NYC Comedy Picks for Monday 7/17/17
Mike Birbiglia (writer/director/star of feature films Don't Think Twice and Sleepwalk with Me; actor in numerous films and TV shows, including Trainwreck, Inside Amy Schumer, and Orange is the New Black; multiple appearances on David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, etc.; three Comedy Central specials; comedy CDs Two Drink Mike and My Secret Public Journal—Live) is one of the most sensitive and observant comics in the biz. This week he's allowing audiences into his process as he tries out new material. I don't usually get the opportunity to list this show because it rapidly sells out way in advance; but tonight a limited number of tickets have been set aside for at-the-door sales. Arrive early to enjoy Mike Birbiglia: Working It Out (7:00 pm, $20, Brooklyn's Union Hall at 702 Union Street; take R subway to Union Street)...
...and character comics—including brilliant writer/performers Phoebe Tyers (above left), Filip Jeremic (above right), and many more—perform solo bits demonstrating their impressive talent at UCB East hosted by Frank Garcia-Hejl & Justin Tyler. This is one of my favorite monthly events, and I especially recommend it if you're a producer, casting director, or other industry pro in search of sharp comedy actors: Characters Welcome (9:00 pm, $5, UCB East at 153 East 3rd Street)
NYC Comedy Picks for Tuesday 7/18/17
A monthly wild pun competition that's been enormously popular in Brooklyn expands its audience tonight to Chelsea by playing at the fancy Highline Ballroom. As always, it'll be hosted by father-daughter duo Fred Firestone and Jo Firestone (one of the most relentlessly inventive comics in the biz; staff writer for Jimmy Fallon; radio host of WFMU's Dr. Gameshow, live-on-stage host of The Unexpectashow and The Incredible Game Show Showcase, co-author with Fred of #1 bestselling Punderdome: A Card Game for Pun Lovers). Enjoy the spectacle as 18 audience members—maybe including you—compete in Punderdome 3000 (8:00 pm, $20, Chelsea's Highline Ballroom at 431 West 16th Street)...
...or get your summer fun with this live taping of a terrific weekly Sirius XM Radio comedy show featuring Dave Hill (above left), SNL's Melissa Villaseñor (above right), Judy Gold, Gregg Rogell, Paul Morrisey, and Phil Hanley performing stand-up and/or sketch, plus music from Helio Alves and the Come to Papa Trio, hosted by Tom Papa (host of Jerry Seinfeld-produced NBC comedy The Marriage Ref; numerous appearances on David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Jay Leno; three Comedy Central specials): Come to Papa (8:00 pm, $10 plus two-item min., Village Underground at 130 West 3rd Street)...
...and this annual comedy mini-fest (four shows over three days) is a rare NYC gathering of Muslim stand-ups, including Aasif Mandvi (HBO's The Brink; former correspondent for The Daily Show), Maysoon Zayid (self-described "Palestinian Muslim with cerebral palsy, from New Jersey;" cast member for two seasons of As the World Turns; former pundit for Keith Olbermann; Queen Latifah Show), Ramy Youssef (Stephen Colbert), Wali Collins (David Letterman), Dina Hashem (Comedy Central's Roast Battle, Seeso's Night Train), Gibran Saleem (MTV), Azhar (one-man show Ultra American...which he'll perform Thursday at 9:30 pm to close the festival), Preacher Moss, Aman Ali, Suzie Afridi, Moses the Comic, and more hosted by Dean Obeidallah (CNN, Comedy Central's Axis of Evil, SiriusXM’s The Dean Obeidallah Show, one-man show I Come in Peace). For complete details, please click Third Annual Muslim Funny Fest (8:00 pm tonight, 8:00 pm Wednesday, and 7:30 pm & 9:45 pm on Thursday; $25 per show, plus 2-drink min.; Comic Strip Live Comedy Club at 1568 Second Avenue off 81st Street)
NYC Comedy Picks for Wednesday 7/19/17
Mindy Raf (VH1, College Humor; author of YA novel The Symptoms of My Insanity; singer/songwriter alter ego Leibya Rogers) has been a respected and beloved member of the comedy community for over a decade. In this one-woman show, however, Raf achieves a whole new level of comedy greatness. Her script weaves a complex tapestry from her past relationships, anxieties, arcane bits of knowledge (e.g., she explains how the Dark Web can record you while you're masturbating), and sexual preferences (which include being bi and polyamorous) that's thoroughly compelling. At the same time, Raf delivers a performance so intimate and in-the-moment that it almost feels as if she's revealing herself spontaneously.
Along similar lines, when anything unexpected happens (such as an audience member snapping fingers to a background song, or another audience member getting up and crossing the stage at a delicate moment to go to the bathroom), Raf is lightning-quick in providing a response so spot-on that it couldn't have been better if she'd planned it.
With this show, Raf has developed into a star talent who demands attention. I highly recommend this wonderful production, which is having a brief Off-Broadway run tonight and this weekend, and then moves on in August to play for 28 performances at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
By the way, don't get put off by the oddball title. This show has nothing to do with illness; and the only body organs it focuses on are the vagina and the human heart: Mindy Raf: Keeping My Kidneys (8:30 pm tonight, 2:30 pm this Saturday & Sunday; $15; 59E59 Theater at 59 East 59th Street between Madison & Park Avenues)...
...Julio Torres (staff writer for Saturday Night Live; Billy on the Street, HBO's High Maintenance, Louis C.K.’s Horace and Pete) is honing a fresh, clever one-man show that (like Mindy directly above) he'll be performing at next month's Edinburgh Fringe Festival. You can enjoy Julio's production tonight, Thursday, or Friday at UCB Chelsea, or on Saturday or Sunday at Brooklyn's Union Hall: Julio Torres: My Favorite Shapes (6:30 pm tonight & Thursday, 7:30 pm Friday, $7-$12, UCB Chelsea at 307 West 26th Street; or 8:00 pm Saturday & Sunday, $10, Brooklyn's Union Hall at 702 Union Street; take R subway to Union Street)...
...and a comic who's a superstar in France playing in 12,000-seat stadiums, but is just starting to get known in the US (Seth Meyers, The Daily Show, Comedians in Cars; feature films Coco, Priceless, La Doublure, Midnight in Paris; for a May 2016 stand-up set & interview on Conan, please click here and here) performs in an intimate 50-seat West Village lounge: Gad Elmaleh (9:00 pm, $20 plus 2-item food/drink min., The Fat Black Pussycat Lounge at 130 West 3rd Street)
NYC Comedy Picks for Thursday 7/20/17
From my favorite monthly show, a spectacular collection of hilarious film & TV clips and guest pop culture experts hosted by super-fan Kevin Maher and guest co-host Brian Solomon (author of new book Godzilla FAQ: All That’s Left To Know About the King of the Monsters) focusing on Japanese-style creatures who are preposterously large (for a video teaser, please click here): Kevin Geeks Out About Kaiju (Giant Monsters) (7:30 pm, $15 [buying in advance is recommended, as this show crammed with rich imagery and ideas often sells out]; Brooklyn's Alamo Drafthouse Cinema at 445 Albee Square West—take the 2/3 subway to Hoyt Street)...
...and a one-of-a-kind treasure of a comedy star, whose scores of credits include numerous appearances on David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Jay Leno, Seth Meyers, @midnight, and Comedy Central Roasts—and who's acted in the Robert DeNiro film The Comedian, such animated features as Aladdin and Lego Batman 3, Showtime's Episodes, Comedy Central's The Jim Gaffigan Show, classic documentary The Aristocrats, and brand new documentary Gilbert—headlines for one night only at Carolines: Gilbert Gottfried (7:30 pm, $27.25 plus 2-drink min., Carolines Comedy Club at 1626 Broadway)
NYC Comedy Picks for Friday 7/21/17
Astonishingly terrible 1990 movie Troll 2 is about a family pursued by vegetarian goblins who seek to transform them into plants so that they can eat them. Originally titled Goblins, US distributors doubted anyone would buy it as is, and so aimed to trick audiences who enjoyed 1986 movie Troll into thinking this was its sequel...but it's not, at all. Watch it screened and commented upon by lightning-quick top comics Frank Conniff (TV's Frank on MST3K), Aparna Nancherla (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; co-star of HBO's Crashing and Netflix's Master of None; former writer for Seth Meyers), Jake Vevera (co-host of Idiots on Parade podcast), and Freddy G (NPR) hosted by Chris Gersbeck: Troll 2 Screening & Mocking by Frank Conniff, Aparna Nancherla, and More (11:00 pm, $10, Astoria Queens' QED: A Place to Show & Tell at 27-16 23rd Avenue)...
...Natalie Wall (above left) hosts the best sexy storytelling show in NYC, this month with comics Charla Lauriston (above right; former writer for Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt; MTV, creator of webseries Clench & Release), Dava Krause (above middle; co-host of The Fantasy Suite podcast), and Athalie Paynting (two-time Moth StorySlam winner) telling tales of erotic encounters gone awry: Awkward Sex...and the City (8:00 pm $20—which includes free beer and wine—at The Pleasure Chest at 1150 Second Avenue, between 60th & 61st Streets)...
...and speaking of storytelling, David Lawson tells fascinating tales about the three years he made his living handing out flyers in Times Square...while competing with a wide variety of unusual characters for the attention of tourists. This one-man show—which David is about to perform at festivals around the country—is funny, real, and recommended: Flyer Guy (7:30 pm, Free!, Offside Tavern at 137 West 14th Street)
NYC Comedy Picks for Saturday 7/22/17
This weekend may be your last chance this summer in NYC to catch Julio Torres (staff writer for Saturday Night Live; Billy on the Street, HBO's High Maintenance, Louis C.K.’s Horace and Pete) perform a fresh, clever one-man show that he'll soon be taking to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Tonight's performance has sold out, but if you hurry you can still nab tickets for Sunday: Julio Torres: My Favorite Shapes (7:30 pm, $10, Brooklyn's Union Hall at 702 Union Street; take R subway to Union Street)...
...and in the meantime, check out highly talented hip-hop improv group North Coast attempt to create a Hamilton on the spot by making up a musical based on an audience suggestion of a famous historical figure: Anybody— An Improvised Historical Hip-Hopera (9:30 pm, $15, The PIT Mainstage at 123 East 24th Street)...
...or see Joel Kim Booster (Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Stand-Up Presents special, Billy on the Street; for Joel's Conan set, please click here), Emmy Blotnick (rising star; staff writer for Comedy Central's The President Show; writer for Comedy Central's @midnight, Roast of Rob Lowe, and Not Safe with Nikki Glaser; MTV's Nikki and Sara Live, VH1's Best Week Ever), Ashley Nicole Black (writer & correspondent for Full Frontal With Samantha Bee), Alexandra Song (writer for Jimmy Fallon), Ana Fabrega (Portlandia, The Jim Gaffigan Show, The Chris Gethard Show, host of Sundays with Ana), Sebastian Conelli (ace improvisor; UCB's Friday night The Law Firm and The Magnet's The Friday Night Show; member of 2014 Cage Match Champion The Enemy), Alex English, and Kevin Seamon perform in Brooklyn hosted by Ethan Beach (MTV): Oh, Such a Good Show, Oh (10:00 pm, $12, Brooklyn's Union Hall at 702 Union Street; take R subway to Union Street)
NYC Comedy Picks for Sunday 7/23/17
It's week #3 of a 4-Sunday series of free outdoor comedy shows in July at NYC parks. This afternoon's lineup features Josh Gondelman (above right; Emmy & Peabody Award-winning writer/producer for HBO's Last Week Tonight with John Oliver; Conan O'Brien, The New Yorker; stand-up comedy album Physical Whisper), Roy Wood Jr. (above left; correspondent for The Daily Show; David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Seth Meyers, HBO's Def Comedy Jam, TBS' Sullivan & Son; Comedy Central one-hour special Father Figure), Kevin Bartini (above middle; warm-up comic for The President Show, and previously for Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show, and The Nightly Show), Nimesh Patel (Comedy Central, TruTV; written for Chris Rock hosting the 2016 Oscars; co-host of Broken Comedy), and Emma Willmann (Stephen Colbert, @midnight, Sirius XM): Laughter in the Park (2:00 pm-4:00 pm, Free!, the East Village's Tompkins Square Park by the 7th Street entrance between Avenues A & B)...
...and a stand-up benefit show for Planned Parenthood features a breathtaking collection of female comedy talent, including Aparna Nancherla, Jo Firestone, Liza Treyger, Emmy Blotnick (above left), Lane Moore (above right), Sasheer Zamata, Ana Fabrega (above middle), Giulia Rozzi, Christi Chiello, and many more, for a total of 50—all telling jokes about their genitalia! Hosted by Sachi Ezura & Halle Kiefer, it's 50 Lady Bits: An Evening of Junk Jokes (8:00 pm, $20, Brooklyn's The Bell House at 149 7th Street; take R subway to 9th Street or F/G to Fourth Avenue)
Copyright © 2017 Hy Bender
Email: hy@hyreviews.com
