NYC Comedy Picks for Week of March 16, 2009

NYC Comedy Picks for Monday 3/16/09

Kurt & Kristen (Whiplash), Jessica Delfino (Tell Your Friends) and Ali Wong (Entertaining the Bartender)

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

(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

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

and 25 comics crammed into 2½ hours, at John Morrison's Ochi's Motel (6:30 pm & 9:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] [FREE] Victor Varnado (Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central, NBC, Adult Swim), Kumail Nanjiani (2009 ECNY Awards for Best Male Stand-Up and Best One-Person Show; Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report), Jessica Delfino (brilliantly funny and stunning writer/singer), Laurie Kilmartin (Comedy Central, VH1, Jimmy Kimmel), and more at Liam McEneaney's free Tell Your Friends (8:00ish pm),

[TOP PICK] [FREE] Timmy Williams (member of star comedy group Whitest Kids U' Know), Ben Lerman (hilarious, razor-sharp singer/songwriter), Andres du Bouchet (Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central, FOX's Talkshow with Spike Feresten), Ali Wong (The Onion), and more performing at a free weekly variety show in Brooklyn hosted by the razor-sharp Jena Friedman: Entertaining the Bartender (8:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] an entirely improvised musical from genius improv duo Eliza Skinner

and Glennis McMurray, and an improvised soap opera, in the double-bill

I Eat Pandas and Hot Lather: As the Diamond Burns (9:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] [FREE] and a free weekly show featuring some of the finest comics in the country—who tonight include as guest-hosts magical comedy duo Kristen Schaal (The Daily Show, HBO's Flight of the Conchords) & Kurt Braunohler (Penelope, Princess of Pets; 2008 ECNY Award for Best Director), plus guests Kumail Nanjiani (2009 ECNY Awards for Best Male Stand-Up and Best One-Person Show; Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report) and Noah Garfinkel (Totally J/K)—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).

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)

Laurie Kilmartin and Jessica Delfino...

...and Kumail Nanjiani, Victor Varnado, and Liam McEneaney

Tell Your Friends

This free weekly comedy show is produced by Liam McEneaney

(VH1's Best Week Ever, Comedy Central's Premium Blend,

former writer for Standup Nation with Greg Giraldo).

Tonight's host is Mike Birch.

And tonight's superb guests are

Victor Varnado (Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Comedy Central's Premium Blend, NBC's My Name is Earl, Adult Swim's Fat Guy Stuck in Internet, Chicago City Limits; wrote and directed the movie Twist the Cap, starring Charlie Murphy; acted in such films as Pluto Nash, End of Days, and A Guy Thing; recently taped concert film

The Awkward Kings of Comedy; for a stand-up sample, please click here),

Kumail Nanjiani (red-hot rising stand-up star; winner of the 2009 ECNY Awards for both Best Male Stand-Up and Best One-Person Show; Saturday Night Live; Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, The Hot List , and Open Mic Fight; terrific one-man show Unpronounceable about experiences with Islam—for my review, please click here; co-host of monthly NYC live comedy show Game Bros. Live!; to get a feel for Kumail's style, please check out his very funny stand-up about the dark side of video games, odd memories, and the many ways cell phones are eliminated in horror films by clicking here),

Jessica Delfino (brilliantly funny and stunning writer/singer; enjoys singing songs

about her vagina, as demonstrated by her acclaimed CDs Dirty Folk Rock and I Wanna Be Famous; created the hilarious and wildly popular YouTube animated short film I Wanna Be Famous; toured the country with the wonderful Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players;

was a big hit at the 2008 Edinburgh Festival; has a cool MySpace page),

Laurie Kilmartin (VH1's Best Week Ever, Comedy Central's Premium Blend,

Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn, ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live, CBS' The Late Late Show,

FOX, 236.com, for stand-up video about hookers and dating, please click here).

and more.

8:00ish pm at Lolita Bar, 226 Broome Street (between Allen and Orchard Streets); free

Nearest subway stops are Delancey Street via the F or Delancey-Essex via the J/M/Z

Timmy Williams, Ben Lerman, and 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 superb guests are

Timmy Williams (member of star comedy group Whitest Kids U' Know, which currently has a TV show on the Independent Film Channel; writes a sharp comic book blog),

Ben Lerman (hilarious, razor-sharp singer/songwriter; Sirius Radio),

Andres du Bouchet (writer for & performer on FOX's Talkshow with Spike Feresten; also performed on Late Night With Conan O'Brien, and Comedy Central's Tough Crowd With Colin Quinn, and ESPN's Cheap Seats; to watch Andres explain song lyrics, please click here; and for lots more videos, please click here),

Ali Wong ("sass-filled San Franciscan comic;" comedy series for The Onion), and

Jay Bois (Drink at Work),

and more.

8:00 pm at Public Assembly (70 North 6th Street) in Williamsburg Brooklyn; free

Take the L subway to Bedford Avenue; cross streets are Wythe and Kent

Glennis & Eliza: I Eat Pandas and Hot Lather: As the Diamond Burns

Two unique improvisation shows for a mere five bucks.

Glennis McMurray and Eliza Skinner are simply geniuses

at taking a suggestion from the audience and creating

an entire musical based around it, using only their imaginations,

immense talent, and the aid of their wonderful improv pianist

Frank Spitznagel. Each of these gals is a powerhouse performer;

what they manage to create together tends to be sheer magic.

You don't have to take my word for it, either:

the duo won the 2008 ECNY Award for Best Improv Group; and they

recently starred in the Fringe festival hit Gem! A Truly Outrageous Parody,

which won two FringeNYC 2008 Awards.

Eliza will soon be moving to LA. Don't miss one of your final chances

to enjoy these comedic wizards at play on an NYC stage.

The double-bill then continues with Hot Lather, an improv group that specializes

in the soap opera format. Its members include some powerhouse performers:

Mike Cavanaugh, Matt Fisher,  Jon Gutierrez, Molly Lloyd, Anna Rubanova, Achilles Stamatelaky, Mike Still, Abra Tabak, Andree Vermeulen, and Paul Welsh,

with direction by Rob Webber.

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

Kristen Schaal & Kurt Braunohler...

...and Kumail Nanjiani and Noah Garfinkel

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

Leo Allen is in California this week filming a TV pilot for HBO. Guest-hosting for Leo is magical comedy duo Kurt & Kristen:

Kristen Schaal (lovely, brilliant, breathtakingly talented writer/actress/comic;

thoroughly delightful correspondent and shining star on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart;

co-star of HBO's Flight of the Conchords; writer for MTV's Human Giant;

AMC's Mad Men; upcoming feature film Cirque du Freak (with Salma Hayek);

co-star of Web video series Penelope: Princess of Pets; winner of numerous comedy awards, including the prestigious 2nd Annual Andy Kaufman Award and the 2008 ECNY Award for Best Female Stand-Up; to read about Kristen's killer set headlining at Comix, please click here) &

Kurt Braunohler (frequent comedy partner of Kristen Schaal, performing  sketches that are hilariously indescribable; co-star of Web series Penelope, Princess of Pets, for which Kurt won the 2008 ECNY Award as Best Director, and which is being turned into a UK TV series).

And tonight's superb guests include

Kumail Nanjiani (red-hot rising stand-up star; winner of the 2009 ECNY Awards for both Best Male Stand-Up and Best One-Person Show; Saturday Night Live; Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, The Hot List , and Open Mic Fight; terrific one-man show Unpronounceable about experiences with Islam—for my review, please click here; co-host of monthly NYC live comedy show Game Bros. Live!; to get a feel for Kumail's style, please check out his very funny stand-up about the dark side of video games, odd memories, and the many ways cell phones are eliminated in horror films by clicking here), and

Noah Garfinkel (co-host with Joe Mande of wonderful NYC comedy show Totally J/K;

for video dissections of Andy Rooney and Bill Engvall, please click here and here;

for dueling birthday videos with Joe Mande, please click here and here).

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

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

NYC Comedy Picks for Tuesday 3/17/09

David Wain (Sweet) and Zach Galifianakis (Punch Up Your Life)

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

(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

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

and 25 comics crammed into 2½ hours—at John Morrison's Broadway Motel (6:00 pm),

comedians getting rid of their stuff by telling tales about the items and then selling to the highest bidder—with tonight's comics including Jamie Lee, Blaine Perry, Jon Lang, and Lisa Levy—at the way fun Auction! (7:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] Kumail Nanjiani (2009 ECNY Awards for Best Male Stand-Up and Best One-Person Show; Saturday Night Live, The Colbert Report, Game Bros. Live!) and F.J. DeSanto (co-producer of the controversial feature film The Spirit) joining in on a lively & hilarious discussion about four-color pop culture at Comic Book Club (8:00 pm),

three full hours of improv for only five bucks—tonight featuring improvisors getting

increasingly drunk for St. Patrick's Day—at O'Harold Night (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] [FREE] comedy genius & TV/movie star Zach Galifianakis (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central, Adult Swim, Comedians of Comedy), and other stellar comics performing at this spectacular free show hosted by brilliant stand-ups Jessi Klein (Comedy Central, VH1, NBC, CNN, Adult Swim) and Pete Holmes (Comedy Central, VH1's Best Week Ever, The New Yorker): Punch Up Your Life (8:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] David Wain (MTV's The State, legendary comedy group Stella), Tom Shillue (Comedy Central Presents, Conan O'Brien, The Daily Show), Matt Higgins (Comedy Central, improv troupes Burn Manhattan and Centralia), Jiwon Lee (Comedy Central, NBC, AMC, ESPN, Air America, ImaginAsian TV), and more at the wonderful Seth Herzog's Sweet (9:00 pm),

[$] [DISCOUNTED] and hilarious star stand-up Judah Friedlander (cast member on smash hit sitcom 30 Rock; Jay Leno, HBO, VH1, MTV), plus Nate Bargatze (Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central) and other sharp comics performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Judah Friedlander and More at Eastville (9:00 pm).

For details, please click here.

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.

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

Auction!

This fun show hosted by Chris Sifflet and Kevin Tor "acts as an alternative to the impersonality of eBay and the seriousness of The Antiques Road Show. At Auction!, comedians bring hilarious stories along with their objects, and you bring riot gear and a few bucks for the bid wars that follow."

Expect to be given 25 cents for your kick-off bid. Most items sell for under $5; and they can range from hockey posters to drug paraphernalia.

Tonight's terrific comedic participants include Jamie Lee, Blaine Perry, Jon Lang, and Lisa Levy.

7:30 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)

Kumail Nanjiani, and movie poster for semi-infamous film The Spirit

Comic Book Club

Hosted by Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler and Pete LePage,

who enjoy discussing comic books while getting laughs.

Tonight's guests are

F.J. DeSanto (co-producer of feature film The Spirit, which has been decried by fans for straying far from Will Eisner's brilliant & much-beloved comics series) and

Kumail Nanjiani (red-hot rising stand-up star; winner of the 2009 ECNY Awards for both Best Male Stand-Up and Best One-Person Show; Saturday Night Live; Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, The Hot List , and Open Mic Fight; terrific one-man show Unpronounceable about experiences with Islam—for my review, please click here; co-host of monthly NYC live comedy show Game Bros. Live!; to get a feel for Kumail's style, please check out his very funny stand-up about the dark side of video games, odd memories, and the many ways cell phones are eliminated in horror films by clicking here).

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, four improv troupes celebrating St. Patrick's Day—

named Sober, Drunk, Drunker, and Drunkest—

each give it a go for 45 minutes, with

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

The troupes are so named because the improvisors are committed to drinking from 8:00 pm on, so will be getting progressively drunker over the course of the evening!

For a list of the participants, please click here.

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

Comedy superstar Zach Galifianakis...

...and brilliantly funny hosts Pete Holmes and Jessi Klein

Punch Up Your Life

This new, free weekly stand-up show is a spectacular addition to NYC Tuesday night comedy. Its hosts are two of the finest comics in the country:

Jessi Klein (deliciously honest, brilliant, hilarious stand-up star—and now proving to also be one of the finest comedy hosts in NYC; Rolling Stones' comedy "Hot List;" Comedy Central's Premium Blend and Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn; VH1's Best Week Ever; NBC's The Today Show; CNN; The Showbiz Show with David Spade; voice of Lucy on Adult Swim's Lucy the Daughter of the Devil; for a video stand-up sample about which celebrity would save

 the most Jews, and on email etiquette, please click here and here) and

Pete Holmes (one of the quickest & sharpest minds in comedy; VH1's Best Week Ever, Comedy Central's Premium Blend and Motherload; writer for CollegeHumor.com;

cartoonist for mags ranging from The New Yorker to Cosmo Girl;

host of UCBT's monthly open mic stand-up show Gutbucket;

for a hilarious range of videos, please click here).

Tonight's thoroughly wonderful guests include

Zach Galifianakis (flat-out comedy genius, and one of the giants of the biz; numerous credits include Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, ABC's Jimmy Kimmel; film & tour Comedians of Comedy; Comedy Central's Dog Bites Man, Reno 911!, and The Sarah Silverman Program; Adult Swim's Tim and Eric Awesome Show and Tom Goes to the Mayor; FOX's Boston Common and Tru Calling; feature films include Out Cold and What Happens in Vegas..., and the upcoming G-Force, Little Fish, Strange Pond, and Hangover; for video samples, please click here).

8:30 pm at Housing Works’ Bookstore Café, 126 Crosby Street (bet. Prince & Houston); free

Nearest subway stops are Bleecker Street on the #6 and Broadway-Lafayette on the B/D/F/V

Tom Shillue, Seth Herzog, and David Wain

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 superb guests include

David Wain (member of seminal MTV sketch show The State and legendary comedy group Stella; writer/director whose work includes the feature films Little Big Men, The Ten,

and Wet Hot American Summer),

Tom Shillue (Comedy Central Presents half-hour special, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart; storytelling podcasts; host of acclaimed NYC monthly comedy show Moonwork; comedy CD Overconfident!; for stand-up samples, please click here and here),

Matt Higgins (Comedy Central, PSNBC; former improv instructor at Yale School of Drama; also founding member of improv troupes Burn Manhattan and Centralia; three-time finalist for the Andy Kaufman award; for a stand-up sample, please click here),

Jiwon Lee (Comedy Central, winner of NBC's Stand up for Diversity contest, AMC, ESPN, Air America, ImaginAsian TV),

and more.

9:00 pm at The Slipper Room, 167 Orchard Street  (corner of Stanton Street); tickets are $5

Judah Friedlander and More at Eastville

Judah Friedlander is a hilarious stand-up and occasional agent of chaos.

Judah is a cast member of 30 Rock, and has also performed on VH1’s Best Week Ever, HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, MTV’s Wonder Showzen, and NBC's The Tonight Show.

In addition, Judah has acted in over 20 films, including such hit comedies as Meet the Parents, Zoolander,  and Full Grown Men. Judah was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his role in American Splendor.

When asked in an interview about his influences, Judah responded: "Audiences. They are often the forgotten ingredient in stand-up comedy. Stand-up is live entertainment, and a live audience is needed. Also, whatever is happening at the moment. I play off of that. The moment is a big influence. If you’re not playing the moment you’re not doing stand-up comedy–someone just reciting material but not responding with what’s going on in the room is not stand-up comedy."

Judah is among the comics performing tonight at Eastville, the only comedy club in NYC's East Village. For the complete lineup, please click here.

Please Note: You can save $5 off the $10 cover by mentioning discount code HyReviews at the door.

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

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

9:00 pm at Eastville Comedy Club, 85 East 4th Street (slightly west of 2nd Avenue);

$5 if you mention discount code HyReviews at the door, plus two-drink minimum

NYC Comedy Picks for Wednesday 3/18/09

Leslie Goshko, host of Sideshow Goshko; and Margie Kment, host of Hold for the Laughs

[TOP PICK] an hour-long play made up on the spot by razor-sharp, passionate improvisors Scott Adsit (30 Rock, Moral Orel) and Christina Gausas (Conan O'Brien, The Colbert Report) at Adsit & Gausas (7:00 pm),

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

[TOP PICK] Dan Naturman (Comedy Central, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien), Giulia Rozzi (MTV, VH1, CNN, Stripped Stories), Rob Gorden (The Onion, Spike TV, Food Network), Pat O'Shea (The Complete Idiot's Guide to Joke Writing), Diana Saez (CNN, winner of ECNY Award for Best Short Film), live accordion music by Michelle Leona, and a quiz for free booze, at a show hosted by the vivacious and razor-sharp Leslie Goshko (Manhattan Monologue Champion) in which top comics and storytellers reveal odd aspects of themselves: Sideshow Goshko (7:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] eight stellar storytellers trying to fool the audience, ably abetted by

host Andy Christie (The New York Times) at The Liar Show (8:00 pm),

[FREE] sharp stand-ups Joe Mande, Michelle Collins, Jena Friedman, and Julian McCullough at at a free weekly Brooklyn extravaganza hosted by Gabe Liedman, Jenny Slate, and Max Silvestri: Big Terrific (8:00ish pm),

[FREE] fine stand-ups Carmen Lynch, Ali Wong, Dan Fontaine, Andy Hendrickson, Fariaz, and Judy Ortiz. at the free Shrink (8:00 pm),

stellar comic Patrick Borelli (Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central) showcasing mostly terrible performers from his humor book on aspiring actors and their primary marketing tool: Holy Headshot! (8:00 pm),

comics, writers, and others telling tales of their worst NYC experiences in New York Sh*tty (9:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] a wonderful networking event mixing folks from the NYC theatre and comedy scenes—plus intense free homemade chocolate chip cookies that have come to be known as "Stoner Cookies"—followed by a full-blown comedy show with terrific stand-ups Jared Logan (Comedy Central), Jena Friedman (Entertaining the Bartender), Jamie Lee (Diamonds In The Fluff), and Brent Sullivan, plus sketch troupe The Impending Moustache—hosted by lovely & hilarious stand-up and cookie baker Margie Kment at Hold for the Laughs (9:30 pm party/networking/cookies, 10:00 pm show),

[TOP PICK] typically stellar stand-up comics who perform their sets but are periodically interrupted by the host—one of the funniest men on the planet, Doug Benson—at a very special show called The Benson Interruption (9:30 pm).

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

Christina Gausas and Scott Adsit

Adsit & Gausas: Improvised One-Hour Play

A dynamo improv duo creates a one-act play on the spot "that can be hilarious and physical and heart-breaking and still—come and see for yourself."

The superb performers are

Scott Adsit (cast member of 30 Rock, and co-director & cast member of Adult Swim's brilliant & Emmy-winning Moral Orel) and

Christina Gausas (sharp, passionate, standout improvisor/actress; Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Colbert Report, The Al Franken Show, Let's Have a Ball, Dorff & Gausas).

Where else are you going to see a razor-sharp play for just five bucks?

7:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

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. The Wilhelm and Tomahawk perform at 7:00 pm; Big Black Car and Mrs. Esterhouse go on at 8:00 pm; The Baldwins and Punch show their stuff at 9:00; and Party Lights and The Faculty (consisting of The PIT's superb improv instructors, including such talents as Ali Farahnakian, Kurt Braunohler, Ptolemy Slocum, Pat Shay, Kevin Scott, Chris Grace, and Rebekka Johnson) round out the evening at 10:00.

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

Rob Gorden, Leslie Goshko, and Dan Naturman

Sideshow Goshko

This delightful new show, which debuts tonight, asks some of the finest comics and storytellers in New York to reveal aspects of themselves that are odd and unusual.

It also includes such carnival elements as an accordion player, and a challenging trivia contest for someone in the audience to win a bottle of wine.

It's hosted by Leslie Goshko, who's an exceptionally sharp comedic actress/writer, and a 2008 Manhattan Monologue Slam Champion. (For Leslie's award-winning comedy bit about Internet dating, please click here; and for her bit on "the End Times Awareness Carnival," please click here.)

And tonight's superb guest comics are

Dan Naturman (Last Comic Standing, Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents; for a stand-up video about commitment and the Internet, please click here),

Rob Gorden (former co-host of Spike TV's Geek-Ray Vision and NYC's The Rob and Mark Show; for flat-rate phone sex service ad, please click here),

Giulia Rozzi (VH1's Best Night Ever podcasts; monthly video series The Message Board, which makes fun of brides, on ComedyNet.com; co-producer of East coast version of hit national show Mortified; co-host of red-hot comedy show Stripped Stories;

for a video sample, please click here),

Diana Saez (co-creator of The Sarah Palin Vlogs, which won the 2009 ECNY Award for Best Short Film; CNN.com; XM Radio; created/produced Washington DC's first all-female comedy showcase; for stand-up videos, please click here and here), and

Pat O'Shea (contributor to upcoming book The Complete Idiot's Guide to Joke Writing).

7:30 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)

The Liar Show

Eight funny people tell amazing stories. Six of the tales are absolutely true...but two of them are a pack of lies. The audience then asks questions to try and identify the fibbers. Hosted by Andy Christie (The New York Times, 2007 Moth GrandSlam Champion, author of book I Wasn't Kidding).

Tonight's stellar yarn-spinners are

Ophira Eisenberg (sharp stand-up and brilliant storyteller; Comedy Central's Premium Blend, VH1's Best Week Ever, Showtime's Queer as Folk; The Guardian),

James Braly (NPR; only two-time winner of The Moth Storytelling GrandSLAM; called "a master storyteller" by author Jonathan Ames; The New York Times' Critic's Pick for his one-man show Life in a Marital Institution),

Martin Dockery (acclaimed as "fantastic" by The New York Times; four-time The Moth Grandslam finalist; Talking Stick, Mouthpiece, one-man show Wanderlust),

Mark Katz (from 1993 to 2000, White House humor writer for President Bill Clinton; The New Yorker, The New York Times; called "The reigning king of humor speechwriters" by The New York Times),

Faye Lane (Carolines, Beauty Shop Stories),

Peter Lubell (NPR; Independent Film Channel),

Micheala Murphy (called “Expertly funny!” by The New York Times), and

Ed Gavagan (Moth GrandSlam Champion).

The Liar Show was a smash hit at this August's Edinburgh Festival, and is recommended.

Please Note: You can get $5 off this comedy club show's $20 cover (i.e., pay $15 per ticket) by using code LIARVIP.

Please also note there's a two-item food or drink minimum. With tax & tip, figure paying another $13 or up.

To learn more and/or to order, please click here.

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

$15 ticket online using code LIARVIP, plus two-item food or drink minimum

Big Terrific, hosted by Gabe Liedman, Jenny Slate, and Max Silvestri

Gabe Liedman & Jenny Slate (adorable and foul-mouthed comedy duo Gabe & Jenny; for hilarious Jenny video, please click here) and Max Silvestri (VH1's Best Week Ever, weekly podcast Best Night Ever, videos for 236.com) host this free weekly Brooklyn show.

Tonight's terrific scheduled guests are Joe Mande, Michelle Collins, Jena Friedman, and Julian McCullough.

8:00ish pm at Cameo, 93 North 6th Street (behind Lovin' Cup) in Williamsburg Brooklyn; free

Take the L subway to Bedford Avenue and walk two blocks; between Berry & Wythe

Shrink

This free weekly show tonight features terrific comics Carmen Lynch, Ali Wong, Dan Fontaine, Andy Hendrickson, Fariaz, and Judy Ortiz..

8:00 pm at Otto's Shrunken Head, 538 East 14th Street (between Avenues A and B); free

Holy Headshot! Live

Superb NYC comic Patrick Borelli (Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central's Premium Blend, ESPN's Cheap Seats, SuperDeluxe's Thunderpoint, Video Power Hour) and show biz photographer Douglas Gorenstein have teamed up to create the book Holy Headshot!: A Celebration of America's Undiscovered Talent, a collection of the highly odd and funny performers' headshots & resumes. Patrick and Douglas poured over 50,000 headshots to put together this gallery, which showcases everyone from aspiring amateurs striving to live out Hollywood dreams to seasoned professionals you might recognize from the big screen. A celebration of our national obsession with getting famous, Holy Headshot! offers up plenty of "What were they thinking!?" chuckles.

Tonight features some of the actual talents from the book...and when you see them perform, "What what they thinking?" may rise to a whole new level...

I have mixed feelings about this show. It's semi-entertaining, and semi-cruel, getting you hoping for the equivalent of a car crash on stage. But if nothing else, Patrick Borelli is always worth catching.

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

Ilana & Eliot Glazer

New York Sh*tty

New York has eight million stories. This show focuses on the ones that are icky. The official description:

"The traditional 'New York experience' is all but a mirage now, replaced by chipotles, cosmotinis, and management companies starving for horizontal space. Although it's become a cliche to romanticize Ed Koch's New York—one rampant with drugs, crime, and bankruptcy—you have to honor the city's two-faced ability to enthrall and excite you one day and wring you dry the next. Simply put, New York can suck—hard—and brother-sister duo Eliot & Ilana Glazer invite comedians, writers, bloggers, and performers to share their worst experiences in this new cathartic storytelling series."

Tonight's lineup hasn't been announced; but with the right storytellers, this could be terrific.

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)

Jared Logan and Jamie Lee...

...and Margie Kment and Jena Friedman

Hold for the Laughs

This is an exciting attempt to bring NYC's vibrant comedy and theatre worlds together.

It opens at 9:30 pm with a networking party featuring free snacks (including addictively delicious homemade cookies) in which theatre and comedy folks can meet each other, and also get to know the artists involved in upcoming theatrical shows produced by the sponsor, Small Pond Entertainment. Come chat it up with producers, actors, comedians, technicians, theatre company reps, and other lovely folks who work in NYC's performing arts.

The event then shifts at 10:00 pm into a full-blown comedy show hosted by the

lovely and hilarious Margie Kment—who also baked the intense and memorable free cookies the audience has come to refer to as "Stoner Cookies" (for stand-up video about dating a stoner, please click here).

Tonight's superb stand-ups and sketch performers are

Jared Logan (hilarious kinetic comic; Comedy Central's Live at Gotham; named Best Comedian by the Chicago Comedy Awards; won Detroit's contest for Comedy Idol; for stand-up video about fast food and comic books, please click here; for set on scary things, including toy ads for girls, please click here),

Jena Friedman (razor-sharp and delightfully dark stand-up comic; host of Brooklyn weekly live comedy show Entertaining the Bartender; playwright of 2008 FringeNYC show Refugee Girls; for a stand-up video about sexual predators, eggs, and Tai food, please click here),

Jamie Lee (VH1.com's Best Night Ever, Archers of Ha, Collegehumor.com),

Brent Sullivan (Funny.com; for video about crying while reading The Giving Tree, please click here), and

The Impending Moustache (sketch comedy group consisting of Katie Hartman, Daniel Kelley, Gabriel Pacheco, and Leah Rudick: "We attack our material with a joyous and infectious theatricality. We send our audiences home shaken with laughter so constant, it gives them nightmares. Beautiful, vivid nightmares").

Please Note: It's recommended that you reserve in advance by emailing holdforthelaughs@gmail.com. First, this will allow you to purchase tickets for $10 instead of $12. Second, this will give you the opportunity to fill out a short questionnaire about your role in the NYC comedy and/or theatre community; your answers will be included in an information packet emailed to everyone to enhance networking both before and after the show. And third, the show sometimes sells out, so it's wise to ensure seats at this superb party celebrating NYC's theatre & comedy scenes.

9:30 pm for networking, 10:00 pm for comedy show at the Sage Theatre,

711 Seventh Avenue, 2nd floor (between 47th & 48th Streets);

tickets are $10 if you reserve by emailing holdforthelaughs@gmail.com, $12 at the door

Doug Benson

The Benson Interruption

Doug Benson (finalist on Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central Presents half-hour special, VH1's Best Week Ever) is one the sharpest stand-ups in the world.

In this superb show, he invites some of the funniest people he knows—who include some of the most sought-after comics in the country—to perform stand-up. And whenever he feels like it, Doug interrupts the act with a sharp observation to make the audience laugh even harder...and, with luck, crack up the comedian on stage as well.

Tonight's guests haven't been announced, but expect high-powered talent...and what promises to an unforgettable night of comedy.

Please note that this show is sold out of seats. However, if you don't mind standing, come and enjoy.

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

Justin Purnell

School Night

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

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 uniquely organic rollercoaster of a show makes possible.

Please note that while it costs nothing to get in, if you have a good time (which is likely), you should drop a dollar or two into the contribution bucket on your way out. It's the only way this beloved show—which has been running for five years—can stay alive as a vibrant showcase.

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

NYC Comedy Picks for Thursday 3/19/09

Daiva Deupree & Cathleen Carr are at Ars Nova through March 28 performing Two Girls for Five Bucks

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

(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[TOP PICK] fearless and hilarious sketch comedy performer Alicia Levy performing her new one-woman show Red Carpet Ride (8:00 pm),

[$] [DISCOUNTED] lovely & witty Cathleen Carr & Daiva Deupree turning life's darkness into comedy as Two Girls for Five Bucks (8:00 pm),

Dominic Dierkes (member of star comedy troupe Derrick) performing an inventive & fun one-man sketch show, and young comedy duo Ashley Ann Hale & Jessica Stickles doing a difficult-to-describe sketch show, in the double-bill Adventure River and Even Ladies Shit the Bed (8:00 pm),

a very popular comedy site's talents coming out from behind the Net tonight, accompanied by sharp NYC comics Matt McCarthy, Jamie Lee, and Simon Rich at CollegeHumor.com, Live on Stage (9:30 pm),

[$] a provocative comedy star who's written for Richard Pryor, Red Foxx, and Saturday Night Live, and performed on Chappelle's Show and David Letterman, headlining at Carolines : Paul Mooney (10:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] and two of the finest improv troupes in New York, The Stepfathers and The Law Firm, competing for audience laughs & votes at the raucous Cage Match (11:00 pm).

Alicia Levy's Red Carpet Ride

Alicia Levy is a member of world-class sketch troupe Drop Six, which is famed for its wonderful mix of physical comedy and music. Alicia also performed the memorable one-woman show Totally Worth It last year, in which she played such characters as a painfully clumsy stripper, an insanely cautious expert on child safety, and a splendorous fairy contemplating a wing reduction.

Tonight Alicia performs a brand new one-woman show—and it's undoubtedly worth catching. I've been too jammed up with deadlines to see this yet, but Time Out New York's Jane Borden, who has impeccable comedy taste, says "Levy's charisma lights up the stage. She is definitely one to keep your eyes on, which should be easy to do."

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

Daiva Deupree & Cathleen Carr relaxing before their show

Carr & Deupree: Two Girls for Five Bucks

Two Girls For Five Bucks is very funny sketch comedy duo Cathleen Carr & Daiva Deupree,

who perform frequently in both NYC and Boston. These luminous women

offer a smart and wittily dark view of life and relationships,

and are well worth catching...and for a great deal more than five bucks.

You have the lovely opportunity to see the gals perform on March 19-21 and March 25-28 at the acclaimed Ars Nova Theatre.

If you're a guy, bring a date to impress her with your good taste and uncannily fine sense of humor.

Tickets are normally $20, but you can get $5 off—i.e., pay only $15—by using discount code EBLAST when ordering online (plus a $2.25 service charge).

For a few sample MP3 audio clips—most notably, the top one in which

Daiva chats with Cathleen's vagina—please click here.

8:00 pm at the Ars Nova Theatre, 511 West 54th Street (off 10th Avenue);

tickets are $15 when ordering online with discount code EBLAST

Dominic Dierkes, and an unusual subject for a sketch show

Dominic Dierkes: Adventure River and Even Ladies Shit the Bed

Two fun comedy shows for a mere five bucks.

The evening kicks off with Dominic Dierkes, one of the three quick-witted and razor-sharp members of star improv/sketch troupe Derrick. (For a sample of the group's wildly popular YouTube videos, please click here and here and here; and to see the trailer for their feature film Mystery Team, which recently premiered at Sundance, please click here.) Tonight Dominic will performing a series of inventive solo comedy sketches about such odd characters as an interactive book author doing a reading, an MTV Real World editor, and a lip syncher. Directed by Dom's brilliant Derrick teammate DC Pierson. Expect fun.

The double-bill then continues with a show that describes itself as follows: "Remember the first time you shit the bed? Remember the 27th time? Well, no matter who you are, you've definitely shit the bed—at least 27 times. And as Beyonce sings quoting Eleanor Roosevelt quoting Aristotle's wife quoting a lady bacterium at the birth of the world, 'Even ladies shit the bed.' But don't look away in shame or anger; look toward the shit with a smile and wonder. Just get in there and get it all over you. Like on your hands. All over your face. Inside your pores. Come be moved by ladies finding out how to be themselves in this crazy-messed-up world called Earth through the power of laughter, friendship, video games, and battery acid." Written by and starring Ashley Ann Hale and Jessica Stickles. Directed by Shannon O'Neill.

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

CollegeHumor.com, Live on Stage

The folks behind highly popular Web site CollegeHumor.com get on stage tonight, along with terrific NYC comics Matt McCarthy, Jamie Lee, and Simon Rich.

The comedy of CollegeHumor.com isn't for every taste. But the site clearly understands its audience; and if you're one of the folks it appeals to, this is a great opportunity to hear behind-the-scenes stories and watch material too raw even for the Web.

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

Paul Mooney: Headlining at Carolines

Fire-tongued comedy star Paul Mooney is performing tonight through Sunday at Carolines. Mooney's numerous credits include writing for Richard Pryor, Saturday Night Live, and In Living Color, and performing on Late Show with David Letterman and Chappelle's Show. For video samples, please click here and here.

This New York comedy club show has a $31 cover plus two-drink minimum (with tax & tip, figure another $13 or up).

To order tickets, please click here.

10:00 pm at Carolines, 1626  Broadway (between 49th and 50th Streets);

$31 ticket plus two-drink minimum

vs.

Cage Match: The Stepfathers vs. The Law Firm

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 defending champion is The Stepfathers, consisting of some of the sharpest & funniest improv comics in the country: Michael Delaney, Chris Gethard, Will Hines, Bobby Moynihan, Shannon O'Neill, Silvija Ozols, Andy Secunda, and Zach Woods.

Just to give you a feel for the talent involved, Delaney and Secunda are members of legendary improv troupe The Swarm; Gethard is a storytelling genius; and Moynihan (who might not be participating tonight) since 2008 is a stellar cast member of Saturday Night Live.

Tonight's contender is UCBT Harold team The Law Firm, which consists of top talents Dominic Dierkes, Fran Gillespie, Jonathan Gabrus, Sue Galloway, Nate Lang, Gil Ozeri, Adam Pally, and Gregory Tuculescu. To understand how formidable this group is, note that Adam Pally and Gil Ozeri are members of star troupe Hot Sauce, which was the 2006 Cage Match champion; Dominic Dierkes and DC Pierson are members of star troupe Derrick, which dominated Cage Match for most of 2007, and won the 2009 ECNY Award for Best Sketch Group; Gregory Tuculescu is a member of stellar sketch troupe Quiet Library; and Jonathan Gabrus is the writer/star of Mocap, LLC, an upcoming sitcom for Spike TV.

There's no telling what'll 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 3/20/09

Two comedy stars headlining this weekend at Carolines: D. L. Hughley and Paul Mooney

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

(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

sharp, funny sketch troupe Secret Hospital in America's Sweethearts (7:00 pm),

[$] [DISCOUNTED] lovely & witty Cathleen Carr & Daiva Deupree turning life's darkness into comedy as Two Girls for Five Bucks (8:00 pm),

[$] a sharp, likeable comedy star who hosted a political comedy show on CNN, starred in an ABC/UPN sitcom, and was one of the Original Kings of Comedy, headlining at Carolines through Sunday: D.L. Hughley (8:00 pm & 10:30 pm),

talented stand-ups Carolyn Castiglia (VH1), Amy Beckerman (MTV), Vicki Cuperman (Homo Comicus), Adam Lehmann (Here TV's Hot Gay Comix), and Rob Driemeyer (Poole Party) at a gay-themed 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),

[TOP PICK] [$] several comedy giants as part of tonight's lineup at Stand Up NY: Ted Alexandro, Patrice ONeal, Judah Friedlander, and More (10:00 pm),

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

[TOP PICK] superb comics Kurt Braunohler (Penelope, Princess of Pets; 2008 ECNY Award for Best Director) and Dominic Dierkes (award-winning member of star comedy troupe Derrick) joining ace sketch troupe and host Olde English performing all-new material for a show that's Very Fresh (11:00 pm),

[FREE] a free opportunity for you to perform sketch on the UCBT stage at Liquid Courage (12:20ish am),

[$] and a provocative comedy star who's written for Richard Pryor, Red Foxx, and Saturday Night Live, and performed on Chappelle's Show and David Letterman, headlining at Carolines through Sunday: Paul Mooney (12:30 am).

Secret Hospital: America's Sweethearts

Secret Hospital returns with an all-new sketch comedy show. The official description: "A hopeless high school basketball team. A smoothie-sipping talent agent. A boy raised by eagles. And Ascencion. These are the people in our neighborhood. They're America's sweethearts."

The troupe consists of Michael Hartney, Rachel Korowitz,

 Dan McInerney, and Jeff Scherer. (For performer bios, please click here).

To get a feel for SH, check out its fun video about how you should never shake a baby by clicking here; and its hilarious parody of oddball Larry Sinclair by clicking here.

7:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $10

Daiva Deupree & Cathleen Carr relaxing before their show

Carr & Deupree: Two Girls for Five Bucks

Two Girls For Five Bucks is very funny sketch comedy duo Cathleen Carr & Daiva Deupree,

who perform frequently in both NYC and Boston. These luminous women

offer a smart and wittily dark view of life and relationships,

and are well worth catching...and for a great deal more than five bucks.

You have the lovely opportunity to see the gals perform on March 20-21 and March 25-28 at the acclaimed Ars Nova Theatre.

If you're a guy, bring a date to impress her with your good taste and uncannily fine sense of humor.

Tickets are normally $20, but you can get $5 off—i.e., pay only $15—by using discount code EBLAST when ordering online (plus a $2.25 service charge).

For a few sample MP3 audio clips—most notably, the top one in which

Daiva chats with Cathleen's vagina—please click here.

8:00 pm at the Ars Nova Theatre, 511 West 54th Street (off 10th Avenue);

tickets are $15 when ordering online with discount code EBLAST

D.L. Hughley: Headlining at Carolines

D.L. Hughley will be performing tonight through Sunday at Carolines. His numerous credits include hosting the first comedy show to ever air on CNN, D. L. Hughley Breaks the News; starring in the ABC/UPN sitcom The Hughleys; and being one of the four comics in the seminal stand-up film & tour The Original Kings of Comedy.

This New York comedy club show has a hefty $46.25 cover plus two-drink minimum (with tax & tip, figure another $13 or up); but if you've got the bucks, it oughta be fun.

To order tickets, please click here.

8:00 pm & 10:30 pm at Carolines, 1626  Broadway (between 49th and 50th Streets);

$46.25 ticket plus two-drink minimum

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’s Cinematherapy and The Gutter).

Tonight's talented stand-ups comics include

Carolyn Castiglia (VH1), Amy Beckerman (MTV), Vicki Cuperman (Homo Comicus), Adam Lehmann (Here TV's Hot Gay Comix), and Rob Driemeyer (Poole Party),

plus

Back Room co-producer Paul Case (MTV, D-Listed Radio, here! TV's Bent),

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: Zach Woods, Bobby Moynihan, Andy Secunda, Michael Delaney, and Shannon O'Neil

Front: Chris Gethard, Silvija Ozols, and Will Hines

The Stepfathers

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

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

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

Just to give you a feel for the talent involved, Delaney and Secunda are members of legendary improv troupe The Swarm; Gethard is a storytelling genius; and Moynihan (who still comes by on Fridays when he can steal the time) since 2008 is a stellar cast member of Saturday Night Live.

With art and grace, these quick-witted comedy stars will make you laugh—a lot.

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

Ted Alexandro, Patrice ONeal, Judah Friedlander, and More at Stand Up NY

Comedy club Stand Up NY's lineup tonight includes several of the most hilarious comedy stars in the country:

Ted Alexandro (one of the best stand-ups around; Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The View, and two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; described by Uproar as having "an appeal similar to Ray Romano and Jerry Seinfeld"),

Patrice Oneal (a comic with raw comedic power; performed half-hour comedy specials for HBO, Comedy Central, and Showtime; was a regular on Comedy Central's Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn; was a cast member on FOX's The Jury; performed repeatedly on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, and at the prestigious Montreal Just For Laughs and HBO Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen; guest starred on such TV shows as NBC's The Office and FOX's Arrested Development; acted in such hit movies as The 25th Hour, In the Cut, and Head of State; asked to whom he aspires, Patrice mentions only two names: George Carlin and Richard Pryor...Carlin for his distinct point of view and universal appeal, and Pryor for his honesty, vulnerability and personal revelation), and

Judah Friedlander (very funny stand-up and occasional agent of chaos; cast member of 30 Rock; performed on VH1’s Best Week Ever, HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, MTV’s Wonder Showzen, and NBC's The Tonight Show; acted in over 20 films, including such hit comedies as Meet the Parents, Zoolander,  and Full Grown Men; nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his role in American Splendor; when asked in an interview about his influences, Judah responded: "Audiences. They are often the forgotten ingredient in stand-up comedy. Stand-up is live entertainment, and a live audience is needed. Also, whatever is happening at the moment. I play off of that. The moment is a big influence. If you’re not playing the moment you’re not doing stand-up comedy–someone just reciting material but not responding with what’s going on in the room is not stand-up comedy.").

This comedy club show is $15, plus a two-drink minimum (figure another $13 or up).

To learn more and/or to order tickets, please click here.

8:00 pm at Stand Up NY, 236 West 78th Street (off Broadway); $15 plus two-drink minimum

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

Dominic Dierkes and Kurt Braunohler...

...and Olde English

Very Fresh with Olde English

World-class sketch comedy group and prodigious generator of funny videos Olde English

(Caleb Bark, Ben Popik, David Segal, Adam Conover, and Raphael Bob-Waksberg)

host this extravaganza mixing sketch, stand-up, short films, and more—

and that asks comics to perform material that's all-new (i.e., Very Fresh).

Tonight's superb guests include

Kurt Braunohler (frequent comedy partner of Kristen Schaal, performing  sketches that are hilariously indescribable; co-star of Web series Penelope, Princess of Pets, for which Kurt won the 2008 ECNY Award as Best Director, and which is being turned into a UK TV series), and

Dominic Dierkes (one man-show Adventure River; one of the three quick-witted and razor-sharp members of star comedy troupe Derrick, which won the 2009 ECNY Award for Best Sketch Comedy Group; for a sample of the group's wildly popular YouTube videos, please click here and here and here; to see the trailer for their feature film Mystery Team, which recently premiered at Sundance, please click here).

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

Paul Mooney: Headlining at Carolines

Fire-tongued comedy star Paul Mooney will be performing tonight through Sunday at Carolines. His numerous credits include writing for Richard Pryor, Saturday Night Live, and In Living Color, and performing on Late Show with David Letterman and Chappelle's Show. For video samples, please click here and here.

This New York comedy club show has a $31 cover plus two-drink minimum (with tax & tip, figure another $13 or up).

To order tickets, please click here.

12:30 am at Carolines, 1626  Broadway (between 49th and 50th Streets);

$31 ticket plus two-drink minimum

NYC Comedy Picks for Saturday 3/21/09

Adira Amram (Short & Curlies), genius musical improv troupe Baby Wants Candy, and WrestleSlamMania IV

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

(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[TOP PICK] a world-class sketch troupe specializing in physical comedy and music: Drop Six (7:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] superb stand-ups Joe DeRosa (Comedy Central Presents, HBO), Pat Dixon (Comedy Central Presents), Roger Hailes (Comedy Central, Chappelle's Show, VH1, MTV), Jacqueline Novak (President Johnson, Comedy Central Live Tour), Mark Normand (We're All Friends Here), and more at Sean Donnelly's Lil' Seany Boy (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),

an exciting new NYC show developed at Chicago's legendary iO theatre in which veteran

improvisors create a play on the spot based on audience suggestions: New Play (7:30 pm),

[$] [DISCOUNTED] lovely & witty Cathleen Carr & Daiva Deupree turning life's darkness into comedy as Two Girls for Five Bucks (8:00 pm),

[$] a sharp, likeable comedy star who hosted a political comedy show on CNN, starred in an ABC/UPN sitcom, and was one of the Original Kings of Comedy, headlining at Carolines through Sunday: D.L. Hughley (8:00 pm & 10:30 pm),

[$] comedy club lineups that tonight include one of the most brilliant & hilarious rising stars in New York: Anthony Jeselnik and More at Comedy Cellar (8:00 pm & 9:45 pm & 11:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] Sara Benincasa hosting a show of gals who are diminutive and/or have memorable hair—including brilliant singer/songwriter Adira Amram, 2009 ECNY Award winner Diana Saez, Liz Miele, Rachael Parenta, Maria Shehata, and Eliza Faria-Santos—at Short & Curlies (8:00 pm),

[FREE] sharp NYC comics at a free stand-up comedy show hosted by star sketch/improv troupe Derrick in Queens' Long Island City: This Is New York (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] one of my all-time favorite improv troupes—which in 2008 broke the UCBT improv competition record for winning streaks with 17 triumphs in a row, and recently delivered a magnificent performance to capture the 2009 Cage Match Championship—the brilliant and daring members of Death by Roo Roo (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] [DISCOUNTED] a musical made up on the spot from magical Chicago improv group

Baby Wants Candy (10:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] improvised furious action from 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—complete with audience rides home!—at The Complete Performer (10:30 pm),

physical sketch comedy in the form of comedic wrestling at the raucous WrestleSlamMania IV (midnight),

[$] and a provocative comedy star who's written for Richard Pryor, Red Foxx, and Saturday Night Live, and performed on Chappelle's Show and David Letterman, headlining at Carolines through Sunday: Paul Mooney (12:30 am).

Drop Six: Right Next to You

Drop Six is a superb NYC-based sketch troupe that makes great use of physical comedy and music. The group consists of Mary Theresa Archbold (for my review of this star's funny & touching 2007 FringeNYC show Jazz Hand, please click here), Tim Girrbach, Jason Salmon, Rodney Umble, and director Larry Rosen. This group's honors include Best of the Fest selection by Second City at the 2006 Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival. And their Drop Six: Mr. Lucky show killed at last year's FringeNYC, placing in my top 15 of the festival (out of 188 wildly diverse & competitive productions). For a brief medley of memorable Drop Six moments, please click here.

7:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $10

Roger Hailes, Pat Dixon, and Joe DeRosa

Lil' Seany Boy

Sean Donnelly (XM Radio; co-host of weekly NYC open mic live comedy show Ochi's Motel; member of sketch comedy & funny short film troupe Don't Touch Me There; for a stand-up video, please click here) emcees this showcase for stellar stand-ups.

Tonight's superb guests are

Joe DeRosa (razor-sharp stand-up; Comedy Central Presents half-hour special, HBO's Down & Dirty, Comedy Central's Premium Blend, NBC's Last Call with Carson Daly, Insomniac Tour with Dave Attell, Montreal's Just for Laughs Festival; for stand-up video about why Joe hates weddings, please click here),

Pat Dixon (Comedy Central Presents ½-hour special, Comedy Central's Premium Blend,

The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, E!, FOX, syndicated movie reviews on radio),

Roger Hailes (exceptionally sharp, personable stand-up; Comedy Central's Live at Gotham, Chappelle's Show, VH1's All Access; writer for VH1's Best Week Ever, MTV, Bravo, E!; for sample videos, please click here and here),

Jacqueline Novak (co-host of NYC weekly live comedy show President Johnson, Comedy Central Live Tour, XM Radio, CollegeHumor.com; for "response to heckler" video, please click here);

Mark Normand (co-host of NYC live comedy show We're All Friends Here), and

Pat Stango, Blaine Perry, and Steve Bossous (Don't Touch Me There).

7:00 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)

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

New Play: Improvised Theatre in One or Two Acts

Chicago's legendary iO Theatre developed an improv form called Play in which comics took an audience suggestion and then created "a play of two acts or less" on the spot. Bringing this exciting comedic game to NYC are Chicago-trained improv veterans Peter Grosz (writer for The Colbert Report, member of acclaimed Chicago improv troupe 4 Square, star of over 100 Sonic fast-food commercials), Deb Downing, Ed Herbstman, Katie Caussin, Melanie Hoopes, Jonathan Karpinos, and Kelly Haran, with direction by Sandy Marshall.

According to the official description, "the ensemble writes a play while they are performing it, streamlining the cumbersome and often wasteful 'process' traditionally used to develop scripts. Eliminating rewrites, readings, rehearsals, and other distractions, the cast of New Play harnesses the power of live theatre with no preparation, opening (and closing) a brand new play each week.

"New Play doesn't rehash the stereotypes of well-known theatrical styles or authors for easy laughs. Instead, the cast explores original stories and characters every show, as if in the voice of some yet undiscovered playwright. The results range from poignant to hilarious, and occasionally both at the same time.

"The show may contain strobe lights, loud explosions, nudity, objectionable themes, and gunfire. Or it may not."

If you love both improv and theatre, how can you resist?

7:30 pm at The Magnet Theatre, 254 West 29th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5

Daiva Deupree & Cathleen Carr relaxing before their show

Carr & Deupree: Two Girls for Five Bucks

Two Girls For Five Bucks is very funny sketch comedy duo Cathleen Carr & Daiva Deupree,

who perform frequently in both NYC and Boston. These luminous women

offer a smart and wittily dark view of life and relationships,

and are well worth catching...and for a great deal more than five bucks.

You have the lovely opportunity to see the gals perform tonight and on March 25-28 at the acclaimed Ars Nova Theatre.

If you're a guy, bring a date to impress her with your good taste and uncannily fine sense of humor.

Tickets are normally $20, but you can get $5 off—i.e., pay only $15—by using discount code EBLAST when ordering online (plus a $2.25 service charge).

For a few sample MP3 audio clips—most notably, the top one in which

Daiva chats with Cathleen's vagina—please click here.

8:00 pm at the Ars Nova Theatre, 511 West 54th Street (off 10th Avenue);

tickets are $15 when ordering online with discount code EBLAST

D.L. Hughley: Headlining at Carolines

D.L. Hughley will be performing tonight through Sunday at Carolines. His numerous credits include hosting the first comedy show to ever air on CNN, D. L. Hughley Breaks the News; starring in the ABC/UPN sitcom The Hughleys; and being one of the four comics in the seminal stand-up film & tour The Original Kings of Comedy.

This New York comedy club show has a hefty $46.25 cover plus two-drink minimum (with tax & tip, figure another $13 or up); but if you've got the bucks, it oughta be fun.

To order tickets, please click here.

8:00 pm & 10:30 pm at Carolines, 1626  Broadway (between 49th and 50th Streets);

$46.25 ticket plus two-drink minimum

Anthony Jeselnik

Anthony Jeselnik and More at Comedy Cellar

The lineup for tonight's two main shows at the Comedy Cellar club include Anthony Jeselnik, a phenomenal comic specializing in darkly shocking jokes and one of my favorite stand-ups ever. Anthony has performed (brilliantly) on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents 1/2-hour special, HBO, Comedy Central's Premium Blend, ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live,  NBC's Last Call with Carson Daly, MTV's Most Valuable Players. Anthony is currently both a staff writer and performer for NBC's new show Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. For numerous stand-up videos, please click here.

To see the complete lineups for the 8:00 pm (doors at 7:30) and 9:45 pm (doors at 9:15) and 11:30 pm (doors at 11:00) shows, please click here, click the Lineup link near the top, click today's date, and click the Go button. To make an online reservation, please click here.

This comedy club show has an $18 cover and 2-item food or drink minimum (with tax & tip, figure on spending an additional $13 or up).

8:00 pm & 9:45 pm & 11:30 pm at Comedy Cellar, 117 MacDougal Street (between 3rd St. & Minetta Lane); $18 cover plus two-item minimum

Sara Benincasa's Short & Curlies

Sara Benincasa (recent instant star & 2009 ECNY Award winner for her Sarah Palin vlogs; co-host of Get in Bed, a comedic sex-chat show on Cosmo Radio, Sirius 111/XM 162, every weeknight from 8 to 11 pm; MTV's Total Request Live and Choose or Lose Campaign; Tub Talk with Sara B. on Nerve.com; host of NYC live comedy shows Family Hour and The Ultimate Gossip Girl Summit; to watch Sara be hilarious as Sarah Palin and as a yoga instructor, please click  here & here and here) hosts this new show featuring comics who are short and/or curly-haired. As it turns out, some dynamite hilarious women fit this criteria:

Adira Amram (brilliantly funny and sexy writer/singer; Jane Magazine Editors Choice; one-woman show at Ars Nova, Get Psyched!; for sample songs & videos, please click here),

Liz Miele (Comedy Central's Live at Gotham; took third place at the 2008 March Comedy Madness competition; for 12-minute set at Carolines, please click here),

Rachael Parenta (for audio clip of three hilariously shocking jokes, please click here),

Eliza Faria-Santos (Comedy Central's Fresh Faces of Comedy, MTV's Stand-Up Showcase, NBC's Stand Up for Diversity; co-host of NYC live comedy show Don't Touch Me There; for sketch about stalking celebrities, please click here),

Diana Saez (co-creator of The Sarah Palin Vlogs, which won the 2009 ECNY Award for Best Short Film; CNN.com; XM Radio; created/produced Washington DC's first all-female comedy showcase; for stand-up videos, please click here and here), and

Maria Shehata (Comedy Central's The Watch List, TLC, Women's Entertainment Network, numerous appearances on Sirius Satellite Radio; for a stand-up video about Maria's parents' arranged marriage, please click here).

8:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $10

Donald Glover, DC Pierson, and Dominic Dierkes of Derrick

This Is New York

Derrick is three sharp and enormously appealing performers,

Dominic Dierkes, Donald Glover, and DC Pierson, who are sketch comedy

stars via their wildly popular YouTube videos—

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

and won the 2009 ECNY Award for Best Sketch Comedy Troupe.

The guys also completed a comedy feature film, which they

wrote, composed, and star in—and which recently premiered at Sundance!

(To view the trailer of Mystery Team, please click here.)

In this weekly free show in Queens' Long Island City, these impressively

multi-talented comics host a comedy showcase featuring NYC stand-ups

...and perform some stand-up and/or sketch themselves.

8:00 pm at The Creek and The Cave, 10-93 Jackson Avenue, Long Island City, Queens; free

From Manhattan, take the #7 subway to the Vernon Boulevard-Jackson Avenue stop (one stop after Grand Central); exit on Jackson Avenue and walk one block north to 49th Avenue

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. These winners of the prestigious 2009 Cage Match Championship are always razor-sharp, sometimes scary, and usually hilarious.

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

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