NYC Comedy Picks for Week of December 8, 2008

NYC Comedy Picks for Monday 12/8/08

Catch Arj Barker during his final week in NYC for a while (he's heading back to LA) tonight at Whiplash

Tonight's recommendations for the best in New York City comedy

(in chronological order, with top picks marked by colored brackets) include:

the perfect show for short attention spans—open mic stand-up with 4½ minutes per set

and 25 comics crammed into 2½ hours, tonight including Amy Beckerman, Joselyn Hughes, Margie Kment,

Emily Epstein, Mara Herron, Jiwon Lee, Becky Ciletti, Chelsea White, Blaine Perry, Sean Donnelly,

Aalap Patel, Matteson Perry, and John Morrison—at John Morrison's Ochi's Motel (6:30 pm & 9:00 pm),

terrific comics Rich Vos, Helen Hong, Bonnie McFarlane, Sean O'Connor, and The Money Kids, plus singer/songwriter Dawn Landes, at a free weekly comedy show in Brooklyn hosted by the razor-sharp Jena Friedman: Entertaining the Bartender (8:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] and a free weekly show featuring some of the finest comics in the country—who tonight include NIck Kroll, Arj Barker, and Hannibal Buress—hosted by the wonderful Leo Allen (Saturday Night Live, Comedy Central) at Whiplash (11:00 pm).

Ochi's Motel

Lottery-style open mic for stand-up comics trying out material,

with 4½ minutes per performer...in return for a $5 contribution to the weekly prize kitty.

(In addition, Ochi's 1-item food or drink minimum applies to everyone.)

A breathtaking 25 comics perform in this 2½ hour show; producer

John Morrison (above) has described it as "comedy on crack."

If you're seeking consistent laughs, this might not be the best way to spend

your evening. But if you're patient and adventurous, it's a potentially wild ride.

And if you're a performer looking for some stage time, it's a nice opportunity.

Plus if you stick around till the show's end to support your fellow comics,

 you have a chance at winning the cash from the kitty, along with smaller prizes.

There are two shows, at 6:30 and 9:00 pm (with entirely different sets of comics).

Tonight's 6:30 lineup includes such fine stand-ups as Joselyn Hughes, Mara Herron, Emily Epstein, Rock Albers, Josh Comers, Scott Moran, Matt Ruby, Hillary Schwartz, Mark Normand, Sue Funke, Blaine Perry, Sean Donnelly, and John Morrison.

And the 9:00 pm show includes such talents as Amy Beckerman, Margie Kment, Jiwon Lee, Becky Ciletti, Chelsea White, Lisa Kaplan, Mike Drucker, Luke Cunningham, Chris Conway, Aalap Patel, and Matteson Perry.

Ochi's Motel is hosted at 6:30 by Sean Donnelly and Blaine Perry and at 9:00 pm by Aalap Patel and Matteson Perry.

To be entered into the weekly random drawing for performers,

please send email to ochismotel@gmail.com.

6:30 pm & 9:00 pm, Ochi's Lounge at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues)

no cover, 1 drink or food item minimum (e.g., draft beer for $4-$5)

Jena Friedman

Entertaining the Bartender with Jena Friedman

Razor-sharp and delightfully dark stand-up comic Jena Friedman (playwright of 2008 FringeNYC show Refugee Girls; for a stand-up video about sexual predators, eggs, and Tai food, please click here) hosts this entirely free weekly comedy show in Brooklyn. This is actually a version of an acclaimed show Jena used to do in a Chicago bar run by a gal named Tammy. (When the bar started out it was often near-empty, so Jena began the show to entertain her friend and develop steady traffic. On both counts, it was a wild success.)

Tonight's fine guests are Rich Vos, Helen Hong, Bonnie McFarlane, Sean O'Connor, The Money Kids, and singer/songwriter Dawn Landes.

8:30 pm at Sound Fix Records, 110 Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg Brooklyn; free

Take the L subway to Bedford Avenue and walk four blocks to N 11th Street

Nick Kroll and Arj Barker...

...and Leo Allen and Hannibal Buress

Whiplash with Leo Allen: The Finest in Stand-Up Comedy, Free

Leo Allen is one of the most sharp, honest, and likeable stand-ups working in NYC. Leo was a writer for Saturday Night Live from 2002 through 2005. He's also performed two Comedy Central Presents 1/2-hour specials (one by himself and one with his writing partner Eric Slovin); done stand-up on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.; and acted on Ed and Sex and the City. Leo has now taken over the Monday-at-11:00 pm UCBT spot made super-special by Aziz Ansari's Crash Test and Jeremy Levenbach's Cavalcade! (in fact, Whiplash is produced by Jeremy).

Tonight's thoroughly wonderful guests include

Nick Kroll (one of the most razor-sharp and hilarious comics working today;

co-star, and clear highlight, of ABC's Cavemen sitcom; Late Night with Conan O'Brien,

VH1's Best Week Ever, MTV's Human Giant; winner of the 2008 ECNY Award

for Best One-Person Show—Fabrice Fabrice, which was among

the funniest shows I've ever seen; for a few videos, please click here),

Arj Barker (superb and internationally popular stand-up; cast member on HBO's Flight of the Conchords; Comedy Central Presents half-hour special; Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien; off-Broadway show The Marijuana-Logues), and

Hannibal Buress (Comedy Central's Live at Gotham, Chicago's Finest,

upcoming concert film The Awkward Kings of Comedy).

If you love comedy, make a habit of attending this wonderful free weekly extravaganza.

11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); free

NYC Comedy Picks for Tuesday 12/9/08

John Oliver (Morrison Motel & Sweet), 3 editors for Marvel Comics (Comic Book Club), and Marc Maron (Morrison Motel)

Tonight's recommendations for the best in New York City comedy

(in chronological order, with top picks marked by colored brackets) include:

the perfect show for short attention spans—open mic stand-up with 4½ minutes per set

and 25 comics crammed into 2½ hours, who tonight include Joe DeVito, Lisa Kaplan, Doug Adler,

Luke Cunningham, and Phil O'Reilly—at John Morrison's Broadway Motel (6:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] Marvel Comics editors Jordan D. White, Lauren Sankovich, and Charlie Beckerman

joining in on a lively & hilarious discussion about comic books at Comic Book Club (8:00 pm),

three full hours of improv for only five bucks—tonight featuring UCBT house troupes

The F*cking Kennedys, Law Firm, Ragnaröck, Bastian, and The Scam—at Harold Night (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] comedy giants John Oliver (star correspondent of The Daily Show) and Marc Maron

(one of the most passionate and dedicated stand-ups in the counry), plus Eddie Brill (famed long-time

David Letterman booker), Liam McEneaney (host of Tell Your Friends), and more at a

blowout 5th Anniversary edition of John Morrison's Morrison Motel (8:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] and the brilliant and hard-working John Oliver racing over from Morrison Motel (see

directly above), plus stand-up Nick Stevens (VH1), burlesque performer Legs Malone, and actor Josh

Charles (HBO's In Treatment) in a late-evening edition of the wonderful Seth Herzog's Sweet (10:30ish pm).

Broadway Motel

Lottery-style open mic for stand-up comics trying out material,

with 4½ minutes per performer...in return for a $5 contribution to the weekly prize kitty.

(In addition, Broadway's one-item food or drink minimum applies to everyone.)

A breathtaking 25 comics perform in this 2½ hour show; producer

John Morrison (above) has described it as "comedy on crack."

If you're seeking consistent laughs, this might not be the best way to spend

your evening. But if you're patient and adventurous, it's a potentially wild ride.

And if you're a performer looking for some stage time, it's a nice opportunity.

Plus if you stick around till the show's end to support your fellow comics,

 you have a chance at winning the cash from the kitty, along with smaller prizes.

Tonight's lineup includes such talents as Joe DeVito, Lisa Kaplan,

Doug Adler, Luke Cunningham, and Phil O'Reilly.

Broadway Motel is hosted by Cory Jarvis and Doug Adler.

To be entered into the weekly random drawing for performers,

please send email to motelme@gmail.com.

6:00 pm at Broadway Comedy Club, 318 West 53rd Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues);

$5 cover plus one-item food or drink minimum

A few of the superheroes populating Marvel Comics

Comic Book Club

Hosted by Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler and Pete LePage,

who enjoy discussing comic books while getting laughs.

Tonight's cool industry guests are all editors at Marvel Comics: Jordan D. White, Lauren Sankovich, and Charlie Beckerman.

To get a feel for the smart, playful vibe of Comic Book Club, please check out its podcasts—

that is, audio recordings of previous shows in their entirety—by clicking here.

(And for my two current faves, a delightful visit from Kevin "Batman" Conroy and a hilarious evening with Daily Show writer Eliot Kalan, please click here and here.)

Also be sure to watch a Penguin vs. Batman debate that uncannily predicted John McCain's campaign strategy by clicking here.

8:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $5

Harold Night

The Harold is longform improv, pioneered by Del Close.

Tonight, five improv troupes—

The F*cking Kennedys, Law Firm, Ragnaröck, Bastian, and The Scam—

each give it a go for 30 minutes, with

short breaks in between, for a total of 3 hours.

Some of the groups are great; some are less so. And this show

is designed more for students of improv than the general public.

But if you're interested, and patient, a mere $5 will buy you

a full evening's education...and periodic solid laughs.

8:00-11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

John Oliver, John Morrison, and Marc Maron

Morrison Motel

John Morrison, a wise & razor-sharp comic who produces the NYC weekly

open mic show Ochi's Motel, welcomes veteran stand-up talents in this monthly showcase. And tonight's 5th Anniversary show will be extra special, featuring these thoroughly wonderful guests:

John Oliver (genius who's one of the very finest—and nicest—stand-up comics in the biz;

delightful & hilarious star news correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart;

superb 2008 hour-long Comedy Central special Terrifying Times; co-writer/star

of The Department for BBC Radio 4; host/star of BBC stand-up radio show Political Animal),

Marc Maron (exceptionally passionate and personally revealing star who's a comic's comic highly respected for his observations; frequent guest on Late Show with David Letterman and Late Night with Conan O'Brien; performed solo comedy special for HBO Comedy Half-Hour and two solo specials for Comedy Central Presents; many other TV appearances include being a regular on Comedy Central's Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn; performed a popular off-Broadway one-man show, Jerusalem Syndrome, which he then turned into a 2001 book; co-hosted Morning Sedition on Air America Radio, and hosted The Marc Maron Show on LA's KTLK-AM; currently developing a killer set about his recent divorce that's as fine and rich as any theatrical production),

Eddie Brill (comedy icon who for the past 11 years, and counting, has been the comedian talent coordinator and warm-up comic on The Late Show with David Letterman; winner of 2008 ECNY Lifetime Achievement Award; for stand-up video about New Yorkers on vacation, please click here),

and more.

Please Note: Tickets are normally $5, but are free if you mention HyReviews.com at the door. There's a $7 food or drink minimum. It's highly recommended that you reserve tickets by calling the Cafe at (212) 989-9319; this show will very likely sell out.

8:30 pm at Cornelia Street Cafe, 29 Cornelia Street (between West 4th Street and Bleecker);

no cover if you mention HyReviews.com (otherwise $5), plus $7 food or drink minimum

Seth Herzog and John Oliver

Sweet

Hosted by the razor-sharp, dynamic, and hilarious Seth Herzog (VH1's Best Week Ever).

Seth is one of the finest hosts around—and this is one of the best comedy shows in NYC.

Tonight's headliner (racing over from a set at tonight's Morrison Motel) is John Oliver, a genius comic who's one of the very finest—and nicest—stand-ups in the biz. John's best known as the delightful & hilarious star news correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He also did the superb 2008 hour-long Comedy Central special Terrifying Times; was a co-writer/star of The Department for BBC Radio 4; and is host/star of BBC stand-up radio show Political Animal.

Tonight's other guests include Nick Stevens (VH1), burlesque performer Legs Malone, and actor Josh Charles (feature films Dead Poets Society, S.W.A.T., Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead, Threesome; HBO's In Treatment).

Please note tonight's show is starting later than usual (because of a Slipper Room Christmas party beforehand).

10:30ish pm at The Slipper Room, 167 Orchard Street  (corner of Stanton Street); tickets are $5

NYC Comedy Picks for Wednesday 12/10/08

Tonight's recommendations for the best in New York City comedy

(in chronological order, with top picks marked by colored brackets) include:

five free hours of improvisation in The PIT's Super Free Wednesday (7:00 pm-midnight),

[TOP PICK] sharp NYC writer/comics including Kevin Allison (legendary sketch troupe The State),

Christian Finnegan (Comedy Central, VH1, MSNBC), Joselyn Hughes (Sirius Radio, Macho!),

and Max Silvestri (VH1, Big Terrific) telling very funny tales of woe about their material

being turned down at the wonderful Jon Friedman's The Rejection Show (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] and a free, laid-back, and occasionally magical variety show where virtually anything can happen on a School Night (11:00).

Kurt Braunohler and Pat Shay

The PIT's Super Free Wednesday

For four hours every Wednesday, The PIT provides free shows featuring its improv house troupes. Vacation Island and The Wilhelm perform at 7:00 pm; Big Black Car and Fancy Dragon go on at 8:00 pm; and The Baldwins and Sid Viscous show their stuff at 9:30. Rounding out the evening are The Faculty, consisting of The PIT's superb improv instructors, including such talents as Ali Farahnakian, Kurt Braunohler, Ptolemy Slocum, Jen Nails, Pat Shay, Kevin Scott, and Rebekka Johnson.

If you then feel sufficiently inspired, you can participate in the free show Improdome at 11:00 pm, which allows audience members to get on stage and improvise with each other in trios for 5-7 minute sets.

7:00 pm-midnight at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); free

Joselyn Hughes, Jon Friedman, and Christian Finnegan

The Rejection Show

Jon Friedman hosts a delightful parade of rejected material

by exceptional comedic performers and writers.

Tonight's terrific guests include

Kevin Allison (member of legendary sketch comedy troupe The State, HBO's Flight of the Conchords, VH1's Best Week Ever,  Comedy Central's Reno 911, one-man show F*** Up),

Christian Finnegan (Comedy Central Presents half-hour special, VH1's Best Week Ever, Chappelle's Show, The Today Show, MSNBC's Countdown, host of TVLand's Game Time, former staff writer for Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn; comedy CD Two For Flinching;  for stand-up videos on how to get rid of a boring  guy and what your movie choices say about you, please click here and here),

Joselyn Hughes (Comedysmack.com, Maxim radio, half of sketch duo Macho!; for video questioning the effectiveness of rape whistles, please click here), and

Max Silvestri (VH1's Best Week Ever, weekly podcast Best Night Ever, videos for 236.com, co-host of NYC live comedy show Big Terrific),

plus music from fabulous comedic rockabilly band The Defibulators.

This is often among the best shows in NYC, and is highly recommended.

Please Note: Comix's usual two-item minimum has been waived for this event.

Save $5 off the $17 (i.e., just $12 per ticket)

with discount code HYREVIEWS. To order, please click here.

8:00 pm at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues);

tickets are $12 online with code HyReviews

Justin Purnell

School Night

Host Justin Purnell provides a mix of guests who perform stand-up, improv, music,

and occasionally acts that defy categorization. The level of talent can vary wildly—

but for some (like me), that's part of the laid-back fun.

Come support the experimentation, and periodic magical surprises,

that this typically wonderful free show makes possible.

11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); free

NYC Comedy Picks for Thursday 12/11/08

Violet Krumbein & friend (Human Painkiller), improv troupe Fat Penguin (Cage Match), and Jacqueline Novak (Stripped Stories)

Tonight's recommendations for the best in New York City comedy

(in chronological order, with top picks marked by colored brackets) include:

[TOP PICK] Violet Krumbein demonstrating she's one of the most darkly funny talents in NYC,

and 30 Rock actor Anthony Atamanuik performing a very funny autobiographical show, in

the deliciously oddball double-bill Human Painkiller and Pissing My Pants on Vine (8:00 pm),

absurdist cult fave sketch comedy troupe Spurn (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] Jon Fisch (Comedy Central), Jacqueline Novak (CollegeHumor.com), and Wendy Ho

(kinetic risque singer) as guests on the best sexy storytelling comedy show in NYC:

Margot Leitman's & Giulia Rozzi's Stripped Stories (9:30),

[TOP PICK] master sketch comic and talented storyteller Kurt Braunohler in his new one-man show

Back to Kurt (9:30 pm), and

[TOP PICK] two superb improv troupes, The Stepfathers and Fat Penguin,

competing for audience laughs & votes at the raucous Cage Match (11:00 pm).

Hilarious storyteller Anthony Atamanuik...

...and the uniquely dark comedy of Violet Krumbein

Violet Krumbein: Human Painkiller and Anthony Atamanuik: Pissing My Pants on Vine

A hilarious one-man show and mind-blowing one-woman show...for a mere five bucks.

The evening kicks off with Violet Krumbein, a very appealing young actress who's performed on Comedy Central, Adult Swim, and UCBT Harold Night improv troupes Tantrum and Whorenado. (For a sample of Violet's sharp acting and vocal skills, please click here.) Tonight Violet demonstrates she has one of the most disturbingly inventive comedic minds to grace an NYC stage via a show she wrote and performs solo—with the aid of a dancer's grace, impeccable timing, and myriad props...including an unforgettable life-size doll. Imagine combining the playfulness of Sesame Street with the dark side of Andy Kaufman and you'll get some glimmer of what's in store for you. Not for every taste; but if you feel adventurous, don't miss this breathtakingly original show by the beautiful and delightfully twisted Ms. Krumbein. Directed by Megan Neuringer (VH1's Best Week Ever, All Access).

The double-bill then continues with Pissing My Pants on Vine, a one-man autobiographical show about doing drugs and booze while writing for children's television from the wonderful Anthony Atamanuik. Anthony is an actor on NBC's 30 Rock; a hilarious reporter who covered the New Hampshire primaries for The Huffington Post; an ace storyteller on NYC monthly comedy show The Nights of Our Lives; and a member of champion improv troupe Death by Roo Roo.

8:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

According to the Spurn Web site, this sketch group has "amassed a cultish following and a cast who blindly throw themselves into the most questionable of onstage situations, bless their black little hearts." For examples of the troupe's work, please click here and here.

8:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $12

Margot & Giulia are two fun-lovin' gals...who are world-class storytellers

Stripped Stories

Sexual storytelling with a comedic slant.

Tonight's theme is "All By Myself." Expect shocking and highly entertaining yarns about isolation, desperation, and masturbation from guests Jon Fisch (Last Comic Standing 4, nabbing Audience Favorite award; Comedy Central) and Jacqueline Novak (CollegeHumor.com; for "response to heckler" video, please click here)—as well as from the two sensual hosts, Giulia Rozzi (MTV, VH1's Best Night Ever podcasts) and Margot Leitman (Late Night With Conan O'Brien, VH1, Spike TV).

In addition, there'll be risque songs from Wendy Ho (raunchy comedic singer/performer; for her music video Bitch, I Stole Yo' Purse, please click here).

Plus there'll be "audience interviews, sex games, and hookups...hopefully."

Come to laugh, to get turned on, and to make choices you'll regret in the morning.

This is a wonderful show, and highly recommended.

9:30 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

Kurt Braunohler's One Man Show: Back to Kurt

Kurt Braunohler is a frequent comedy partner of Kristen Schaal, performing  sketches that are hilariously indescribable. He's also a co-star of Web series Penelope, Princess of Pets, for which Kurt won the 2008 ECNY Award as Best Director; and

co-host with Kristen of NYC/LA comedy show Hot Tub Variety Show.

Tonight, however, Kurt will perform solo (not counting occasional fish cameos), demonstrating he's a formidable comic on his own as well.

9:30 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $5

vs.

Cage Match: The Stepfathers vs. Fat Penguin

This delightful show pits two improv teams against each other while creating the

atmosphere of a professional wrestling arena—and providing such side-shows

as a bout to the death between guys costumed as an alcoholic wolf and TV's Alf.

(For a spirited weekly report on the wrestling aspect of Cage Match, please click here.)

Tonight's odds-on favorite is The Stepfathers, consisting of some of the sharpest & funniest improv comics in the country: Michael Delaney, Christina Gausas, Chris Gethard, Will Hines, Bobby Moynihan, Shannon O'Neill, Silvija Ozols, and Zach Woods.

Some of these folks are comedy geniuses; and they're on stage practicing their craft

in front of rapt audiences every Friday at 9:30 pm at UCBT.

They were also a juggernaut this season, winning six Cage Match bouts in a row...

and typically beating their skilled opponents by a country mile.

Battling them beak and fin will be Fat Penguin, which describes itself as "a comedy group that is cute and adorable and a surprisingly good swimmer." Determined to waddle their way to victory are Dave Bluvband, Bridget Fitzgerald, Kelly Hudson, Johnny McNulty, Amber Nelson, Benjamin Ragheb, Alan Starzinski, and Rob Stern.

Can tuxedoed fowl triumph over adoptive parenthood? There's actually no telling what will happen...which is one of the great pleasures of this extravaganza.

11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

NYC Comedy Picks for Friday 12/12/08

David Alan Grier headlines tonight and Saturday at Comix

Tonight's recommendations for the best in New York City comedy

(in chronological order, with top picks marked by colored brackets) include:

the host of Comedy Central's Chocolate News performing a headlining set at Comix tonight and Saturday night: David Alan Grier (8:00 pm & 10:30 pm),

absurdist cult fave sketch comedy troupe Spurn (8:00 pm),

a gay-themed stand-up comedy show hosted by Jenny Rubin: The Back Room (9:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] some of the finest improv in NYC from the comedy genius members of The Stepfathers (9:30 pm),

singing improvisors who use an interview with an audience member to craft The Made-Up Musical (10:00 pm),

a sketch show (with some improv thrown in) from the superb stars of Derrick (11:00 pm),

and a free opportunity for you to perform sketch on the UCBT stage at Liquid Courage (12:20ish am).

David Alan Grier

David Alan Grier is the host of the new Comedy Central weekly news show Chocolate News.

Grier's other TV credits include the ABC sitcom Life With Bonnie, NBC's DAG, and FOX's In Living Color.

Grier has also acted in numerous movies, including Jumanji, BADASSS!, The Woodsman, and Robert Altman's Streamers (for which he won a Golden Lion Award for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival). Grier also co-wrote, produced, and acted in the independent film Poker House.

Please Note: You can save $5 off the $37 cover tonight or $32 cover before day of show on Saturday (i.e., pay $32 or $27 per ticket) by ordering online with discount code HyReviews.

Please also note there's also a two-item minimum;

with tax & tip, figure on spending an additional $13 or up.

Tonight & Saturday at 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between

8th & 9th Avenues); $32 per ticket tonight or $27 for Saturday

if you order online today using discount code HyReviews

According to the Spurn Web site, this sketch group has "amassed a cultish following and a cast who blindly throw themselves into the most questionable of onstage situations, bless their black little hearts." For examples of the troupe's work, please click here and here.

8:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $12

Jenny Rubin, Dave Rubin, Paul Case, and Shawn Hollenbach

The Back Room

Gay-themed comedy (with both gay & straight comics),

hosted by the charming Jenny Rubin (WE TV).

Tonight's stand-ups include

Back Room co-producer Paul Case (MTV, D-Listed Radio),

Back Room co-producer Shawn Hollenbach (here! TV's Busted), and

Back Room co-producer Dave Rubin (here! TV's Dave Rubin Project and Hot Gay Comics).

9:00 pm at Ochi's Lounge at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues);

no cover, 1 drink or food item minimum (e.g., draft beer for $4-$5)

Back: Will Hines, Zach Woods, Michael Delaney, and Bobby Moynihan

Front: Chris Gethard, Shannon O'Neill, and Silvija Ozols

The Stepfathers

Some of the smartest & finest improv comics in NYC—Michael Delaney,

Chris Gethard, Will Hines, Bobby Moynihan, Shannon O'Neill, Silvija Ozols,

and Zach Woods—make up a series of scenes from a one-word audience suggestion.

With art and grace, these star talents will make you laugh—a lot.

9:30 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10

The Made-Up Musical

Veteran improvisor John O'Donnell is accompanied

by a rotating cast that might include such superb talents as

Tara Copeland, Scott Glover, Alex Marino, Louis Kornfeld,

 Jessica Allen, Robin Rothman, and Megan Gray

—and with Frank Spitznagel on piano—

turn an interview with an audience member

into a musical they make up on the spot.

10:00 pm at The Magnet Theatre, 254 West 29th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $7

Derrick Comedy: Street Legal

Derrick is three sharp and enormously appealing performers,

Dominic Dierkes, Donald Glover, and DC Pierson, who have

proven themselves to be both stars and improvisation champions,

winning a breathtaking 11 improv matches in a row last year at Cage Match...

and breaking several all-time records while at it.

The guys also make wildly popular YouTube videos—

for some samples, please click here and here and here.

In this show, they perform sketch comedy live,

and throw in an improv session to boot.

These wonderfully inventive writer/actors are continually creating,

so even if you've seen this show before, don't hesitate to come tonight;

the trio will be performing all-new material.

11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

Liquid Courage

The ultimate in audience participation: any group can submit a sketch and perform it!

If all you want is to be entertained, this show probably isn't a good choice.

But if you'd like to act on the UCBT stage, and/or have your sketch writing judged by an exceptionally savvy audience, this is a golden opportunity.

Sign-up begins at 10:30 pm and runs till 11:45 pm; sketches will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis, so it's wise to arrive early. For a complete list of the rules, please click here.

12:20ish am at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); free

NYC Comedy Picks for Saturday 12/13/08

Sara Benincasa (Gossip Girl Summit), David Alan Grier (headlining at Comix), and Lennon Parham (Reuben Williams)

Tonight's recommendations for the best in New York City comedy

(in chronological order, with top picks marked by colored brackets) include:

[TOP PICK] clever wordplay, conceptual comedy, and relentless silliness

from sketch troupe Elephant Larry (7:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] star improvisation from writers & performers at 30 Rock, The Colbert Report,

and The Daily Show who joyously declare Let's Have a Ball (7:30 pm),

the host of Comedy Central's Chocolate News performing a headlining set at Comix: David Alan Grier (8:00 pm & 10:30 pm),

absurdist cult fave sketch comedy troupe Spurn (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] one of my all-time favorite improv troupes—which this season broke the Cage Match record

for winning streaks with 18 triumphs in a row, and has now taken over UCBT's prestigious prime-time

Saturday night slot—the brilliant and daring members of Death by Roo Roo (9:00 pm),

a small mob of talented comics telling funny, poignant, and at times unforgettable tales about their relatives at the gorgeous Sara Benincasa's Family Hour (9:00 pm),

organic & energetic improv by the four guys of 4 Track! (9:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] inventive & hilarious sketch comedy from The Harvard Sailing Team (9:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] improvised TV shows about audience members via world-class troupe Reuben Williams (10:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] Ted Greenberg (Emmy-winning David Letterman writer) performing a fun, quick-paced

theatrical comedy show: The Complete Performer (10:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] a monthly party celebrating Gossip Girl, the TV teen drama sensation of the year, hosted by

Sara Benincasa (MTV, Family Hour, star Sarah Palin impersonator), and including a small mob of NYC comics,

Emmy-winning writers, and other very smart fans having enthusiastic fun at the Gossip Girl Summit (11:00),

and exceptionally sharp comics Kumail Nanjiani (Comedy Central) and Thomas Middleditch

(genius improv troupe Baby Wants Candy) proving themselves to also be nerds

by hosting this fun show about the video game industry: Game Bros. Live! (midnight).

Elephant Larry

 Elephant Larry (above) is a NYC-based sketch group consisting of Geoff Haggerty, Stefan Lawrence, Chris Principe, Jeff Solomon, and Alex Zalben (former artistic director of  The PIT, co-host of the Comic Book Club, and co-producer of the spectacular annual SketchFest NYC). The troupe specializes in conceptual humor, silliness, and wordplay—for example, demonstrating that a caveman and the Cookie Monster sound remarkably alike when saying such things as "Me have problem with subject/verb placement..." For videos about a sci-fi version of Beckett and using Adobe Photoshop, please click here and here.

7:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $8

Becky Drysdale, Anthony King, Christina Gausas, and Tami Sagher

Let's Have a Ball

Some of the sharpest writers and performers in NYC get together for long-form improv fun.

Among the players often performing are Scott Adsit (cast member of 30 Rock, and co-director & cast member of Adult Swim's brilliant & Emmy-winning Moral Orel), Kay Cannon (writer for 30 Rock), Becky Drysdale (acclaimed one-woman show One Woman in Several Pieces, Web video series Time Traveling Lesbian), Christina Gausas (Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Stepfathers, Dorff & Gausas), Anthony King (UCBT-NY Artistic Director, Reuben Williams, Gutenberg! The Musical), Laura Krafft (writer for The Colbert Report), Tami Sagher (writer for 30 Rock; writer and producer for Mad TV 2001-2006), and Dan Goor (Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Daily Show).

7:30 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10

David Alan Grier

David Alan Grier is the host of the new Comedy Central weekly news show Chocolate News.

Grier's other TV credits include the ABC sitcom Life With Bonnie, NBC's DAG, and FOX's In Living Color.

Grier has also acted in numerous movies, including Jumanji, BADASSS!, The Woodsman, and Robert Altman's Streamers (for which he won a Golden Lion Award for Best Actor at the Venice Film Festival). Grier also co-wrote, produced, and acted in the independent film Poker House.

Please Note: You can save $5 off the $37 cover (i.e., pay $32 per ticket)

by ordering online with discount code HyReviews.

Please also note there's a two-item minimum;

with tax & tip, figure on spending an additional $13 or up.

8:00 pm & 10:30 pm at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between

8th & 9th Avenues); $32 per ticket if you order online using discount code HyReviews

According to the Spurn Web site, this sketch group has "amassed a cultish following and a cast who blindly throw themselves into the most questionable of onstage situations, bless their black little hearts." For examples of the troupe's work, please click here and here.

8:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $12

Death by Roo Roo: Your F*cked Up Family

Arguably the gutsiest improv troupe in NYC, and unquestionably among the finest groups in improv history, the brilliant comics of Death by Roo Roo—Anthony Atamanuik, Liz Cackowski, Neil Casey, John Gemberling, Curtis Gwinn, Adam Pally, and Gavin Speiller—interview an audience member about family and then act out his or her life story

via improvised scenes. Always razor-sharp, sometimes scary, and usually hilarious.

9:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10

"Auntie" Sara Benincasa

Family Hour with Auntie Sara

In this unique weekly comedy show, everyone tells jokes and/or stories related to

their family. It's hosted by stand-up comic Sara Benincasa, whose many credits include correspondent for MTV's Choose or Lose Campaign and host of Tub Talk with Sara B. on Nerve.com. (Sara is also a fine comedic actress; to watch her be hilarious as Sarah Palin and as a yoga instructor, please click  here & here and here.)

Tonight's guests haven't been announced, but they usually consist of around 10 terrific NYC stand-up comics.

9:00 pm at Ochi's Lounge at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues);

no cover, 1 drink or food item minimum (e.g., draft beer for $4-$5)

4 Track!

Springboarding from a word suggested by the audience,

George Basil, Frank Campanella, Christian Capozzoli, and Matt Evans

perform organic & energetic long-form improv for about 40 minutes.

Basil is a stand-out, but they're all sharp, committed improvisors.

There's also a warm chemistry between the men, which is especially evident

if you arrive early to watch them getting ready on stage: They toss a ball

back and forth, and then toss each other back and forth...sending

a body message of "If you throw an improv concept at me, you can trust me

to not let it drop..." One of the Magnet's most popular shows.

9:00 pm at The Magnet Theatre, 254 West 29th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5