NYC Comedy Picks for Monday 9/8/08
Amanda Duarte is an exceptionally fine actress and quick-witted writer. Tonight she debuts a one-woman show—and I'm personally thrilled at the opportunity to see it.
The official description: "At the intersection of fame and rehab is Lucky Pink Wonderland, a terrible and funny fever-dream of a play that chronicles the struggles of What's-her-name, remembered by the public as Pinky Peppercorn, the child lead of the popular eponymous 1980's sitcom. What's-her-name's life has since become one long "Where Are They Now" segment. She has drifted for 15 years on a sea of booze and drugs to find herself washed up on the banks of the Hudson, a destitute yet too-familiar face, trying to start over. As What's-her-name soldiers on through a landscape littered with wannabes, has-beens and never-beens, she asks herself whether fame is a dream or a nightmare, and either way, why can't she wake up?"
Expect a wild ride from this stellar, raunchy, hilarious performer.
7:00 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $8
Zach Galifianakis, Leo Allen, and Kumail Nanjiani
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. Tonight Leo takes 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, this new show is produced by Jeremy.)
Tonight's thoroughly wonderful guests are
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; upcoming
feature films What Happens in Vegas..., G-Force, and Little Fish, Strange Pond; for video samples, please click here),
Kumail Nanjiani (rising stand-up star; Comedy Central's 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
The Birdman (very funny Australian comic visiting NYC; for sample bit, please click here).
Lineups don't get better than this. And the price is a mere $5.
11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
NYC Comedy Picks for Tuesday 9/9/08
Bonnie McFarlane, Mitch Hedberg, and Todd Barry
Mitch Across America: One Nation Under Gosh
Mitch Across America is a series of live comedy shows occurring simultaneously in clubs across the country all in celebration of Mitch Hedberg and the release of his posthumous comedy CD Do You Believe In Gosh?
Talent will range from Mitch’s closest comedy friends to those inspired by him. Each comic will perform a set, and talk about Mitch experiences as much or as little as he/she wants. At the end of the show, all comics will come back on stage and pass the mic, covering favorite Hedberg material.
At Comix in NYC, the scheduled performers are Todd Barry, Leo Allen, Bonnie McFarlane, Tony Camin, Rob Cantrell, Arj Barker, and Russ Meneve.
You can get involved as well; e.g., there'll be free CDS for the best Mitch impression.
Please Note: You can save $5 off the $20 cover (i.e., pay $15 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.
8:00 pm at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues);
$15 online using code HYREVIEWS, plus two-item food or drink minimum
Marc Maron, Donald Glover, and Craig Baldo...
...and Seth Herzog and Ted Alexandro
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, happily back after taking off August for a well-deserved rest.
Tonight's wonderful guests are:
Ted Alexandro (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"), and
Marc Maron (frequent guest on Late Show with David Letterman and
Late Night with Conan O'Brien; was regular on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn;
HBO Special, Comedy Central Presents, and off-Broadway one-man show
Jerusalem Syndrome that he then turned into a 2001 book),
Donald Glover (writer for NBC's 30 Rock; multiple appearances on Late Night with Conan O'Brien; member of three-man improv/sketch comedy troupe Derrick, which is a star
both on stage at UCBT and on the Web via their wildly popular YouTube videos—
for samples, please click here and here and here and here),
Craig Baldo (performed over 30 sketches on Late Night with Conan O'Brien; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central's Premium Blend and Comic Remix; VH1, Bravo, The Onion;
for Craig's recent stand-up set on Conan O'Brien, please click here), and
The Birdman (very funny Australian comic visiting NYC to perform in the current Clown Festival at Brooklyn's Brick Theatre; for sample bit, please click here).
8:45ish pm at The Slipper Room, 167 Orchard Street (corner of Stanton Street); tickets are $5
NYC Comedy Picks for Wednesday 9/10/08
Vibrant NYC improv troupe Bastian goes solo tonight—via the power of the supernatural.
The show opens with a volunteer member of the audience receiving a psychic reading.
The troupe will then use the revelations to present a fully improvised show in three acts, covering the audience member's past, present, and future.
It's a fun idea; and you can come see how well they pull it off for a mere five bucks.
7:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
The Moth GrandSLAM: Crossing the Line
Some of NYC's best & funniest storytellers—who are all winners of this season's biweekly Moth StorySLAM events—compete tonight for the prestigious title of GrandSLAM Champion.
As one critic put it, "A night at The Moth is like the best cocktail party you can imagine—you hear amazing stories from fascinating people and never get cornered by a bore." For this evening's bout of top yarn-spinners, that's even more true.
Why is this competition taking place at a comedy club? Because virtually all the tales will be hilarious. As the exceptionally wise Cyndi Freeman put it, "Storytelling is stand-up with heart."
And tonight's theme is a juicy one: "Crossing the Line: Boundaries, borders, ultimatums, and other no-turning-back moments."
This event will probably sell out. To order tickets in advance online, please click here.
7:30 pm at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues); tickets are $18
Justin Purnell
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 9/11/08
The 7:00 Workout: Glennis McMurray
Glennis McMurray is half of the award-winning musical improv group I Eat Pandas (with Eliza Skinner). She's also appeared on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, writes a popular blog, creates sketch comedy and funny films (for samples, please click here and here), and just last month starred in the FringeNYC hit musical Gem!: A Truly Outrageous Parody. Come help Glennis test out material tonight as she tries to delight you.
7:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
Jon Fisch, Marina Franklin, and JD Shapiro
Hot Comix: Shapiro, Fisch, Matarese, Franklin, Jackson
Sharp stand-up comics perform in this showcase
praised by New York Magazine and The Gothamist.
Tonight's scheduled superb comedians are
JD Shapiro (screenwriter of such hit movies as Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Toy Soldiers; writer/director/star of indie feature We Married Margo; veteran stand-up who's a regular at such LA institutions as Mitzi Shore's Comedy Store),
Jon Fisch (Last Comic Standing 4, nabbing Audience Favorite award;
Comedy Central's Fresh Faces of Comedy; designated one of "10 Standout Stand-ups"
by Backstage Magazine; for LCS stand-up video, please click here),
Joe Matarese (Comedy Central Presents 1/2-hour special, Late Show with David Letterman, Last Comic Standing, Premium Blend, The Howard Stern Show; for Letterman stand-up video, please click here),
Marina Franklin (Last Comic Standing, Chappelle's Show, Comedy Central's Premium Blend), and
Al Jackson (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central's Live at Gotham and Root of All Evil, MTV; for stand-up video about MTV's Sweet 16, please click here).
Please Note: You can save $5 off the $20 cover (i.e., pay $15 per ticket)
by ordering online with discount code HyReviews.
Please also note there's a two-item food or drink minimum;
with tax & tip, figure on spending an additional $13 or up.
8:00 pm at Comix, 353 West 14th Street (between 8th & 9th Avenues);
$15 online using code HYREVIEWS, plus two-item minimum
vs. 
Cage Match: Death by Roo Roo vs. Sherpa
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.)
Last week's show was most notable for being the last one teched by the invaluable Pat Baer (below), who has provided incredible support for five long years to literally thousands of NYC comedy performers. Pat is moving on to pursue his own career as a comedy writer, director, and performer. Expect him to pop up on the UCBT stage more frequently—and, of course, to continue his duties as Cage Match referee.
The current reining champ at Cage Match is arguably the gutsiest improv group in NYC: Death by Roo Roo, consisting of uniformly brilliant comics Anthony Atamanuik, Neil Casey, Jackie Clarke, Brett Gelman, John Gemberling, and Curtis Gwinn. So far this season, DBRR has trounced 16 troupes in a row—breaking the all-time record of 14 for winning streaks set by Optimist International in 2002! And this juggernaut doesn't merely walk over opponents, it pounds them into the ground: DBRR has won nearly three times as many audience votes as all its opponents combined. (I normally provide exact numbers; but since the departure of Pat Baer, the Cage Match stats haven't been updated...)
Tonight's contender is Sherpa, consisting of Beth Cartier, Mike Cavanaugh, Damian Chadwick, Rory Panagotopoulos, Hal Phillips, Craig Rowin, Joe Spellman, and Paul Welsh. For a video that describes Sherpa's origin and goals, please click here.
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 9/12/08
The multi-talented Eliza Skinner portrays three women so horrible you have to laugh
Eliza Skinner (member of the genius improv musical groups I Eat Pandas
and Baby Wants Candy; drummer and singer in the band Stickerbook; co-star of last month's FringeNYC hit musical Gem!: A Truly Outrageous Parody; MTV's Damage Control) plays a mother, a wife, and a party girl who are mean, vicious, and very funny.
7:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
Ellie Kemper: Feeling Sad/Mad and Sue Galloway: Homebody
Two fine comedy shows for 10 bucks.
Ellie Kemper is a terrific comedic performer who's acted on Late Night with Conan O'Brien and FUSE's The P.A.; is a member of popular improv troupe fwand and half of improv duo KEMPAS; and writes for The Onion and McSweeney's. Tonight she performs a one-woman show titled Feeling Sad/Mad, which is described as "Several gentle portraits of excruciating despair and anger."
The double-bill then continues with Homebody, a one-woman show written and performed by sharp comedic actress Sue Galloway (member of rockin' comedic band Stickerbook, co-writer/co-star of 2006 FringeNYC show Free to Be Friends, member of improv troupes The Law Firm and 1985). It's directed by the wonderful Neil Casey (brilliant comedic performer who's a member of stellar improv troupes Death by Roo Roo and Krompf).
8:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10
First Annual All-Cities Comedy Tournament
Tonight kicks off an 8-team, single-elimination competition to decide "once and for a little while which major American city has produced this generation's funniest comic litter." Three performers per city go head-to-head with their finest stand-up material, and audience votes determine the winner.
This initial match pits Jesse Popp, Brent James Sullivan, and Jiwon Li of Detroit against Nick Maritato, Julian McCullough, and Sean O'Connor of New Jersey.
The show is hosted by Danny Solomon (Kansas City) and David Cope (Seattle).
9:30 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $8
Back: Will Hines, Zach Woods, Michael Delaney, and Bobby Moynihan
Front: Chris Gethard, Shannon O'Neill, and Silvija Ozols
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
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
Death by Roo Roo: Your F*cked Up Family
Arguably the gutsiest improv troupe in NYC, the brilliant comics of Death by Roo Roo—Anthony Atamanuik, Neil Casey, Jackie Clarke, Brett Gelman, John Gemberling, and Curtis Gwinn—interview an audience member about family and then act out his or her life story
via improvised scenes. Sometimes scary, and usually hilarious.
11:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10
High School Talent Show's Ilana & Eliot Glazer (left) and Mindy Raf (right)
High School Talent Show is a fun extravaganza from brother-sister duo Eliot & Ilana Glazer
in which "Upper Central High School's brightest stars take to the stage to deliver rabble-rousing performances in song, dance, magic, slam poetry, stilts, and more!" The cast of enormously talented comics playing high school students includes Ann Carr, Carolyn Castiglia, Shawn Hollenbach, Rob Lathan, and brilliant writer/singer Mindy Raf.
12:20ish am at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
NYC Comedy Picks for Saturday 9/13/08
Becky Drysdale, Anthony King, Christina Gausas, Peter Gwinn, and Tami Sagher
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), Peter Gwinn (writer for The Colbert Report), 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 Rob Riggle (correspondent for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart; Saturday Night Live, The Office).
7:30 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10
Magnet instructors & Second City veterans such as Rachel Hamilton, Ed Herbstman, Abby Sher, and Miriam Tolan, plus stars of Mother: The Soundtrack (see below) Jason Mantzoukas, Tara Copeland, James Eason, Christine Walters, plus occasional special guests (such as superstar Mike Meyers), turn a tiny suggestion into larger-than-life improvised scenes.
7:30 pm at The Magnet Theatre, 254 West 29th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
Jason Mantzoukas leads a vibrant team of improv comics—Scot Armstrong, Tara Copeland, Jon Daly, James Eason, Jesse Falcon, Doug Moe, and Christine Walters—who make up scenes based on CD tracks contributed by the audience. One of UCBT's most beloved shows—and, because many of its cast members are moving to LA, a troupe that will soon be ending its long NYC run. Be sure to catch these talents during their final weeks here.
9:00 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10
The Harvard Sailing Team: Fall Recital
The Harvard Sailing Team, which won the 2008 ECNY Award for Best Sketch Comedy Group,
performs their special brand of fresh, imaginative comedy
that turns familiar rituals on their head. (For a video about awkward goodbyes
at the end of a party, please click here.) The very talented troupe consists of
Rebecca Brey, Jen Curran, Clayton Early, Faryn Einhorn, Katie Larson,
Adam Lustick, Chris Smith, Billy Scafuri, and Sara Taylor.
9:30 pm at The Peoples Improv Theater, 154 West 29th Street (off 7th Avenue); tickets are $10
Reuben Williams: As Seen on TV
Anthony King demonstrates that in addition to running UCBT-NY brilliantly, he's a superb improvisor and actor. Joining him are stellar talents Eugene Cordero, Lennon Parham, Charlie Sanders, Eric Scott, Kate Spencer, Charlie Todd, and Joe Wengert. Together, they interview an audience member, and then use the answers as the basis for a new TV show...which this fiercely talented comedy troupe creates & performs for you on the spot.
10:30 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $10
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.
10:30 pm at The Magnet Theatre, 254 West 29th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
In case video games weren't funny enough by themselves, this show provides a comedic perspective on the industry that's "knowledgeable enough to satisfy the nerds but charming enough to entertain the gals." It's hosted by two of the sharpest comics in NYC:
Kumail Nanjiani (rising stand-up star; Comedy Central's Open Mic Fight; terrific one-man show Unpronounceable about experiences with Islam—for my review, please click here; 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
Thomas Middleditch (Second City, iO Chicago, improv troupes Baby Wants Candy and Broad Shoulders; wildly popular character performer at monthly Morrison Motel; for cartoon that prompted the comment "wow i think i actually feel my intelligence melting away as i watch this," please click here).
The show includes reviews, previews, competitions, audience prizes...and tonight, special guest Tim Harrod (Late Night with Conan O'Brien, The Onion).
Midnight at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue); tickets are $5
NYC Comedy Picks for Sunday 9/14/08
The FringeNYC 2008 festival is over, but a dozen of its shows are extended for one more weekend via the FringeNYC Encore Series running through September 16th. For details—including both a show calendar and alphabetical show list to make your theatre planning easy, and a discount code that lets you order tickets online sans service charge—please click here.
For assorted news & tips—including info on two FringeNYC 2008 shows enjoying extensions outside of the Encore Series—please click here.
With the festival over, I'm slowly but steadily filling in missing show reviews. For a rated & ranked list of the 71 shows seen (including all 14 shows enjoying extensions), please click here; and for the 43 reviews to date, please click here.
Three stellar one-person shows—That Dorothy Parker, Blanche Survives Katrina, and Krapp, 39—are among the six productions playing today in this final weekend of the FringeNYC 2008 Encore Series
For NYC comedy info, please keep reading this home page.
Tonight's Hot Comedy Picks: Sunday, September 14th
The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre's signature show, which features a monologist telling stories based on audience suggestions and a group of top improvisers (sometimes including stars such as SNL's Amy Poehler and Horatio Sanz) creating scenes based on the stories. There are two shows every Sunday which share the same format, but are otherwise entirely different because everything is improvised. The 7:30 pm show is $8; advance tickets might be sold out by the time you read this, but a limited number of seats are available at the door for
those who arrive early enough to nab 'em...and even more tickets are available for those willing to watch the show standing. The 9:30 show is free, with tickets distributed outside the theatre
at 8:15 pm; but again, you may need to come early and wait on line to ensure getting into
this first come, first served performance.
7:30 pm & 9:30 pm at UCBT, 307 West 26th Street (off 8th Avenue)
Dave Hill, Adam Cayton-Holland, and Todd Barry...
...and Arj Barker, Michael Showalter, and Eugene Mirman
If you live in Brooklyn, or simply don't mind going a few subway stops beyond Manhattan,
some of the best funny minds in New York can be found at this weekly show
run by these two comedy giants (winners of the 2008 ECNY Award for Best Hosts):
Eugene Mirman (Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents half-hour special,
Comedy Central's Premium Blend and Jump Cuts, HBO's Flight of the Conchords, VH1,
The Absurd Nightclub Comedy of Eugene Mirman and En Garde, Society! comedy albums) and
Michael Showalter (MTV's seminal sketch show The State, legendary comedy troupe Stella,
writer/director/star of feature film The Baxter, co-writer/co-star of feature film Wet Hot American Summer).
Tonight's thoroughly wonderful guests are
Todd Barry (wryly brilliant stand-up who's one of the very best in the biz;
Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O'Brien,
Comedy Central Presents; HBO's Flight of the Conchords, Lucky Louie, and Sex in the City;
Comedy Central's Freak Show, Dr. Katz, and Shorties Watching Shorties;
Adult Swim's Space Ghost, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, and Tom Goes To The Mayor;
recently acted in the upcoming Darren Aronofsky film The Wrestler;
check out Todd's newest comedy CD From Heaven),
Dave Hill (written for The New York Times, Salon, HBO, and the eerie
Web site Black Metal Dialogues; written & starred in MOJO TV's King of Miami; written and performed for VH1, Spike TV, The Learning Channel, and the much-missed Smoking Gun TV series; hosts monthly UCBT live comedy extravaganza The Dave Hill Explosion—for sample videos, please click here),
Adam Cayton-Holland (award-winning stand-up comic who writes weekly humor column What's So Funny for Denver alternative newspaper Westword; also writes entertaining online pieces—for example, his 9/3/08 entry chided a young political celeb's blog for calling the First Lady poised and elegant, commenting "Laura Bush 'poised'? Pshaw! The woman has the wild-eyed look of a feral, cornered rabbit, like she’s either going to dart the f*ck away or go straight for your jugular, Bunnicula-style...And she looks about as elegant as a Texas whore who one day dreams of singing alongside the piany;" for a video showing what Adam does when he's not performing, please click here), and
Arj Barker (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).
This show is likely to sell out, so arriving around 7:15 to wait on line is recommended.
8:00 pm at Union Hall, 702 Union Street at 5th Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn; tickets are $7
Take the R train to Union Street and walk 1 block east; or take
the F train to 4th Avenue, walk north on 4th Avenue and turn right on Union Street, and go 1 block up;
or take the 2/3/4/5/Q train to Atlantic Avenue, walk south on 5th Avenue, and make a left on Union Street
Timmy Williams and Sam Brown
This free weekly show is hosted by Timmy Williams and Sam Brown, members of
popular comedy group The Whitest Kids U' Know (currently starring in a TV show on IFC).
Tonight's guests haven't been announced as of this writing; for a last-minute update, please click here.
8:00 pm at Pianos, 158 Ludlow Street at Stanton; free
Vince Averill and Jesse Popp
This free weekly comedy show is normally hosted by Vince Averill (Comedy Central's Live at Gotham, DC Comedy Festival) and Jesse Popp (Comedy Central's Premium Blend). Vince is doing stand-up in Canada this month, though, so Jesse will be flying solo.
Tonight's guests haven't been announced, but they're usually sharp NYC stand-ups.
9:00 pm at Beauty Bar, 231 East 14th Street (between 2nd & 3rd Avenues); free
Great Inexpensive Live Comedy
For other terrific low-cost NYC comedy, please visit the Web sites of
Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre
Comedy Club Discounts
If you'd enjoy an elegant evening at an NYC comedy club
but also want to save some money, please click here.
Currently available are discounts for select shows at the Comix Comedy Club
and a 50% discount on all tickets for the Broadway Comedy Club.
Upcoming Hot Club Show: Harland Williams on September 19-20
($10 off the $35 cover charge for HyReviews.com readers before day of show)
Upcoming Special Comedy Events
New York Magazine Presents Campfire on the Grill with José González and The UCB Touring Company
New York Magazine is celebrating 40 years of publication with an evening of music and comedy provided by star singer/guitarist José González (performing a full set) and the hilarious world-class comics of the Upright Citizens Brigade Touring Company (telling spooky campfire stories and tales of sleepaway camp, performing improv, and lord knows what else). Plus, free beer.
Seats will be first come, first served on the evening of the event. To order a ticket ($23.75, which includes a year's subscription to New York Magazine), please click here.
5:00-9:00 pm on Sunday, September 28th at The Yard, 388-400 Carroll Street in Brooklyn;
take the F/G subway to Carroll Street or N/R subway to Union Street;
ticket is $23.75 online (includes 46-issue subscription to New York Magazine)
Legendary comedy troupe Stella: David Wain, Michael Showalter, and Michael Ian Black
New York Magazine Celebrates 40 Years with The National and Grizzly Bear, hosted by Stella
New York Magazine is celebrating 40 years of publication with an extra-special evening of music and comedy provided by superb Brooklyn-based bands The National and Grizzly Bear, and a rare appearance by seminal & beloved comedy troupe Stella: Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, and David Wain.
Seats will be first come, first served on the evening of the event. To order a ticket ($38.75, which includes a year's subscription to New York Magazine), please click here.
8:00 pm on Friday Oct. 10th at Hammerstein Ballroom, 234 West 34th St. (bet. 8th & 9th Aves.);
ticket is $38.75 online (includes 46-issue subscription to New York Magazine)
Return to Previous NYC Comedy Picks
Copyright © 2008 Hy Bender
Email: hy@hyreviews.com
