farce Troup.

A local production of "The Taming of the Shrew" set in 1930's Shanghai will also be staged. One of the organizers says 23 comedies from 11 countries will be included in the festival, adding there is much more on offer than just Shakespeare.

"About 20 shows are making their local debut at the Shanghai International Comedy Festival. Physical comedies will play a bigger part of this year's festival. Such shows cross cultures better in some ways since there is no language barrier," said Yu Rongjun, director of Shanghai Int'l Comedy Festival.

Improv Comedy groups and street artists will also have a stage for their works during the festival. Launched last year, the Shanghai International Comedy Festival has ignited the city's comedy scene.

"I think it's a really good opportunity for us to showcase our new found shows because in China it's very rare for Improv to get onto such a big stage," said Eric Shen, founder of Fly Improv.

Some local comedians gained international attention through last year's event. 29-year-old Storm Xu was an amateur stand-up comedian performing at last year's event. His show attracted the organizer of the Melbourne Comedy Festival. Xu was later invited to perform 25 shows. He says the festival presents a great opportunity for young comedians.

"The festival opens up a window for us, so let us see what. There's no limit in comedy, like, if you work harder and harder and harder, one day you will be there, you can perform in front of thousands of people. So that's like the ultimate goal for all of us young, ambitious comedians or performers. So one day we can stand in front of thousands of people," said Storm Xu, stand-up comedian.

This year's festival runs from November 8th to December 10th. Tickets for the opening show are sold out, but there are still some available for other shows.