NYC Comedy Picks for Week of November 17, 2014

NYC Comedy Picks for Monday 11/17/14

TV Alert: Jason Sudeikis is on David Letterman;
John Mulaney is on Jimmy Kimmel;
Key & Peele are on Conan O'Brien;
Steve Harvey is on Seth Meyers;
Natasha Leggero, Moshe Kasher, and Jerry Minor are on @midnight

Carmen Lynch (above) and Jeff Simmermon are among the storytellers at Val Roder's Story Time;
Ari Shaffir (above) and Michelle Wolf are among the stand-ups at The Stand's free comedy show Frantic Mondays

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight

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

7:00 pm ($5): A mini-play written by and co-starring Alexandra Fiber & Carlye Wisel in which "After getting super dumped, all Lizzie Carmichael has left is her champagne taste, her beer budget, and a 2004 Toyota Corolla. An inspiring story about what happens when you move into your car" at the PIT upstairs theatre: Lizzie Who Lives in Her Car

7:00 pm ($7): "Improvisers create scenes inspired by essays written about personal experiences and show that sometimes laughter really is the best medicine" at The Magnet theatre: You Are Not Alone: An Uplifting Show About Depression

[FREE] 7:00 pm to midnight: Five free hours of improvisation at The PIT downstairs lounge: Super Free Monday

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:45 pm, 9:30 pm, and 11:15 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight's comics include Judah Friedlander, Ryan Hamilton, Greer Barnes, Kyle Dunnigan, and Monroe Martin (hosting) at the 7:45 show, and a great lineup of Dave Attell, Ari Shaffir, Mark Normand, Jena Friedman, Joe Matarese, Big Jay Oakerson, and Wil Sylvince (hosting) at the 11:15 show, all performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Monday

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($8 at the door or $9.79 online): Mike Drucker (hilarious stand-up; Emmy-nominated staff writer for Jimmy Fallon; freelance writer for SNL, The Onion, McSweeney's), Joe Zimmerman (Comedy Central Half Hour, Craig Ferguson), Brooks Wheelan (former cast member of Saturday Night Live), Koretta Gray, and Christian Polanco performing stand-up at Brooklyn's Littlefield (622 Degraw Street) hosted by Wyatt Cenac (former star correspondent for The Daily Show; albums Wyatt Cenac: Comedy Person and Wyatt Cenac: Brooklyn): Night Train

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Don Fanelli (30 Rock, The Stepfathers), Matthew Robert Gehring (Louie, MTV), Natasha Vaynblat, Brandon Gardner, Jon Bander, Alan Starzinski, and more performing sketch character bits at UCB East hosted by Justin Tyler & Michael Hartney: Characters Welcome

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($12; SOLD OUT tonight, but buy tickets for the last performance for which they're available on the 20th): A fun, lively musical parody mashup of Wicked and Frozen written & co-starring Zoe Farmingdale & Toby Singer at The PIT upstairs theatre: Wicked Frozen

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Four improvisers form teams with comics they've never performed with before at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City: The Kaleidoscope

8:30 pm ($7): Eight improvisors jointly contribute to the creation of two-person scenes, and then work to refine and morph these scenes together over time at the Magnet theatre: The Blob

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): At the UCB Chelsea theatre, duo sketch from Keith Kingbay & Jesse Neil in The Keith & Jesse Show...

...and in the second half of this double-bill, charismatic performer Jonathan Braylock performs a series of sketches on "the ins and outs of the African American experience:" The Black Experience with Jonathan Braylock

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Terrific storytellers Carmen Lynch (David Letterman, Last Comic Standing finalist, Comedy Central), Jeff Simmermon (NPR's The American Life, Moth StorySlam Champion, host of And I Am Not Lying), and Danielle Kraese performing at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Val Roder: Story Time

9:30 pm ($5): Improv veterans Brandon Gardner, Chelsea Clarke, Phillip Jackson, and/or Steve Theiss hosting & performing in a show at UCB East with guest improvisors: Improv Nerds

[FREE] 9:30 pm: NYC stand-ups Kevin McCaffrey (writer for David Letterman; TruTV), Pat O'Shea, Margaret Dodge, Joey Gay, Luisa Rosario, and Carolyn Kitay performing at Brooklyn's Freddy's Backroom (627 5th Avenue) guest-hosted by Richard James: Ed Sullivan on Acid

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 10:00 pm: Ari Shaffir (Conan O'Brien, HBO's Down and Dirty, Comedy Central, National Lampoon, hour-long set Passive Aggressive), Michelle Wolf (rising star; staff writer for and performer on Seth Meyers; MTV's Girl Code, IFC), Yannis Pappas (Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1), Joe Zimmerman, Sarah Tollemache, Jaqi Furback, Joe Bartnick, Crystian Ramirez, and Jay Nog performing stand-up for this free weekly show at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street) hosted by Aaron Berg (TV series 24 Hour Rental, documentary A Universal Language): Frantic Mondays

10:00 pm ($7): Old friends Kevin Cobbs & James O'Connell perform duo sketch at The Magnet theatre as High School Chums

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [FREE] 11:00 pm: Some of the finest comics in the world—who aren't announced in advance, but it's usually a great lineup and often an extraordinary one—at UCB Chelsea hosted by Leo Allen, Aparna Nancherla, or someone else wonderful: Whiplash

Monday Open Mics & Jams

5:00 pm ($5): Two-hour open-mic for 20 stand-ups performing for 5 minutes each, with sign-up online here, at the Stand Up NY Comedy Club (236 West 78th Street): Stand Up NY Open Mic

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open mic stand-up show that provides each performer whose name is pulled from a bucket 5 minutes on stage—and also allows everyone play Bingo!—at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Julia Lundy & Veronica Elizabeth: Bingo Open Mic

6:00 pm & 8:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min. for both comics and audience members): Open mic stand-up providing 5-7 minutes per comic, with each show running 1 hour and 45 minutes. Arrive 30 minutes before the show you want to be in to get on the signup sheet. This is a fine opportunity to perform at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club Open Mic

6:00 pm ($5 plus 1 drink min.): Booked open mic stand-up providing 7 minutes per comic for this 2-hour show at Klimat Lounge (77 East 7th Street) hosted by Gregory Joseph. To get on the performance list for future shows, email Gregory at evgigglepit@gmail.com: East Village Giggle Pit

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 6:30 pm: Open-mic storytelling, with names drawn out of a bucket and 5 minutes per performer, at the Slake Bar (251 West 30th Street) hosted by Julia Wiedeman: Happy Hour Story Hour (Open-Mic Storytelling) with Julia Wiedeman

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Open-mic stand-up, with 5 minutes for each comic who reserves a spot in advance (by emailing Dan Fox at danmaxfox@gmail.com) and 3 minutes for each comic who signs up on the spot (sign-up starts at 6:45 and ends at 8:30) at Brooklyn's Muchmore's (2 Havemeyer Street) hosted by Dan Fox: Muchmore's Stand-Up Open Mic

[FREE] 7:00 pm: An open-mic stand-up show, with 10 comics each performing for 5 minutes, at Brooklyn's Colony (274 4th Avenue) hosted by Emily Winter: Sparky the Dog Open Mic

7:30 pm ($10; sign-up starts at 7:00 pm): Open mic for stand-ups, storytellers, singers, poets, actors, and more, with 5 minutes per performer and 25 slots available, at The Parkside Lounge (317 East Houston Street, off Avenue B) hosted by Nathan P., followed by a raucous afterparty with dancing & drink specials from 10:00 to midnight: Inspired Word's Open Mic Joint

[FREE] 10:30 pm: Improv veterans Brandon Gardner, Chelsea Clarke, and Phillip Jackson hosting & performing in a show at UCB East with improvisors taken from the audience...and who may include you: Improv Nerds Jam

11:00 pm ($3): Open mic stand-up, with each comic getting 5 minutes and room for 15 comics who sign up per show, at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Kat Toledo and/or Alan Shain: The Power Exchange

[FREE] 11:00 pm: Improv students are welcomed onto the stage at The PIT downstairs lounge for this weekly open access show hosted by Gary DeNoia & Langston Belton: Base Jam

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$20)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

This Theater
(154 West 29th Street; new venue that, at its best, features shows comparable to UCB & PIT; free-$12)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

NYC Comedy Picks for Tuesday 11/18/14

TV Alert: Russell Brand is on Jimmy Fallon;
Jason Bateman is on Jimmy Kimmel;
Paul Scheer, Rob Huebel, and Keegan-Michael Key are on @midnight

Burlesque duo Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey perform with Tom Papa and more at Seth Herzog's Sweet;
Whitney Cummings is back in town and performing at Comedy Cellar

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight

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

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($10 at the door or online): Four funny people tell amazing stories. Three of the tales are absolutely true...but one of them is a pack of lies. The audience then asks questions to try and identify the fibber—and everyone who does gets a free t-shirt! This evening's yarn-spinners are all journalists: James Braly (This American Life, Marketplace), Daniel Engber (Slate Magazine, Popular Science), Tracy Rowland (Al Jazeera America, Moth GrandSlam champion), and Martin Dockery (one man show Wanderlust). Come to Brooklyn's Made In New York Media Center by IFP (30 John Street) and let host Andy Christie (The New York Times, NPR, Moth GrandSlam champion, exceptionally nice guy) attempt to mislead you at The Liar Show

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm-11:00 pm ($7 for the whole evening): In this 4-hour extravaganza, five of The Magnet's singing improv groups make up a musical on the spot based on an audience suggestion, followed at 10:15 by a free show that lets audience members join in with a musical improv group to make up stories in song: Magnet Musical Megawatt

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Comics creators join super-hosts Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler, and Pete LePage in a lively & hilarious discussion about four-color pop culture at Fontana's (105 Eldridge Street), with giveaways of comics and gift certificates (and if you can't make it, watch in online here): Comic Book Club

7:30 pm-9:15 pm ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house groups Smalls, Apollo, and Women & Men at this first half of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:45 pm, 9:30 pm, and 11:15 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight's stand-ups include a great lineup of Whitney Cummings, Tom Papa, Ryan Hamilton, and Mike Yard (hosting) at the 7:45 show; Judah Friedlander, and Carmen Lynch at the 9:30 show; and another great lineup of Dave Attell, Mark Normand, Dan Soder, Wil Sylvince, Zainab Johnson, and Joe List (hosting) at the 11:15 show, with all three shows at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Tuesday

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Powerhouse improv singer Rebecca Vigil and her improv partner Evan Kaufman interview an audience couple about their love life and then turn it into a musical at The PIT downstairs lounge: Your Love, Our Musical

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5; no min.): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Nick DiPaolo (star stand-up, with numerous appearances on David Letterman, Jay Leno, Louie; Emmy-nominated comedy writer, talk show host), Ari Shaffir (Conan O'Brien, HBO's Down and Dirty, Comedy Central, National Lampoon, hour-long set Passive Aggressive), Joe List (HBO, David Letterman, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Chris Distefano (David Letterman, Comedy Central, MTV2's Guy Code), and Danny Palmer performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): $5 Funnies: Janeane Garofalo, Nick Dipaolo, Ari Shaffir, and More

8:00 pm ($5): Nick Vatterott (Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central's The Half Hour, MTV, Second City), Sheng Wang (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Totally Biased), Jono Zalay, Raj Sivaraman, Doogie Horner, and Steven Forrest performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Joe Zimmerman: Comedy Central Corporate Retreat

8:00 pm ($5): Sketch comedy that's "fast-paced sketch and infused with music you love to dance to" at The PIT upstairs theatre from troupe Defiance

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Jo Firestone (dynamic rising star; host of Punderdome 3000 and The Incredible Game Show Showcase), plus NYC stand-ups Greg Barris (MTV, host of Heart of Darkness), Hoff Matthews, Irene Hartman, Ken Schultz, and Dave Severino performing at Bunga's Den (137 West 14th Street, between Sixth & Seventh Avenues) hosted by JF Harris, Lukas Kaiser, John Szeluga, and Sue Smith: Amazingtown

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:30 pm (reserve your free spots by clicking here): Typically terrific stand-ups (for the line-up, usually posted by 1:00 pm, please click here) performing stand-up at The Irish Exit (978 Second Avenue, off 52nd Street, in the back room) produced every Tuesday by Mark Normand, Matt Ruby, Gary Vider, and Sachi Ezura: Hot Soup

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($7): 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), DC Benny (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, ABC's The Unusuals), and Danny Jolles performing stand-up, plus Trixie Little and the Evil Hate Monkey (America's Got Talent) performing burlesque, and more, all at The Slipper Room (167 Orchard Street) hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon long-time staff comic, Comedy Central, VH1, host of Nat Geo's Science of Stupid): Sweet

[FREE] 9:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at this free weekly show at Brooklyn's The Alligator Lounge (600 Metropolitan Avenue) hosted by Robert Dean, Sachi Ezura, and/or Steve O'Brien: Comedy at Alligator Lounge

9:15 pm-Midnight ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house groups Greg, Side Piece, and Higgins at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Brilliantly innovative comic Anthony Atamanuik (Death by Roo Roo, 30 Rock, Conan O'Brien, The Nights of Our Lives) plays oddball characters in a mix of sketch and improv (with help from producer Andy Rocco and Jesse VandenBergh), plus comics Alan Starzinski and Subhah Agarwal performing stand-up or sketch, all performing at the UCB East theatre: The Tony Show

9:30 pm ($5): Sketch comedy from an upbeat group at The PIT upstairs theatre: Totally, Yes

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($5; no min.): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds and very finest stand-ups in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Nick DiPaolo (star stand-up, with numerous appearances on David Letterman, Jay Leno, Louie; Emmy-nominated comedy writer, talk show host), Ari Shaffir (Conan O'Brien, HBO's Down and Dirty, Comedy Central, National Lampoon, hour-long set Passive Aggressive), Cipha Sounds (Chappelle's Show, MTV, Hot 97), and Chris Distefano (David Letterman, Comedy Central, MTV2's Guy Code) performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street) hosted by Alexis Guerreros & Mike Cannon: The Illuminati Party: Judah Friedlander, Nick DiPaolo, Ari Shaffir, Cipha Sounds, and More

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Luis J. Gomez, Dave Smith, and other NYC stand-ups performing live on stage for this podcast show at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City: Legion of Skanks

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Sachi Ezura and a whole bunch of other NYC stand-ups performing at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Peggy O'Leary: Creek Cave Live

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Reid Faylor, Stephen McCarthy, Nicole Pasquale, John Reynolds, Michael Wolf, and Tony Zaret performing stand-up, plus Colin Michael Fitzgerald Burgess & Dan Ramos performing music, for this free weekly show at Brooklyn's Over the Eight (594 Union Ave) hosted by Bret Davis (playing a new character at every show): The Tuesday Special

[FREE] 11:00 pm: A mix of superb and lesser-known stand-ups (not announced) performing at this free weekly show at UCB East hosted by Phil Hanley: Chemistry

Tuesday Open Mics & Jams

5:00 pm ($5): Two-hour open-mic for 20 stand-ups performing for 5 minutes each, with sign-up online here, at the Stand Up NY Comedy Club (236 West 78th Street): Stand Up NY Open Mic

[TOP PICK] [ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): In this delightful weekly open-mic show, each comic has 3-5 minutes to try out a character-based bit (e.g., for a solo show, sketch, or audition) at The PIT downstairs lounge, hosted by Keisha Zollar (Doppelganger): Imposter Open Mic

[ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): Open mic sketch that allows you to either perform a sketch with your own performers or bring in pages for the audience to perform at The PIT Green Room, followed by feedback on your bit from PIT "sketch-perts:" Pens & Pencils

6:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min. for both comics and audience members): Open mic stand-up providing 5-7 minutes per comic, running 2 1/2 hours. Arrive 30 minutes before the show to get on the signup sheet. This is a fine opportunity to perform at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club Open Mic

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open mic for comedy of all types providing 2 minutes for each performer (with sign-up starting at 6:00) at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Tim Unkenholz: Butt Factory

[FREE] 6:30 pm: Weekly stand-up open mic, with walk-ins tossing names into a hat and set length determined by the number of comics who show up, at Bunga's Den (137 West 14th Street, between Sixth & Seventh Avenues) hosted by Jimmy LeChase and/or Justin Perez: Townies Open Mic

[FREE] 6:30 pm: Weekly stand-up open mic (with sign-up starting at 6:00) at People's Republic of Brooklyn (247 Smith Street) hosted by Dustin Drury: This Is Happening Open MIc

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: This weekly two-hour open mic storytelling show allows each performer 8 minutes to tell a compelling and funny tale at Queens LIC's The Creek downstairs lounge hosted by Jake Hart and a guest co-host: The Dump

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Open mic stand-up that's first come, first serve (signup starts at 8:30) and provides each performer 5 minutes—or 4 minutes plus 2 minutes of feedback!—at the Producer's Club (358 West 44th Street): Train Wreck Open Mic Stand-Up

[FREE] 10:15 pm: In this free Magnet show, audience members can join in with musical improv troupe The Stragglers to make up stories in song on the spot: Musical Magnet Mixer

11:00 pm ($3): A breathtaking 40 comics are given 2 minutes each in this rapid-fire open-mic stand-up show at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted with wit and energy by Jay Welch: Bring It

[FREE] 11:00 pm: Weekly walk-in open mic stand-up providing 3 minutes for each comic whose name is pulled from a bucket at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Michelle Slonim: Rapid Fire

[ALMOST FREE] 11:00 pm ($1): A weekly improv jam for students at all levels to work on their skills at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Elke Reid and David Frasure: Study Hall

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$20)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

NYC Comedy Picks for Wednesday 11/19/14

TV Alert: Killer lineup of Jon Stewart, Jim Gaffigan,
and Stephen Merchant on Jimmy Fallon;
Pete Holmes, Ron Funches, and Steve Rannazzisi are on @midnight;
another genius new episode of South Park at 10:00 pm on Comedy Central

Genius comics Scott Adsit and John Lutz form one of the greatest improv duos ever as John & Scott

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight
(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[FREE] 6:00 pm-midnight: Six free hours of improvisation at The PIT upstairs theatre: Super Free Wednesday

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: "Dressed only from the waist up and ankles down, Adrienne Truscott undoes and does in the rules and rhetoric about rape, comedy, and the awkward laughs in between. With ‘appearances’ from George Carlin, Louis CK, Robert De Niro, ducks, whistles, and enough gin and tonics to get a girl in trouble, she lets her pussy do the talking. Set to pop music. Can you make jokes about rape? She plans to, all night long. Even if you tell her to stop" at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City; for a London review, please click here: Adrienne Truscott's Asking For It

8:00 pm ($5): A monthly sketch show that takes you to "an alternative reality filled with unique characters, curious tales, and odd occurrences" at The PIT upstairs theatre: Blunderbuss

7:00 pm to 11:00 pm ($7 for the entire evening): Four hours of improv from eight groups—plus a free improv jam at 6:00 pm—at The Magnet theatre: Magnet Megawatt

7:30 pm ($5): Expanding the UCB longform improv showcased on Harold Night is this weekly show at UCB East which tonight features house groups Rizzo, Boombox, and Witch: Lloyd Night

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm, 9:45 pm, and 11:30 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight's stand-ups include great lineups of Whitney Cummings, Tom Papa, Nick DiPaolo, and Mike Yard (hosting) at the 8:00 show; Judah Friedlander, Todd Barry, Ryan Hamilton, and Carmen Lynch at the 9:45 show; and Dave Attell, Mark Normand, Dan Soder, Kyle Dunnigan, and Wil Sylvince (hosting) at the 11:30 show, with all three shows at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Wednesday

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): One of the finest comedic storytelling shows in the country, in which writer/performers Adam Wade, Anna Roisman, T.J. Mannix, Brendan Jordan, and wonderful host Dave Martin tell tales that are brutally honest and hilarious on this month's theme Holidays at the UCB Chelsea theatre: The Nights of Our Lives

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: Myq Kaplan (one of the quickest minds in comedy, and rapidly rising star; finalist on Last Comic Standing; David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents, comedy CDs Small, Dork, and Handsome. Vegan Mind Meld, and Meat Robot), Brooke Van Poppelen (co-host of TruTV's Hack My Life; writer and/or producer for a slew of MTV shows; also performed on HBO, Comedy Central, VH1; co-host of Dive Comedy), Mike Recine (Conan O'Brien), Harrison Greenbaum (Comedy Central, Mad Magazine), Lynn Bixenspan (Relationshit), Carole Montgomery (Oprah, Comedy Central), and Brian Grossi performing stand-up at the Producer's Club (358 West 44th Street) produced by Henry Cruz & Keith Fuerstenberg and hosted by Amanda Gail: Train Wreck Stand-Up

8:00 pm ($5): Duo sketch comedy from Joe Cilio & Alex Ramsey at The PIT downstairs lounge: Cilio & Ramsey: Comedy For Weird Children

[FREE] 8:00 pm: "Mike Guild knows everything about movies and films. He will take you through the landscape of the cinema, along with comic guests to discuss everything going on the weird landscape that is Hollywood—plus everyone in the audience will win a unique prize" at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City: Movie Night With Mike

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Michelle Wolf (rising star; staff writer for and performer on Seth Meyers; MTV's Girl Code, IFC), Ben Kronberg (Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Comedy Central Half Hour, MTV, ABC; clash with Roseanne on this season's Last Comic Standing led to #gofuckyourselfBen), Langston Kerman, Julie Kottakis, Gary Levitt, Tom Cowell, Matt Schwartzer, Paul Oddo, and Carmen Lagala performing stand-up, plus improv from groups Jew Noir, The Punctual Drunks, and Macwood Fleet, at the Revision Lounge (219 Avenue B, between 13th & 14th Streets) hosted by Gary Levitt & Matt Schwartzer: I Don't Get It Stand-Up

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 9:00 pm: Ryan Hamilton (Conan O'Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, Showtime), Christian Finnegan (Conan O'Brien, co-star of TBS' Are We There Yet?; three Comedy Central specials; MSNBC, VH1's Best Week Ever, Chappelle's Show, The Today Show), Nick Rutherfurd (writer for Saturday Night Live), Roger Hailes (Jimmy Fallon, Chappelle's Show, MTV; writer for VH1's Best Week Ever and FUSE's A Different Spins; Web series Mansome), Katie Hannigan (MTV), Jamie Roberts, Brendan Eyre, and Mike Camerlengo performing at this free weekly stand-up show at Lucky Jack's Pub (129 Orchard Street) produced by Kyle Fincham, Lance Weiss, and Brendon Fitzgibbons: Gandhi, Is That You?

9:00 pm ($5; no min.): Rob Cantrell (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, HBO, VHI, FX's Totally Biased, documentary Metaphysical Graffiti, High Times), Stone & Stone (finalists on Last Comic Standing),Taylor Ketchum, Christi Chiello, Geno Bisconte, and Rojo Perez performing stand-up at Brooklyn's Dean Street (755 Dean Street) hosted by Seena Jon: Dean Street Comedy

[TOP PICK] 9:15 pm ($5): The instructors of UCB's classes include some of the finest improvisors in the country. In this new weekly show a bunch of them get on stage at UCB East, along with hosts Betsy Stover and Ari Voukydis: Hot for Teacher: The UCB Faculty Show

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Scott Adsit (cast member of 30 Rock, and co-writer/director/producer & cast member of Adult Swim's awesome & Emmy-winning Moral Orel) teams up with fellow 30 Rock actor John Lutz (who previously spent six years as a staff writer for Saturday Night Live, and currently writes for Seth Meyers) to form a breathtakingly super-smart and hilarious star improv duo that's become one of the very best attractions at UCB Chelsea and should not be missed: John & Scott

9:30 pm ($5): Joe Pera (hilarious and genius deadpan stand-up; Comedy Central, Adult Swim; for a very special one-minute set at Carolines, please click here; for Joe's latest Kaufman awards submissions, please click here and here), Kara Klenk (writer for VH1's Girl Code and Guy Code; Comedy Central, Spike, Nickelodeon; host of If You Bring It), and Danny Jolles performing stand-up at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Griffin Newman and/or Andrew Tavin: The Awooga Comedy Hour

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($10; no min.): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds and very finest stand-ups in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Nick DiPaolo (star stand-up, with numerous appearances on David Letterman, Jay Leno, Louie; Emmy-nominated comedy writer, talk show host), Mark Normand (hilarious red-hot rising star; Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, Inside Amy Schumer, Last Comic Standing, VH1's Best Week Ever; comedy album Still Got It), Ben Kronberg (Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Comedy Central Half Hour, MTV, ABC; clash with Roseanne on this season's Last Comic Standing led to #gofuckyourselfBen), Mike Finoia, and Janelle James performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Judah Friedlander, Nick DiPaolo, Mark Normand, and More

[FREE] 10:00 pm: NYC stand-ups do sets "and then have a discussion about what’s going on in the world and the mysteries of life" at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City, hosted by Chris Laker: The Show

[TOP PICK] 10:15 pm ($5): Improvisors pair up as scene-inventing duos for one night only at the UCB East theatre hosted by comedy giants Dan Hodapp & Natasha Rothwell (newest staff writer for Saturday Night Live): Couples Skate

11:00 pm ($5): As many as a dozen guests packed into 75 minutes performing 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 monthly show at UCB Chelsea makes possible, hosted by Gary Richardson: School Night

[TOP PICK] 11:15 pm ($5): The third round of a beloved annual November tradition at UCB East hosted by Pat Baer: 3-on-3 Improv Tournament

Wednesday Open Mics & Jams

5:00 pm ($5): Two-hour open mic for 20 stand-ups performing for 5 minutes each, with sign-up online here, at the Stand Up NY Comedy Club (236 West 78th Street): Stand Up NY Open Mic

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open mic stand-up show that provides each performer whose name is pulled from a bucket 5 minutes on stage at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Kaity Neagle & Irene Hartmann: Ragtag Team Open Mic Stand-Up

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open mic stand-up for 15 comics performing for 5 minutes each at Queens LIC's Laughing Devil Comedy Club (4738 Vernon Blvd.)—with drinks at half price: Happy Hour Open Mic

6:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min. for both comics and audience members): Open mic stand-up providing 5-7 minutes per comic, running 2 1/2 hours. Arrive 30 minutes before the show to get on the signup sheet. This is a fine opportunity to perform at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club Open Mic

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Sign up at 5:45 pm for the opportunity to make up scenes at The Magnet with veteran improvisors: Magnet Improv Mixer

[FREE] 11:00 pm: Open mic stand-up running until 1:00 am, with time divided evenly between performers (up to five minutes), at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City with host Rob Stern: Bucket 'O Buckets

11:00 pm ($3): Open mic stand-up show, with its 90 minutes split evenly among the comics who throw their names into a bucket, at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Eagle Witt: Amateur Night At The Mercury

[FREE] 11:00 pm: Your chance to perform on stage with experienced improvisors at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Bernard Maynore & Patrick Cucuta: Improdome

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$20)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

NYC Comedy Picks for Thursday 11/20/14

TV Alert: Jon Stewart is on The Colbert Report;
Stephen Merchant is on Jimmy Fallon;
Russell Brand is on Seth Meyers;
Mike Lawrence is on Carson Daly;
Jason Bateman and Andy Cohen are on Conan O'Brien;
Aimee Mann, Dana Gould, and Nick Offerman are on @midnight

Zoe Farmingdale and friends continue their sold-out run (nab tickets online ASAP) of a mashup musical parody: Wicked Frozen;
Jen Kirkman joins Todd Barry, Janine Brito, and more at Larry Murphy's weekly stand-up/sketch party Myrtle Comedy

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight
(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Jon Fisch (David Letterman, Comedy Central, Last Comic Standing, VH1), Jena Friedman (wry dark comedy stand-up and rising star; producer for The Daily Show, former staff writer for David Letterman), Kevin Barnett (MTV's Guy Code, Comedy Central, Sleepwalk With Me, TruTV's Friends of the People), Myka Fox, and Sam Grittner performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Sean Crespo, Dan Wilbur, and/or Katina Corrao: Lasers in the Jungle

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: "Dressed only from the waist up and ankles down, Adrienne Truscott undoes and does in the rules and rhetoric about rape, comedy, and the awkward laughs in between. With ‘appearances’ from George Carlin, Louis CK, Robert De Niro, ducks, whistles, and enough gin and tonics to get a girl in trouble, she lets her pussy do the talking. Set to pop music. Can you make jokes about rape? She plans to, all night long. Even if you tell her to stop" at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City; for a London review, please click here: Adrienne Truscott's Asking For It

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): All-gal storytelling show of "true tales with feelings; so many feelings..." sharing tales at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Caitlin Brodnick & Lisa Kleinman: Shut Up Storytelling Show

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Beloved TV comedy series 30 Rock presented "in ways you never imagined" at The PIT downstairs lounge: We Love TV

[$] 7:30 pm ($31.25 & 2-drink min.): A multi-talented improv, sketch, and stand-up comic who's a long-time comedy partner of Kristin Schaal, and has performed on Jimmy Fallon, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central, Bob's Burgers, and Chelsea Lately headlines tonight through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Kurt Braunohler

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:45, 8:00, 9:30 pm, and 11:30 pm ($14 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight's comics include Judah Friedlander, Nick DiPaolo, and Jessica Kirson at the 8:00 show; and Dave Attell and Zainab Johnson at the 11:30 show, with three of the shows at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) and the 8:00 pm show at Village Underground (130 West 3rd Street, off Sixth Avenue): Comedy Cellar Thursday

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Jen Kirkman (HBO, VH1, Chelsea Lately, After Lately, Craig Ferguson, staff writer for NBC's Perfect Couples, author or I Can Barely Take Care of Myself), Janine Brito (former staff writer/performer for FX's Totally Biased), and Danny Tamberelli performing for this weekly stand-up plus sketch show at Brooklyn's Splitty (415 Myrtle Avenue) hosted by Larry Murphy (brilliant voiceover actor for FOX's Bob's Burgers, Comedy Central's Ugly Americans, Adult Swim's Assy McGee and Home Movies, and numerous other shows) and/or Greg Johnson (Sirius XM): Myrtle Comedy

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10 at the door or $11.59 online): Storytellers Jen Doll (author of Save the Date), Tara Clancy (The New York Times, The Paris Review, Moth GrandSlam champion), Lukas Kaiser (writer/producer at Spike TV), Andy Ross (writer for The Onion, Mad Magazine), and Michelle Onufrak telling true tales about It's Not Me, It's You at Brooklyn's Union Hall hosted by Blaise Allysen Kearsley: How I Learned It's Not Me, It's You

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10; includes a free beer!): Star storyteller Tom Shillue (Conan O'Brien, The Daily Show, Comedy Central Presents, 2011 ECNY Award for Best Storyteller) gathers friends to tell funny stories at the Brooklyn Brewery (79 North 11th Street), with tonight's lineup JR Havlan (7-time Emmy winning writer for The Daily Show; David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, HBO's Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher), Eddie Brill (former booker for David Letterman), and David Konig: Tom Shillue's Funny Story

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm-11:00 pm ($10 for the entire evening): The Magnet house improv groups The Boss and Junior Varsity performing improv for an hour, followed at 9:00 pm by The Love Story (improv that begins with a significant moment in a romantic relationship and explores the characters and relationships in their lives), and at 10:00 pm by veteran improvisors making up scenes springboarding off improvised monologues from star storyteller Adam Wade at The Armando Diaz Experience: The Magnet's Night Out

8:00 pm ($5): At UCB Chelsea, Joanna Bradley demonstrates she's a fine performer who needs to work with a tough editor, as her material doesn't come across as funny so much as harsh and angry—which doesn't do justice to her genuine acting and comedic talent. But maybe one-woman has improved since I've seen it. Find out at I Am Very Important People...

...and in the second half of this double-bill, sketch comedy from Matt Porter & Charlie Hankin as duo Good Cop Great Cop

9:30 pm ($8): Feline-based improv from duo David Frasure & Jenn Welch at The PIT upstairs theatre: CATS! CATS! CATS! CATS! CATS!

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Jeffrey Joseph (Jay Leno, HBO, FOX's In Living Color, Comedy Central), Sheng Wang (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Totally Biased), Amanda Seales, and Nore Davis performing stand-up at Poco Restaurant & Bar (33 Avenue B at 3rd Street) produced by Jawann Carmona, Sooyah Jun, Cassidy Kirch, and Zardon Richardson: FTH Comedy

[FREE] 8:00 pm: A monthly showcase of both stand-ups and improvisors at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City, hosted by stand-up Zach Broussard and improv troupe Priest & the Beekeeper: Pig Pile

8:30 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at UCB East hosted by Ashley Brooke Roberts and/or Jim Tews: Fresh Out

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 9:00 pm (FREE TICKETS if you reserve in advance by calling (212) 260-2445 and mention HyReviews.com, but there's still a 2-drink min. per person): Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($10): Improvisors make up a Quentin Tarantino movie at The PIT downstairs lounge—"If you like Grindhouse, Kung Fu, Spaghetti Western, Noir, and the entire 1970s, you'll want to check out:" The Tarantino

[FREE] 9:00 pm: A rare stand-up & sketch show in Staten Island, with Jason Saenz (Comedy Central, sketch group Onassis, co-host of Late Night Trash), Anna Drezen (talented character comic blending words and movement; one-woman show Spooky Jerks), Ben Kissel (writer for MTV, MTV2, CMT, TLC; The Last Podcast on the Left, Roundtable of Gentlemen), Alyssa Wolff, and Dan Goodman performing at the Flagship Brewing Company (40 Minthorne Street, near the SI Ferry and the Tompkinsville train station) hosted by Tim Duffy & John Szeluga: Comedy Night in Staten Island

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): The Emmy-winning writers of The Colbert Report gather on the UCB Chelsea stage to perform an all-improvised show at Seize the Mustard

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 9:30 pm: Potentially an animation fan's dream come true, in this show comics make merciless fun of bad Japanese anime at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Benel Germosen & Jarrid Reed: Otakulypse

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($10): Storytellers Tom March, Aaron Kheifets, Ben Phillipe, Sandi Marx, and host Kevin Allison tell daring personal tales at The PIT upstairs theatre on tonight's Thanksgiving theme Grateful for one of the finest storytelling shows in the country: Risk!

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15; no min.): Great lineup of Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds and very finest stand-ups in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Jen Kirkman (HBO, VH1, Chelsea Lately, After Lately, Craig Ferguson, staff writer for NBC's Perfect Couples, author or I Can Barely Take Care of Myself), Cipha Sounds (Chappelle's Show, MTV, Hot 97), Chris Distefano (David Letterman, Comedy Central, MTV2's Guy Code), and Giulio Gallarotti performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Judah Friedlander, Sean Patton, Jen Kirkman, Cipha Sounds, and More

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($10): Improvisors—who include powerhouse musical improvisor Rebecca Vigil—take an audience suggestion of a band and then make up an episode of VH1's Behind the Music on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge: PIT Behind the Music

[FREE] 10:00 pm: NYC stand-ups—possibly performing in a camp tent—at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Aaron Friedman: Campfire Comedy

10:30 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups (not announced) at this weekly show hosted by the brilliantly surreal and hilarious Joe Pera (for a very special one-minute set at Carolines, please click here), Charles Gould, and Dan Licata at the UCB East theatre: Dan + Joe + Charles' Show

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($10 at the door or $11.54 in advance online; every performance of this show has sold out, so grab tickets online before they disappear): A fun, lively musical parody mashup of Wicked and Frozen written & co-starring Zoe Farmingdale & Toby Singer at The PIT upstairs theatre: Wicked Frozen

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($5): Improv groups Warren and Glory Days competing for your laughs and votes at UCB Chelsea in the raucous Cage Match

Thursday Open Mics & Jams

5:00 pm ($5): Two-hour open-mic for 20 stand-ups performing for 5 minutes each, with sign-up online here, at the Stand Up NY Comedy Club (236 West 78th Street): Stand Up NY Open Mic

[FREE] 5:30 pm: A character-based open-mic happening weekly at UCB East hosted by Sean Hart: Don't Be Yourself: Character Open Mic

[TOP PICK] [ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): Joe Galan hosts a clowning workshop & open stage: "Clowns have only one true directive: To play! This is part workshop, part playground where we will use exercises geared towards exploring new voices, bodies and games. Either show off a piece in progress or jump onstage blind and ready to follow your sense of fun. Whether you're interested in learning more about clown technique and physical comedy or just overcoming coulrophobia, this jam is a fun and safe environment to explore your onstage instincts" at The PIT upstairs theatre: No Make-Up: A Clown Jam

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open-mic stand-up with comics' names drawn from a bucket and each chosen receiving 2 minutes—and if that goes well, maybe a hug (but not actual puppies)—at The Creek's upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Ross Parsons & Trey Galyon: Free Puppies

6:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min. for both comics and audience members): Open mic stand-up providing 5-7 minutes per comic, running 2 1/2 hours. Arrive 30 minutes before the show to get on the signup sheet. This is a fine opportunity to perform at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club Open Mic

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Weekly open mic that provides 5 minutes for each audience member whose name is pulled out of a bucket to perform a true story, sketch, or characters at Brooklyn's Over the Eight (594 Union Ave) hosted by JiJi Lee: Split Personality Open Mic Storytelling & Sketch

7:00 pm ($2, which includes a free beer or water): Open mic stand-up providing a whopping 10 minutes per comic. Email PhoningItInMic@gmail.com with subject line Phoning Thursday to sign up; or take a chance at lottery sign-up live between 6:45 and 7:45 at Brit Pack Studios (153 Lafayette Street, 3rd Floor) hosted by Ian Fidance: Comics Phoning It In

[FREE] 7:00 pm: In this free Magnet show, audience members (signing in at 6:00) can join in with improv group The Boss to make up scenes on the spot: Magnet Mixer

9:30 pm (free for audience members, $5 or 1 drink min. for stand-ups wanting to perform): Open mic stand-up providing 7 minutes per comic (and a free recording of your set!), with order determined raffle-style. Sign up by emailing info@oldmanhustle.com or calling (212) 253-7747, or just walk in and supply your name, to perform at the Old Man Hustle Bar (39 Essex Street) hosted by Solomon Chehebar: Peep Show Comedy Open Mic

[FREE] 11:00 pm: An open-mic show that's first come, first serve, with each comic getting 3-5 minutes on stage at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Josh Alba: Mic and Cheese

[FREE] 11:00 pm: An open stage for indie improv groups—and if you're not in a group, that's also fine, you'll simply be added to one—at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Darcy Burke & Donna Lobello: New Team Lunacy

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$20)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

This Theater
(154 West 29th Street; new venue that, at its best, features shows comparable to UCB & PIT; free-$12)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

NYC Comedy Picks for Friday 11/21/14

TV Alert: Norman Lear is on David Letterman;
Jim Carrey is on Jimmy Kimmel (repeated from 11/13);
Mike Lawrence is on Seth Meyers (repeated from 11/13)

A hit FringeNYC 2014 show settles in at Soho Playhouse for an open-ended run: The Imbible: A Spirited History of Drinking...

...and a sharp theatrical comedy troupe makes fun of the Internet at Blogologues: The Land Before Timelines

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight
(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:00 pm, 8:00 pm, 8:45 pm, 10:30 pm, and 12:15 am ($20-$24 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): Todd Barry, Greer Barnes, Lynne Koplitz, and Lenny Marcus at the 7:00 show; Julian McCullough, Lenny Marcus, and Gina Yashere (hosting) at the 8:00 show; Julian McCullough, Greer Barnes, Dov Davidoff, and Marina Franklin (hosting) at the 8:45 show; Julian McCullough, Greer Barnes, Dov Davidoff, and Gina Yashere (hosting) at the 10:30 show; and Dave Attell, Kurt Metzger, Julian McCullough, Rachel Feinstein, Dov Davidoff, and Gina Yashere at the 12:15 show, with all shows at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) except for the 8:00 pm show at Village Underground (130 West 3rd Street, off Sixth Avenue): Comedy Cellar Friday

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 7:00 pm & 9:00 pm & 11:00 pm (FREE TICKETS if you reserve in advance by calling (212) 260-2445 and mention HyReviews.com, but there's still a 2-drink min. per person): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo (possibly 9:00 pm only), Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Eliot Chang (Chelsea Lately), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Rapper Shea Butter performs for one night only at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City: Shea Butter Magic

7:00 pm ($7): "It's important to stay informed. That's why we bring you all the news that happened this month, at the end of this month. Just your average news show, keeping you up to date with your world one month at a time" at The Magnet written & performed by Jarret Berenstein: Current Events

7:00 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Marianne Schaberg with a nod to Marie-Antoinette: Let Them Eat Jokes

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): "Eliot Glazer has too many things he wants to share with you, so consider this variety show one big mashup featuring comedy, dance, video, special guests, maybe a dog, and definitely nudity"—with tonight's guests TBD—at the UCB Chelsea theatre: Mashterpiece Theater

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Improv group Bucky makes up one long scene in the same location (a winning form that's helped such teams as Death by Roo Roo win a whole lot of Cage Match victories)—and, when SNL is on break, sometimes includes star Sasheer Zamata—at the UCB East theatre: Bucky: Here and Now

[$] 7:30 pm & 10:00 pm ($31.25 & 2-drink min.): A multi-talented improv, sketch, and stand-up comic who's a long-time comedy partner of Kristin Schaal, and has performed on Jimmy Fallon, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central, Bob's Burgers, and Chelsea Lately headlines tonight through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Kurt Braunohler

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] 8:00 pm ($12.50 online using discount code COLD; no min.): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds and very finest stand-ups in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Chris Distefano (David Letterman, Comedy Central, MTV2's Guy Code), and Monroe Martin (finalist on this season's Last Comic Standing) performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Judah Friedlander, Todd Barry, Sean Patton, Rachel Feinstein, and More

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Frank Conniff (TV's Frank on Mystery Science Theater 3000; Cinematic Titanic), Amber Nelson (fearless, innovative rising star; Comedy Central; sketch troupes Murderfist and The Prom), Nick Vatterott (Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central's The Half Hour, MTV, Second City), Monroe Martin (finalist on this season's Last Comic Standing), and Nick Turner (Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Comedy Central, VH1) performing stand-up at the One and One Bar's Nexus Lounge (76 1st Street, corner of First Avenue) hosted by Ben Conrad & Lucas Connolly plus guest host Andrew Collin: Cranky Pants Comedy Hour

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($29): The only FringeNYC show to ever include a barbershop quartet singing about alcohol and three rounds for each audience member (for my full review, please click here) is now playing as a perfect show for a date every Friday & Saturday night at the West Village's Soho Playhouse (15 Vandam Street, in the downstairs Huron Club): The Imbible: A Spirited History of Drinking

8:00 pm ($10): Two PIT upstairs theatre improv groups making up a musical on the spot: Vern and Royals

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Stand-up, sketches, and music for this variety show at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre: Take It Or Leave It

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($10): Before this Magnet show, audience members may anonymously submit written confessions, secrets, rants, advice and opinions which will be used onstage by the improvisors—who include such talents as Laura Grey (stellar old-time radio style theatrical podcast Horrorgasm, improv troupe Salmon Diane, sketch/improv duo Klepper & Grey): The Friday Night Sh*w

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($10): Cipha Sounds (Hot 97, Chappelle's Show) thought it would be cool if a hip-hop star told tales and then improvisors made up scenes based on them. This monthly show is the result, with a "secret" music celebrity "mesmerizing the crowd with amazing stories and linguistic darts to spark the creativity of some of the best improvisers in NYC," the latter being Anthony Atamanuik, Neil Casey, Natasha Rothwell, Brandon Gardner, Lydia Hensler, Christian Capozzoli, Abra Tabak, and/or Shaun Diston at the UCB East theatre: Take It Personal: The Hip-Hip Improv Show

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Larry Murphy (brilliant voiceover actor for FOX's Bob's Burgers, Comedy Central's Ugly Americans, Adult Swim's Assy McGee and Home Movies, and numerous other shows; co-host of Myrtle Comedy), Gary Vider (hilarious deadpan stand-up; for great Conan O'Brien set, please click here; for more jokes, please click here), Andrew Schulz (MTV's Guy Code, Girl Code, Failosophy), Subhah Agarwal (PBS' Modern Comedian), Andrew Short, Scotland Green, and Danny Jolles performing stand-up at this free weekly show at Brooklyn's The Cobra Club (6 Wyckoff Avenue) hosted by Erik Bergstrom, Ben Kronberg, and/or John F. O'Donnell: Live From Outer Space

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): In this unique variety show, "a bunch of daring comics get ballsy as each does something on stage he or she has never done but has always wanted to" at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Peter Michael Marino (creator of the SoloCom Festival) and the brilliant & lovely Amanda Duarte (host of Dead Darlings; young): Cojones

[TOP PICK] [$] 9:30 pm ($25): A top-notch theatrical troupe that's equally fine at compelling acting and split-second comedy uses actual material on the Web, performed verbatim, to craft laugh-out-loud scenes. This 15th edition of the series (begun in 2011) focuses on the old-timey Internet (pre-Craigslist) at the LES' 21-A Clinton Street: Blogologues: The Land Before Timelines

9:30 pm ($10): Two PIT upstairs theatre improv groups making up a musical on the spot. Dagger includes Abby Holland (VH1's Best Night Ever, musical improv groups Aquarius and Veal), and Hello includes Lorraine Cink (especially lovely singing voice; host & writer of Marvel Comics' The Watcher): Dagger and Hello

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] 10:00 pm ($12.50 at the door using discount code COLD; no min.): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds and very finest stand-ups in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Chris Distefano (David Letterman, Comedy Central, MTV2's Guy Code), and Monroe Martin (finalist on this season's Last Comic Standing) performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Judah Friedlander, Todd Barry, Sean Patton, Rachel Feinstein, and More

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($10): Singing improvisors at The Magnet using an interview with an audience member to craft The Made-Up Musical

[FREE] 10:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Neruda Williams...who will be celebrating the birthday of at least one of these comics with cake and beer: The Happy Happy Birthday Show

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): Superb improvisors Craig Rowin, Matt Fisher, Sue Galloway, Dan Klein, Brian Faas, Matt Moses, and/or Conner O'Malley—who this year defeated The Stepfathers and thoroughly crushed another troupe at Cage Match before losing by a single vote—make up scenes about an audience member's legal dispute at the UCB Chelsea theatre: The Law Firm: Law & Disorder

10:30 pm ($10): Brooke Van Poppelen (co-host of TruTV's Hack My Life; writer and/or producer for a slew of MTV shows; also performed on HBO, Comedy Central, VH1; co-host of Dive Comedy), James Davis (Real Husbands of Hollywood), and more performing stand-up, sketch, storytelling, or improv at UCB East hosted by Brandon Scott Jones, D'Arcy Carden, Justin Tyler, Kelly Hudson, and/or Alden Ford: Gentrify

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($8): A unique musical improv show in which scenes explode into popular songs with with tunes you know but entirely made up lyrics. Instead of an improv pianist, this show uses a DJ spinning karaoke tracks at The PIT upstairs theatre: Happy Karaoke Fun Time!

11:00 pm ($10): A young improv group performs at The PIT downstairs lounge: Tickle Party

11:30 pm ($7): Sharp comics Justin Peters & Kelly Buttermore host a Thanksgiving-themed show mixing sketch, storytelling, and improv at The Magnet theatre: A Very From Justin to Kelly Thanksgiving

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] Midnight ($7.25 online using discount code COLD; no min.): Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Jen Kirkman (HBO, VH1, Chelsea Lately, After Lately, Craig Ferguson, staff writer for NBC's Perfect Couples, author or I Can Barely Take Care of Myself), Seth Herzog (long-time staff comic for Jimmy Fallon; co-host of Nat Geo's Duck Quakes Don't Echo; 30 Rock, Comedy Central, CBS, VH1; host of Sweet), Chris Distefano (David Letterman, Comedy Central, MTV2's Guy Code), Crystian Ramirez, and Ry Doon performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Sean Patton, Jen Kirkman, Seth Herzog, and More

Midnight ($5): David Hill (Grantland) and Nate Dern (News Editor for Funny or Die; improv group What I Did For Love) are guests on this "live monthly comedy game show in which three contestants participate in a battle of wits and knowledge for the chance to win a grand prize of 20 American dollars" at UCB East hosted by Ryan Simmons: Everyone's Favorite Game Show

Friday Open Mics & Jams

5:00 pm ($5): Two-hour open-mic for 20 stand-ups performing for 5 minutes each, with sign-up online here, at the Stand Up NY Comedy Club (236 West 78th Street): Stand Up NY Open Mic

5:45 pm (no cover, 1 drink min. for both comics and audience members): Open mic stand-up providing 5-7 minutes per comic, running 1 hour. Arrive 30 minutes before the show to get on the signup sheet. This is a fine opportunity to perform at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club Open Mic

[FREE] 6:00 pm: An open-mic show on a lottery system (sign-ups happen at 5:45-6:00 pm) at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City with host Eli Sairs: The Orphanage

[ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): PIT musical improv veterans mix with musical improv novices on-stage at the upstairs theatre for Pitch

[ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): PIT improv veterans mix with improv novices on-stage at the downstairs lounge for Happy Hour

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Open-mic stand-up, with 3 minutes per comic (unless not many folks show up, in which case there'll be more time), with names drawn out of a bucket at UCB East in the bar area ("Hot Chicks Room") hosted by Sarah Tollemache and/or Paul Oddo: The Friday Night Hot Chicks Open Mic

[FREE] 8:00 pm: An open-mic show that's first come, first serve, with each comic getting 5 minutes on stage at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City: Mic and Cheese

[TOP PICK] Midnight ($5): "The Great Keatoni, master wizard of the occult and former magician to the stars, is pleased to host an open mic for all magicians, big and smaller than big. Whether you're David Blaine or not David Blaine, if you put your name in the magical top hat and buy a magical drink, you'll get 3 minutes to perform your magic in front of your magical peers, maybe even David Blaine" at the UCB Chelsea theatre: The Great Keatoni's Magical Open Mic

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$15)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

NYC Comedy Picks for Saturday 11/22/14

TV Alert: Cameron Diaz hosts Saturday Night Live at 11:29 pm on NBC

Always creative Jo Firestone hosts a free art installation in which you beat stuffed animals with bats in Brooklyn: Beat It;
the great Sean Patton performs stand-up at 8:00, 10:00, and midnight at The Stand

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight
(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 1:00 pm-4:00 pm (pop in anytime during these 3 hours): The eternally creative Jo Firestone (rising star; Punderdome 3000, host of The Incredible Game Show Showcase) puts on an interactive art installation "where viewers are invited to take foam bats and let out their pre-Thanksgiving aggression on over-sized stuffed animals, piñatas, and other large objects suspended mid-air. Throughout the exhibit hours, there will be special events, including a self-defense workshop taught by Laurel Leckert and an ongoing DJ set by DJ Forcemeat" at Brooklyn's Littlefield (622 Degraw Street): Beat It

[$] 6:00 pm ($20): Ted Greenberg (Emmy-winning David Letterman writer) performing a fun, fast-paced theatrical comedy show—complete with audience interaction and audience rides home!—at The Complete Performer

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 7:00 pm & 9:00 pm & 11:00 pm (FREE TICKETS if you reserve in advance by calling (212) 260-2445 and mention HyReviews.com, but there's still a 2-drink min. per person): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo (possibly 9:00 pm only), Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Eliot Chang (Chelsea Lately), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

7:00 pm ($10): A sketch comedy group promises to provide you with an insider's look at topics ranging from male strippers to Superman's dating habits at The PIT downstairs lounge improv: Backstage Pass

7:00 pm ($10): Political activists and pundits mix with comics at this political comedy show that makes fun of the news at The PIT downstairs lounge: Electoral Dysfunction

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Improvisors make up scenes revolving around their heroes at The Creek's upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Nicholas Feitel: The Hero Show

[$] 7:00 pm, 7:15 pm, 8:45 pm, 9:15 pm, 10:30 pm, 11:15 pm, and 12:15 am ($20-$24 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): No notable scheduled headliners tonight beyond Dave Attell at the 12:15 am show, but there's always the chance for celebrity drop-ins, with four of the shows at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane), and the 7:15, 9:15, and 11:15 shows at Village Underground (130 West 3rd Street, off Sixth Avenue): Comedy Cellar Saturday

7:30 pm ($10): Improv powerhouses Charlie Todd, Jim Santangeli, Natasha Rothwell, and more at UCB Chelsea interview an audience member about where he or she grew up and then "turn that town's tourist attractions, landmarks, hangouts, local celebrities, urban legends, and more into a hilarious show made up on the spot:" The Curfew: Not From Around Here

7:30 pm ($10): Sharp Magnet improvisors "perform organic freeform improvisation in two mind-blowing parts; the only rule is that there are no rules:" The Weave

[$] 7:30 pm & 10:00 pm ($31.25 & 2-drink min.): A multi-talented improv, sketch, and stand-up comic who's a long-time comedy partner of Kristin Schaal, and has performed on Jimmy Fallon, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central, Bob's Burgers, and Chelsea Lately headlines tonight and Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Kurt Braunohler

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] 8:00 pm ($12.50 online using discount code COLD; no min.): Uniformly strong lineup of Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Russ Meneve (Conan O'Brien, Jay Leno), Marina Franklin (Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Chappelle's Show, VH1), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC), Christian Finnegan (Conan O'Brien, co-star of TBS' Are We There Yet?; three Comedy Central specials; MSNBC, VH1's Best Week Ever, Chappelle's Show, The Today Show), Michelle Buteau (FOX's Enlisted, Comedy Central, Last Comic Standing, Craig Ferguson, VH1's Best Week Ever, @midnight), performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Sean Patton, Russ Meneve, Marine Franklin, Big Jay Oakerson, Christian Finnegan, and Michelle Buteau

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($29): The only FringeNYC show to ever include a barbershop quartet singing about alcohol and three rounds for each audience member (for my full review, please click here) is now playing as a perfect show for a date every Friday & Saturday night at the West Village's Soho Playhouse (15 Vandam Street, in the downstairs Huron Club): The Imbible: A Spirited History of Drinking

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10): Improv groups Big Black Car (which includes Chris Grace, Nate Starkey, and Ashley Ward) and The Baldwins (which includes Micah Sherman Brigid Boyle, and Sarah Nowak) make stuff up at The PIT upstairs theatre: Big Black Car and The Baldwins

8:00 pm ($10): A freestyle rapping long-form improv troupe takes the stage for nearly an hour at The PIT downstairs lounge: North Coast

[FREE—plus FREE BEER!] 8:00 pm: Politically incorrect stand-ups compete in this unique show for which each comic performs a set and then has to provide biting commentary on a popular online video. The audience then votes on who was the most savagely funny and has won the right to return the following month. It all happens at The Creek's upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Mike Feeney: On the Offensive

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($10): Improv group Airwolf—which includes such talents as Molly Lloyd, Tim Martin, Achilles Stamatelaky, John Frusciante, and Emily Axford, and in 2012 crushed 15 improv groups in a row at Cage Match, entirely owns the UCB East stage tonight at Airwolf: Let's Go Back to Your Place

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($10): One of the gutsiest and most hilarious troupes in comedy history—with honors including being Cage Match Champion for three years in a row, and winning the 2011 ECNY Award for Best Improv Group—UCB Chelsea's genius improvisors Death by Roo Roo

9:00 pm ($10): Magnet improvisors team up with poets at Kiss*Punch*Poem

[TOP PICK] [$] 9:30 pm ($25): A top-notch theatrical troupe that's equally fine at compelling acting and split-second comedy uses actual material on the Web, performed verbatim, to craft laugh-out-loud scenes. This 15th edition of the series (begun in 2011) focuses on the old-timey Internet (pre-Craigslist) at the LES' 21-A Clinton Street: Blogologues: The Land Before Timelines

[TOP PICK] [$] 9:30 pm ($12; SOLD OUT, but see below): A fun, lively musical parody mashup of Wicked and Frozen written & co-starring Zoe Farmingdale & Toby Singer at The PIT upstairs theatre. This is the final performance of the initial run, and is SOLD OUT; but if you arrive early you can get on a standby line for no-show seats or sitting on the steps of the theatre: Wicked Frozen

9:30 pm ($10): Typically disturbing and semi-obscene sketches at The PIT downstairs lounge from troupe FUCT

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] 10:00 pm ($12.50 online using discount code COLD; no min.): Uniformly strong lineup of Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Russ Meneve (Conan O'Brien, Jay Leno), Marina Franklin (Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Chappelle's Show, VH1), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC), Christian Finnegan (Conan O'Brien, co-star of TBS' Are We There Yet?; three Comedy Central specials; MSNBC, VH1's Best Week Ever, Chappelle's Show, The Today Show), Michelle Buteau (FOX's Enlisted, Comedy Central, Last Comic Standing, Craig Ferguson, VH1's Best Week Ever, @midnight), performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Sean Patton, Russ Meneve, Marine Franklin, Big Jay Oakerson, Christian Finnegan, and Michelle Buteau

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($10): Zhubin Parang (writer for The Daily Show), Langan Kingsley (rising star; sketch group Beige, one-woman show The Dicewoman Cometh), Michael Kayne (Baby Wants Candy, Diamond Lion), Aaron Jackson (Fuck That Shit, Newsadoozies), Tracey Wigfield (former writer for 30 Rock), Nate Dern (News Editor for Funny or Die), and more form an ace improv group at UCB East that won last year's prestigious Cage Match championship by springboarding scenes off interviewing an audience member about his or her love life: What I Did For Love

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 10:00 pm: Henry Zebrowski, Ben Kissel, and Marcus Parks of Cave Comedy Radio "explore the dark recesses of humanity, both real and imagined, via short films, clips from favorite features, and audio spookiness" at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre: Last Podcast on the Left Live

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): At UCB Chelsea, improv group Grandma's Ashes—which includes stellar talents Ryan Karels, Morgan Grace Jarrett, Brandon Scott Jones, and more—takes your written secrets and turns them into very funny improv scenes: Grandma's Ashes: We Won't Tell

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): Sharp improvisors Peter McNerney & Nick Kanellis make up scenes at The Magnet as comedy trio Trike

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($5): Jon Bander (What's To Get?, Animated Stories) performs a 30-minute solo show; and then David Carl (brilliantly talented and hilarious rising star character/sketch performer; Point Break Live, Gary Busey's One Man Hamlet) performs 100 Impressions In 30 Minutes, which isn't great as a show because it focuses on technique rather than character humor, but it's a showcase for David's highly impressive skills and charismatic charm (and has the potential to serve as the foundation for something greater that's character-driven), all at The PIT downstairs lounge: The Jon Bander/David Carl Hour

11:00 pm ($10): A mix of sketch and improv revolving around The Hunger Games at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Jay Malsky & Robert Chernow: Live From the Capitol: The 76th Annual Hunger Games Variety Special

[TOP PICK] 11:30 pm ($5): Mike Lawrence (nerd persona but razor-sharp mind has made this stand-up a rapidly rising star; Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Half Hour, John Oliver's NY Stand-Up, comedy album Sadamantium), Sam Morril (Comedy Central), Lucas Connolly, and Alison Agosti share true-life longish funny tales at this UCB East mashup of stand-up and storytelling hosted by Alison Leiby: It's a Long Story

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] Midnight ($7.25 online using discount code COLD; no min.): Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Mike Lawrence (nerd persona but razor-sharp mind has made this stand-up a rapidly rising star; Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Half Hour, John Oliver's NY Stand-Up, comedy album Sadamantium), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC), Derek Gaines, Fahim Anwar, and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Sean Patton, MIke Lawrence, Big Jay Oakerson, and More

Midnight ($5): Sketch groups Boy Girl Boy Girl and Onassis compete for audience laughs and votes at UCB Chelsea hosted by sketch troupe Sidecar: Backyard Brawl

[FREE] Midnight: Stand-up, sketch, and improv at this variety show at Queens LIC's The Creek upstairs theatre: Pinball

Saturday Open Mics and Jams

[FREE] 4:00 pm: An unusually early weekly open mic stand-up show ("starts late enough to sleep off that hangover but ends just in time to begin a new one"), with sign-up at 3:30 pm, at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Raj Sivaraman & Sam Evanshost: The Amateur Hour

[FREE] 5:30 pm: Walk-in open mic comedy show—stand-up, character, or funny story—providing 5 minutes per comic at The Fifth Estate Bar (506 5th Avenue, off 12th Street) hosted by Meghan O'Keefe: Open Mic-hael Douglas

5:30 pm ($5): Walk-in open mic, with sign-up at 5:15 pm and each stand-up performing for 5 minutes, at the Comedy Village Comedy Club (107 MacDougal Street): Comedy Village

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$15)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

NYC Comedy Picks for Sunday 11/23/14

A Saturday Night Live star performs a one-man autobiographical show: The Darrell Hammond Project

Recommendations for the best in New York City comedy tonight
(in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

5:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min.): NYC stand-ups (not announced) sit in the audience and "shout out funny questions, comments, or even noises to the host onstage and to each other whenever they feel like it," effectively becoming their own hecklers, at The Grisly Pear (107 MacDougal Street) hosted by Will Thilly: Noise Factory

[FREE] 6:00 pm: All-gal improv group Pin-Up Squirrels performs and hosts other improv groups at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City: Play Date With the Pin-Up Squirrels

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10) and 9:30 pm [FREE]: UCB Chelsea's signature improv comedy extravaganza, which typically includes superstars in the improv world such as Chris Gethard, and occasionally network TV & movie stars such as Amy Poehler and Horatio Sanz: ASSSSCAT 3000

7:30 pm ($7): Comedy groups Action Park and Stockton perform sketch comedy at The Magnet theatre: Magnet Sketch Teams

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($20): Darrell Hammond performs a one-man show based on his memoir God, If You're Not Up There, I'm F*cked: Tales of Stand-Up, Saturday Night Live, and Other Mind-Altering Mayhem at The PIT upstairs theatre: The Darrell Hammond Project

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10; no min.): Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Gary Gulman (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), Jen Kirkman (HBO, VH1, Chelsea Lately, After Lately, Craig Ferguson, staff writer for NBC's Perfect Couples, author or I Can Barely Take Care of Myself), Pete Lee (Comedy Central Half Hour, Last Comic Standing), Cipha Sounds (Chappelle's Show, MTV, Hot 97), and Mike Vecchione (Jay Leno, Comedy Central Half Hour, Last Comic Standing, Howard Stern) performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Sean Patton, Gary Gulman, Jen Kirkman, and More

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Rich Vos (stand-up star on two seasons of Last Comic Standing and on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn; Comedy Central Presents; Opie & Anthony radio show), Bonnie McFarlane (HBO, David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Nick Vatterott (Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central's The Half Hour, MTV, Second City), Jordan Carlos (MTV's Guy Code, Girl Code, Guy Court, HBO's Girls, Comedy Central's Broad City, VH1, Adult Swim), Harrison Greenbaum (Comedy Central, Mad Magazine), Leah Dubie, and Eli Yudin performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Kara Klenk (Comedy Central, Spike, Nickelodeon): If You Build It

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm, 9:45 pm and 11:30 pm ($14 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight's comics include Mark Normand, Nick Griffin, and Zainab Johnson at the 9:45 show, and Todd Barry, Marina Franklin, Big Jay Oakerson, and Joe List (hosting) at the 11:30 show, with all three shows at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Sunday

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10): Theatrical improvisors make up a complete play on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge: The Improvised Play

8:00 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups Ariel Elias, Filip Jeremic, and Katie Fabel, plus comedic counseling from "Viviana Cortez" (Ali Levin), all at Brit Pack Studios (153 Lafayette Street, 3rd Floor) hosted by Ali Levin: Sunday Sessions

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 9:00 pm (FREE TICKETS if you reserve in advance by calling (212) 260-2445 and mention HyReviews.com, but there's still a 2-drink min. per person): Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX's Louie, HBO's Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, co-star of feature film The Wrestler, star of delightful documentary The Crowd Work Tour), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($7): Sketch/improv duo Upstate—Dustin Drury & Andrew Yurman-Glaser—perform what may be their last show for a while at The Magnet theatre, as Dustin plans to move to California. "Andrew doesn't want him to go, so he's written a show and thinly veiled love letter to Dustin:" Upstate: Please Don't Move to LA

[FREE] 9:00 pm: NYC stand-ups Christi Chiello, Tim Dillon, Adam Palmeter, and Lane Pieschel performing at the East Village's Beauty Bar for this free weekly show hosted by Adam Sokol, Brad Austin, and/or Nate Fridson: Comedy at Beauty Bar

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($10; no min.): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds and very finest stand-ups in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O'Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Esquire Network's Best Bars in America; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Gary Gulman (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Inside Amy Schumer, HBO, The Apprentice, opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Pete Lee (Comedy Central Half Hour, Last Comic Standing), and Derek Gaines performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Judah Friedlander, Sean Patton, Gary Gulman, Rachel Feinstein, and More

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($5): Superb improvisors Katie Hartman, Cathleen Carr, and more make up theatrical scenes at The PIT upstairs theatre: People Improvising

Sunday Open Mics & Open Stages

[FREE] 4:00 pm: An unusually early walk-in open-mic stand-up show (put your name in the bucket at 3:45), providing 3 minutes or more per comic at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens' Long Island City hosted by James Ferrarella: Face-Plant Comedy Open Mic

[ALMOST FREE] 5:00 pm ($1): Sign up at 4:30 pm to do improv with experienced PIT performers at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Sasha Capelli, Eitan Levine, and Shaina Stigler: 10K Jam Jam

6:00 pm ($5): Open-mic stand-up that includes professional feedback on each comic's 5-minute set at Queens LIC's Laughing Devil Comedy Club (4738 Vernon Blvd.): Mic-Shop: Open Mic Workshop

9:30 pm ($3): Open-mic comedy, with 3-5 minutes per walk-in performer who signs up (first come, first serve) at The PIT downstairs lounge, hosted by Will Neville: Amateur Night At The Gemini

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Open-mic show for sketch and character bits running 3-5 minutes at The Magnet hosted by Sebastian Conelli. Everyone who signs up—at 9:45 pm at the box office—is likely to get onstage: Sketch in Progress

[FREE] 10:00 pm: An open-mic stand-up show (sign up is at 9:45 pm) providing 5 minutes for each comic whose name is pulled from the bucket at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens' Long Island City hosted by Christi Chiello: Lance Bass Space Mic

[FREE] 10:00 pm: The only open-stage show for entire groups of improvisors and sketch comics, running weekly at UCB East hosted by Austin Rodrigues: Bring Your Own Team: Improv/Sketch Team Jam

Best Inexpensive Stand-Up, Improv, Sketch, and Storytelling

Upright Citizens Brigade Chelsea
(307 West 26th Street; 150-seater; shows free-$10; one of the most respected comedy theatres in the world)

Upright Citizens Brigade East
(153 East 3rd Street; 99-seat main theatre, bar area for open mics; shows free-$10)

The PIT
(123 East 24th Street; 99-seat upstairs theatre, 40-seat downstairs theatre; shows free-$15)

The Magnet
(254 West 29th Street; 60-seat theatre; shows $5-$10)

The Creek and the Cave
(Queens' Long Island City; 40-seat theatre upstairs, 25 downstairs; virtually all shows free)

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

Comedy Cellar
(117 MacDougal Street; among the finest daily stand-up lineups in the world; 2-item min.)

The Stand
(239 Third Avenue; recent competitor to Comedy Cellar; no drink min.—support this policy!)

Carolines Comedy Club
(1626 Broadway; focuses on the world's top headliners, who perform hour-long sets; 2-drink min.)

Gotham Comedy Club
(208 West 23rd Street; headliners on weekends, specialty & lineup shows weekdays; 2-drink min.)

Eastville Comedy Club
(85 East 4th Street; strong weekend lineups; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Greenwich Village Comedy Club
(99 MacDougal Street; convenient if Comedy Cellar's sold out; no cover using code HyReviews; 2-drink min.)

Comic Strip Live
(1568 Second Avenue, off 81st; Upper East Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Stand Up NY
(236 West 78th Street, off Broadway; Upper West Side club with typically solid lineups; 2-drink min.)

Laughing Devil
(4738 Vernon Blvd., by #7 train; Queens LIC club; free cover Fri-Sat with code LICVIP; 2-drink min.)

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