Perfectly
Dysfunctional

Legally American

Based in Austin, Texas, Alessandra is a Brazilian-born, naturalized American stand-up comedian and actress with Italian roots. She spent more than a decade performing in Brazil, where she won an award in 2004 from SENAC for writing and performing the comedy sex-ed play Between Us Girls: Everything You Need to Know Before You Drop Your Panties, created and toured her one-woman comedy show throughout São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro from 2006-2012, and appeared on TV Globo’s hit soap opera Passione in 2010.

After moving to the United States (legally) and stepping away from entertainment for 12 years to focus on marriage and motherhood, Alessandra returned to the stage - this time performing stand-up in her second language. Her comedy combines sharp storytelling, vulnerability, and cultural perspective, drawing from the realities of marriage, parenting, immigration, identity, and starting over later in life.

She stopped using her last name in comedy because her options were rough. Her married name is Basher, which sounds like she owns a fight club. But her Italian maiden name, Cifali, people pronounce it like “Si-Fa-Li”… which sounds suspiciously close to syphilis. Not the kind of thing you want attached to your name professionally.

Alessandra’s perspective is shaped by the experience of rebuilding a creative career from scratch in a new country - proving that humor travels, even when grammar doesn’t.