NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 2/12/13

February 12, 2013

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Amy Schumer’s just-released DVD Mostly Sex Stuff is great. Buy it here.

Todd Barry

Todd Barry performs at ComedyJuice…

Dave Attell

…and Dave Attell performs at Comedy Cellar

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

[TOP PICK] [ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): In this delightful weekly open-mic show, each comic has 3 minutes to try out a character-based bit (e.g., for a solo show, sketch, or audition) at The PIT downstairs lounge, hosted by Jen Kwok (Comedy Central) and 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 downstairs lounge, followed by feedback on your bit from PIT “sketch-perts:” Pens & Pencils

[FREE] 6:30 pm: Open mic for comedy of all types (with sign-up starting at 6:00) at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Chesley Calloway (co-host of renowned Comedy as a Second Language): The Ches Club

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm-Midnight ($7 for the whole evening): In this 5-hour extravaganza, four of The Magnet’s singing improv troupes make up a musical on the spot based on an audience suggestion: Fisticuffs and MInt Condition (at 7:00) and BEEES! and Legend (at 8:30); followed at 10:15 by a free show that lets audience members join in with musical improv troupe Legend to make up stories in song: Magnet Musical Megawatt

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: TV & Broadway stand-up star Colin Quinn performs bits from a show he’s developing for an off-Broadway run that looks at US history “from the Founding Fathers to the Kardashians” at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre: Unconstitutional with Colin Quinn

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Comic book creators (not yet announced) joining 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: Comic Book Club

7:00 pm ($5): The show title pretty much says it all—improvisors make up an action movie on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge: Boom! An Improvised Action Movie

7:30 pm-9:15 pm ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes A Sparrow, Salmon Diane, and The Regulars at this first half of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Nick DiPaolo (star stand-up, with numerous appearances on David Letterman, Jay Leno, Louie; Emmy-nominated comedy writer, talk show host), Hannibal Buress (former staff writer for 30 Rock, Saturday Night Live; David Letterman, Jimmy Fallon, Louie, Gregg Rogell (Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Louie, Comedy Central), Keith Robinson (HBO, Comedy Central, Wanda Sykes Show), Robert Kelly (Louie, Comedy Central, Opie & Anthony), and Jeff Lamp (Jay Leno) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by William Stephenson: Nick DiPaolo, Hannibal Buress, and More

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min.): James Adomian (hilarious, super-charged character comic/impressionist; finalist on most recent Last Comic Standing; Harold and Kumar 2), Adam Cayton-Holland (Conan O’Brien, co-host of Grawlix), Janine Brito (FX’s Totally Biased), Brendan Eyre (The NOC), and Nate Fridson performing stand-up on this week’s theme Final Countdown at Sidewalk NYC (94 Avenue A) produced by Chenoa Estrada, Emily Heller, and George Gordon, and hosted tonight by Emily Heller (Comedy Central; staff writer for Rooftop Comedy; for ruminations on pregnancy, please click here) and George Gordon: The Afterlife: Final Countdown

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by the brilliantly surreal and hilarious Joe Pera, plus Charles Gould and Dan Licata: Dan + Joe + Charles’ Show

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Shannon O’Neill (comedy genius), Morgan Grace Jarrett (wonderful comedic actress), Lydia Hensler (member of red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes), and/or Brandon Scott Jones (top sketch troupe Stone Cold Fox, red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes) host a showcase of female comics (lineup not yet announced, so this month’s “Top Pick” is based on faith of Shannon’s taste…) at the UCB East theatre: Ladies Night: Men Welcome

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): A preview of a play written & co-starring Scott Rogowsky about to run in the Midwinter Madness Short Play Festival: “An unorthodox meditation on Orthodox Judaism, as explored by three old friends who reunite in Israel for the wedding of an estranged classmate” at The PIT downstairs lounge: What the Hell Happened to Henry?

8:00 pm ($5): The Lucas Brothers (Jimmy Fallon), Nick Vatterott (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central’s The Half Hour, MTV, Second City, 2012 Andy Kaufman Award), Giulia Rozzi (Jimmy Kimmel, MTV, VH1, Playgirl Magazine, co-host of Dive comedy and Stripped Stories), Neal Stasny (Meatsteak), and Matt Maragno performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Union Hall for this show hosted by Calvin Cole & Sharron Paul that calls attention to its inexpensive price: Cheap Date

8:00 pm ($8): A house sketch troupe performs at The PIT upstairs theatre: National Scandal

[FREE] 8:30 pm: Typically sharp NYC stand-ups (for an update, please click here) performing at Cake Shop (152 Ludlow Street, between Rivington & Stanton) hosted by Kate Berlant (MTV, CNN, notable hair): Crime & Punishment

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Wyatt Cenac (former star correspondent for The Daily Show, Comedy Central hour-long special, Adult Swim, host of Night Train), Mike Lawrence (nerd persona but razor-sharp mind has made this stand-up a rapidly rising star; Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central’s John Oliver’s NY Stand-Up), Streeter Seidell (Editor-in-Chief of College Humor; Jimmy Kimmel, MTV’s Pranked), and more performing at The Slipper Room (167 Orchard Street) hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Sweet

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Mike Drucker (hilarious stand-up; staff writer for Jimmy Fallon; freelance writer for SNL, The Onion, McSweeney’s), Ilana Glazer (Broad City), Brian Frange (Great American Sketch Show), Charlie Kasov (host of Anecdotal Evidence), and Sachi Ezura (real cool chick) performing stand-up at this weekly show at Brooklyn’s The Alligator Lounge (600 Metropolitan Avenue) hosted by Sean Donnelly, Kevin McCaffrey, Robert Dean, 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 troupes GoodGirl, Rocks, and Guthrie—plus advanced improv students get theatrical and make up on the spot a fully Improvised Play—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): A weekly wild experiment in dark comedy, blending sketch and improv, from brilliant, fearless, and innovative comic Anthony Atamanuik (Death by Roo Roo, 30 Rock, Conan O’Brien, Huffington Post, The Nights of Our Lives). Tonight “Tony is off with his lady in anticipation of Valentines’s Day. In his place will be his fat loser uncle Professor Tony CumClump, who will teach you about the science of love.” Plus there’ll be stand-up from guests Pat Dixon (Comedy Central Presents, FOX, VH1, E!, host of Nearly Naked Lady Comedy Hour), Jeffrey Joseph (Jay Leno, HBO, FOX’s In Living Color, Comedy Central), and Nat Towsen (co-host of The Moon Show), all at UCB East produced by Andy Rocco: The Tony Show: The Shitty Unloved Professor

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($10): “Improvised one-acts in the style of prominent playwrights and genres, spontaneously generating an original and hilarious work of instantly important theater right before your eyes” at The PIT upstairs theatre: The Improvised Play

9:30 pm ($5): A holiday-themed comedy show from sketch troupe Dr. Doctor at The PIT downstairs lounge: A Very Very Dr. Doctor Valentine’s Day Valentine’s Day

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Dave Attell (one of the most respected stand-ups in the biz; star of Showtime’s Dave’s Old Porn and Comedy Central’s Insomniac; HBO, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, The Daily Show, Comedy Central Presents), Gary Gulman (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), Nick Griffin (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents), Greer Barnes (David Letterman, Chappelle Show, For the Love of the Game), Sherrod Small (writer/performer on TBS’ Are We There Yet?, Comedy Central, VH1), Godfrey (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, 30 Rock, VH1; films Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane; 7 Up Yours ads), and Mike Vecchione (Last Comic Standing, Howard Stern) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by William Stephenson: Dave Attell, Gary Gulman, Nick Griffin, and More

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): 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, feature films The Wrestler and Pete Smalls is Dead), Myq Kaplan (one of the quickest minds in comedy, and rapidly rising star; finalist on most recent Last Comic Standing; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents, hit comedy CD Vegan Mind Meld), Chris Distefano (Comedy Central, MTV2′s Guy Code), Jessimae Peluso (Last Comic Standing, Chelsea Lately, TruTV, Tyra Banks), and more performing stand-up at the Gotham Comedy Club hosted by Jared Logan (rising star; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, CNN, TBS): ComedyJuice: Todd Barry, Myq Kaplan, 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 upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Legion of Skanks

[ALMOST FREE] 11:00 pm ($1): 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: Open-mic stand-up at UCB East hosted by Boris Khaykin, John Trowbridge, and/or Katie East: Tuesday Night Open Mic

 From legendary NYC comedy site Brooklyn Vegan: If you want to know what is happening in NYC comedy on a particular day, you gotta get hip to this dude Hy Bender and his site Best New York Comedy. The site is updated daily and features a super exhaustive look at what is happening in the NYC comedy world that particular day. The site is updated religiously…It is your daily comedy itinerary and it scares me how on top of his shit this guy is.

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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Friday 12/28/12

December 28, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

My favorite fast food place, Tuck Shop, got hit hard by Sandy. Please check out its amazing meat & veggie mini-pies; the 68 East 1st Street store is near UCB East and open very late…and is run by a fiery Aussie redhead who’s a delight.

The Reformed Whores and Dave Attell

The Reformed Whores sing at Earworm; star Dave Attell continues his headlining run at Carolines

Reformed Whores and Dave AttellTonight’s recommendations for the best in New York City comedy (in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $) include:

[FREE] 6:00 pm: An open-mic show on a lottery system (sign-ups happen at 5:45-6:00 pm) at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens’ Long Island City with hosts Erin Lennox and Eli Sairs: The Orphanage

7:00 pm ($5): The show title pretty much says it all—improvisors make up an action movie on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge: Boom! An Improvised Action Movie

7:00 pm ($7): A double-bill of Improv at The Magnet from troupes Orange Augustus and Honey

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($5): The talented storytellers of HelloGiggles.com share tales about “the glorious wonder years of their lives, however short or long that may happen to be” at UCB East, with tonight’s yarn-spinners Anthony Atamanuik (30 Rock, The Nights of Our Lives, Death by Roo Roo), Anna Roisman, Sean Morrow, Deanna Raphael, and Keith Haskel: HelloGiggles: The Wonder Years

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Stone Cold Fox is the only sketch troupe (vs. improv troupe) to ever be honored with an ongoing spot on the prestigious UCB Chelsea weekend schedule. It’s earned this slot because its cast is one of the finest in comedy, with each performer strong enough for potential stardom. I haven’t yet seen this latest all-new sketch show, but am hoping the writing lives up to the on-stage talent: Cold Fox: All Keyed Up

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($20): Storytellers Cammi Climaco (co-host of Ask Me Stories, host of Six by Six), Brad Lawrence (Moth GrandSlam Champion), Peter Aguero (Conan O’Brien, Moth GrandSlam Champion, The BTK Band), and Rosey LaRouge paired with burlesque performers Iris Explosion, Boo Bess, Legs Benedict, and The Kraken Miss Mary Cyn at The PIT upstairs theatre: Bare

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($42 plus 2-drink min.): The creator & star of Showtime’s Dave’s Old Porn and Comedy Central’s Insomniac, has also performed on HBO, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, The Daily Show, and his own Comedy Central Presents special, and is one of the most respected stand-ups in the biz, headlining tonight through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Dave Attell

8:00 pm ($5): Freestyle rapping long-form improv troupe North Coast clobbered some of the best improv groups in NYC earlier this year at UCBT’s Cage Match. Tonight come see it perform without the pressure of competition at The PIT upstairs theatre, and also catch an improv group that includes Keisha Zollar (Doppelganger): North Coast and Nobody’s Token

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Stand-up, sketch, videos, and more at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre with Jeffrey Joseph and hosts Ron Krasnow & Joel Walkowski: The Short Bus

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm ($20 plus 2-drink min.): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Nate Bargatze (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central Presents), Joe Matarese (David Letterman, Chelsea Lately, Comedy Central Presents, Bravo, IFC), and Adrienne Iapalucci (Last Comic Standing, VH1) performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Janeane Garofalo, Jay Oakerson, Nate Bargatze, and More

8:30 pm ($7): Five veteran improvisors make stuff up at The Magnet as troupe Lead McEnroe

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($10): Some of the finest improv in NYC from comedy geniuses Chris Gethard and Shannon O’Neill, plus stellar comics Silvija Ozols, Zach Woods, Michael Delaney, Will Hines, and Connor Ratliff, performing at UCB Chelsea—the all-star members of The Stepfathers

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($10): A gathering of comedic musicians, who tonight include the delightful Reformed Whores (raunchy comedic singing duo Marie Cecile Anderson & Katy Frame; new album Ladies Don’t Spit), Shaina Taub, and Matt Dennie & Josh Sharp performing at UCB East hosted by superb musical group Summer and Eve: Earworm Funny Music Party Show

9:00 pm ($8): At this PIT downstairs lounge double-bill, Dan Hodapp & Natasha Rothwell “bring more than five years of improv collaboration to stage for an evening of bold, committed characters and probably a fart joke for good measure” as Hodapp & Rothwell, and then all-gal improvisors Alexis Saarela, Brigid Boyle, Elizabeth Findlay, and Ashley Ward perform as troupe Taco Supreme

9:30 pm ($10): A comedy group that makes up a musical on the spot at The PIT upstairs theatre after a friendly greeting: Hello

10:00 pm ($7): Singing improvisors at The Magnet—tonight including special guest Giulia Rozzi—using an interview with an audience member to craft The Made-Up Musical

10:00 pm ($5): Stand-up, sketch, storytelling, maybe juggling—it’s an “anything can happen” variety show at The PIT downstairs lounge, with regulars Amber Nelson, Molly Austin, Mike Brown, Shamikah Martinez, and Shak Standley, plus tonight’s guests Dan Crossley and Team Submarine: The Big Pony Show

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Veteran improvisors reunite, new improvisors perform, and then old and new merge to create a one-nigh-only team at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Nick Arret: Old New Borrowed and Blue

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): Fran Gillespie, Jon Gabrus, Sue Galloway, Matt Fisher, Craig Rowin, Nate Lang, and other superb improvisors at UCB Chelsea making up scenes about an audience member’s legal dispute: The Law Firm: Law & Disorder

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:30 pm ($20 plus 2-drink min.): Marina Franklin (developing into one of the finest stand-ups in the country, with an uncommonly gentle, graceful style that’s pure joy; Last Comic Standing, Chappelle’s Show, Craig Ferguson, VH1, Comedy Central’s Premium Blend), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Kurt Metzger (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Ugly Americans), Dante Nero (Comedy Central), and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Marina Franklin, Jay Oakerson, Kurt Metzger, and More

10:30 pm ($5): NYC comics—who tonight include Oren Brimer and Nicole Byer—performing at UCB East hosted by Emily Axford, D’Arcy Carden, Alden Ford, Brandon Scott Jones, and/or Justin Tyler: Gentrify

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($5): I’m not sure he’s in NYC tonight, but one of the finest improvisors alive, Joe Bill (Bassprov, iO, co-founder of the Annoyance Theatre) will either personally spearhead or lead in spirit a breathtakingly brilliant group of improvisors from Chicago and New York who will blow the roof off The PIT downstairs lounge with lightning-quick dark comedy unlike anything else in NYC. The other superb players typically are Doug Stoley (Conan O’Brien, The Scene), Amey Goerlich (Indie Cage Match, Krompf, The Scene), Jodi Lennon (Exit 57, Annoyance Theatre), Jed Resnik (Annoyance Theatre, UCB), Silvija Ozols (The Stepfathers), Betsy Stover (UCB), Ari Voukydis (VH1′s Best Week Ever, UCB), Russ Armstrong (iO Chicago, The Magnet), Micah Sherman (Second City, co-host of The Scene, host of Fun), Rick Andrews (Magnet teacher/performer), and Michael Burton (Act One, The Magnet), all declaring Chica Go-Go

11:00 pm ($8): Improvised scenes based on the “Missed Connections” section of Craigslist at The PIT upstairs theatre: Missed Connections Two-Prov

[TOP PICK] 11:30 pm ($5): 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, sketch/improv duo Klepper & Grey): The Friday Night Sh*w

[TOP PICK] [FREE] Midnight: NYC stand-ups—sometimes stellar ones—pushing boundaries for a show designed for looseness and experimentation at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City with hosts Jacqueline Novak and Chris Laker: Permission to Fail

Midnight ($5): A variety of oddball comedy acts from UCBT talents Kate Riley & Brandon Gulya and more at UCB East hosted by sketch duo Matt Dennie & Josh Sharp: Cool Shit / Weird Shit

[FREE] Midnight: This show might not be much fun for audience members, but it’s an amazing opportunity if you want to perform sketch for free and with almost zero hurdles on the prestigious UCB Chelsea stage. Plus it’s hosted by members of Maude troupe Fambly, typically including such wonderful talents as Nicole Byer and Veronica Osorio: Liquid Courage

[TOP PICK] [$] 12:15 am ($20 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Greer Barnes (David Letterman, Chappelle Show, For the Love of the Game), Andrew Schulz (MTV 2′s Guy Code), Mike Yard (Comedy Central, Def Comedy Jam), John Joseph (Comedy Central), and Sam Morril performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Ardie Fuqua: Big Jay Oakerson, Greer Barnes, and More

From legendary NYC comedy site Brooklyn Vegan: If you want to know what is happening in NYC comedy on a particular day, you gotta get hip to this dude Hy Bender and his site Best New York Comedy. The site is updated daily and features a super exhaustive look at what is happening in the NYC comedy world that particular day. The site is updated religiously…It is your daily comedy itinerary and it scares me how on top of his shit this guy is.

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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Thursday 11/22/12

November 22, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! And yes, even today you can find places to laugh…

Drew Fraser and Dave Attell

…Drew Fraser headlines at Carolines, and Dave Attell performs at the Comedy Cellar

Most comedy venues are closed tonight, but The Creek and a few stand-up clubs are happy to welcome you and your laughs (listed in chronological order, with top picks noted and shows over $10 marked with $):

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 5:00 pm: Thanksgiving with friends—including comedy phenom Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central, VH1, feature film Wifed Out) plus members of Sean’s family, and other comics TBD, telling jokes and serving turkey & pie at The Creek’s upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Rebecca A. Trent: Thanksgiving at The Creek

[$] 7:30 pm ($22 & 2-drink min.): A stand-up who starred in a Comedy Central Presents half-hour special, co-hosted P. Diddy’s Bad Boys of Comedy, and has appeared on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam and BET’s Comic View who’s been a regular on Opie & Anthony and performed his own HBO special, I Swear To God, headlining tonight and Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Drew Fraser

[$] 9:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Nick Griffin (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents), Ryan Hamilton (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, Showtime), Andrew Schulz (MTV 2′s Guy Code), Jeff Lamp (Jay Leno), Mike Yard (Comedy Central, Def Comedy Jam), Modi (Comedy Central), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Nick Griffin and Ryan Hamilton

[$] 9:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Rob Cantrell (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, VHI, documentary Metaphysical Graffiti, High Times), Ryan Hamilton (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, Showtime), Maddog Mattern (to see Maddog handle a heckler, please click here), and more performing at the Stand Up New York Comedy Club (236 West 78th Street): Rob Cantrell, Ryan Hamilton, and Maddog Mattern

[$] [DISCOUNTED] 9:30 pm (no cover if you mention code HyReviews.com, but 2-drink min.): NYC stand-ups (not announced, but typically a mix between downtown & club comics) at the Greenwich Village Comedy Club (99 MacDougal Street): Stand-Up in the West Village

[TOP PICK] [$] 11:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Dave Attell (star of Comedy Central’s Insomniac with Dave Attell, David Letterman), Jena Friedman (wry dark comedy stand-up and rising star; producer for The Daily Show, former staff writer for David Letterman, host of Entertaining the Bartender), Kurt Metzger (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Ugly Americans), Jermaine Fowler (FOX’s new In Living Color, MTV, Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show), Chris Distefano (Comedy Central, MTV2′s Guy Code), Ardie Fuqua (HBO, Comedy Central), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Dave Attell and Jena Friedman

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 5/8/12

May 8, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

For the Joke of the Week, please click here.

Tom Cavanagh and Kristen Schaal

TV & movie stars Tom Cavanagh and Kristen Schaal are at Sweet…

Dave Attell

…and Dave Attell headlines at ComedyJuice

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

[FREE] 6:30 pm: Open mic for comedy of all types (with sign-up starting at 6:00) at Queens LIC’sThe Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Chesley Calloway (co-host of renowned Comedy as a Second Language): The Ches Club

7:00 pm-Midnight ($5): Five full hours of improv at UCB Chelsea for only five bucks—tonight featuring UCBT house troupes GoodGirl, Surfing, The Pox, Creature, The Regulars, and Sandino—and at 11:00 pm advanced improv students perform as duos in Couples Skate—all at Harold Night

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:30 pm: Scott Adsit (30 Rock, genius co-creator of Moral Orel, half of improv superstar duo John and Scott) and Frank Tieri (Space: Punisher) joining super-hosts Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler, and Pete LePage in a lively & hilarious discussion about four-color pop culture atPianos (158 Ludlow Street), with giveaways of comics and gift certificates: Comic Book Club

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5 at the door or $7.63 online): Travis Irvine (Jay Leno, Huffington Post), Brent Sullivan (Comedy Central, It Gets Betterish; for video about crying while reading The Giving Tree, please click here), Sherri Shepherd (The View), and Jermaine Fowler (Comedy Central) performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Union Hall with hosts Sharron Paul (College Humor) and Calvin Cole (TBS) for this show that calls attention to its inexpensive price: Cheap Date

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Saturday Night Live’s Rachel Dratch, Jon Glaser (star of Adult Swim’sDelocated; Conan O’Brien), Leo Allen (former writer for SNS; Comedy Central Presents, Conan O’Brien, HBO’s Funny or Die, director/co-writer of Comedy Central’s Jon Benjamin Has a Van, host of top NYC comedy show Whiplash), and James McNew (Yo La Tengo, Dump) are interviewed about “their earliest creative experiences and the nuances of having a creative career” for a weekly podcast that once a month goes live on the UCB East stage with hosts Andy Beckerman & Mark Bisi: Beginnings

8:00 pm ($5): Cathleen Carr (Two Girls for Five Bucks, Birds, The Scene) and Bob Kulhan (Second City, The Scene) host a show featuring two-person improv teams challenged with separation anxiety—the audience is asked to scramble them and create one-night-only pairings.The established duos participating tonight are Julie Sharbutt & Zhubin Parang, Amey Goerlich & TJ Del Reno, and Cathleen Carr & Bob Kulhan at The PIT downstairs Lounge: Carr Kulhan: Dos Experimento

[FREE] 8:00 pm: This weekly show features “a swarthy selection of fine stand-up comics and mildly entertaining recurring segments” at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre, hosted by Jim Tews & Brendan Eyre: Chest Hair

8:30 pm ($5): In this double-bill, each of two of The Magnet’s singing improv troupes will make up a musical on the spot based on an audience suggestion: BEEES! and Mint Condition

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Tom Cavanagh (wonderful star of NBC’s much-missed show Ed; Royal Pains, Love Monkey), TV & movie star Kristen Schaal (one of the funniest women alive; shining star correspondent on The Daily Show; co-star of HBO’s Flight of the Conchords and NBC’s 30 Rock; Comedy Central Presents half-hour special; star of UK TV series Penelope: Princess of Pets; co-host of Hot Tub Variety; co-author of bestselling book The Sexy Book of Sexy Sex), Will Hines (ace improv troupe The Stepfathers, treasured UCBT comedy instructor & director), Ryan Knighton (blind author from Canada; The New York Times, Esquire, Salon), and more performing at Ella (9 Avenue A) hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, 30 Rock, VH1): Sweet

9:00 pm (no cover, one drink min.): Myq Kaplan (one of the quickest minds in comedy, and rapidly rising star; finalist on most recent Last Comic Standing; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents, hit comedy CD Vegan Mind Meld), Jamie Lee (Last Comic Standing, MTV’s Ridiculousness, VH1), George Gordon, Josh Rabinowitz, and more performing stand-up for this weekly show at Sidewalk NYC (94 Avenue A) with tonight’s host Emily Heller: The Afterlife: The Day the Music Died

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): 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), Gary Gulman (Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), and Larry Bailey performing stand-up at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Chris Grace: Cold Soda Comedy

[FREE] 9:30 pm: Stand-up and sketch at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre, typically hosted by sketch troupes Savage Animal and/or Jerk Practice: Savage Animal

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Stand-up superstar Dave Attell (newest show is Showtime’s Dave’s Old P@rn), Joe Matarese (Comedy Central Presents, Chelsea Lately, podcastFixing Joe), Ryan Hamilton (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Showtime), Dean Edwards (SNL, Carson Daly, VH1), and more performing at the Gotham Comedy Club hosted by Jared Freid: ComedyJuice

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($5): A weekly wild experiment in dark comedy, blending sketch and improv, from two of the most brilliant, fearless, and innovative comics in the biz, John Gemberling (Death by Roo Roo, Adult Swim, Comedy Central) and Anthony Atamanuik (Death by Roo Roo, 30 Rock, Conan O’Brien, Huffington Post, The Nights of Our Lives) at UCB East with tonight’s guests Todd Bieber (razor-sharp Director of Content and Production for UCB Comedy; Commercial Interruption,Animated Stories), Nikki Glaser (Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, podcast You Had to Be There), and Ratnesh Dubey: The Tony and Johnny Show

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

[FREE] 11:00 pm: 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] 11:30 pm: Open-mic stand-up at UCB East hosted by Boris Khaykin, John Trowbridge, and/or Katie East: Tuesday Night Open Mic

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 12/28/10

December 28, 2010

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

Blizzard at NYC's Bryant Park

I know, I know; but there are warm, dry, funny shows tonight, including...

Dave Attell and Eliza Skinner

...superstar stand-up Dave Attell headlining at Carolines, and phenom improvisor Eliza Skinner at "Skinner Alive!"

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

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Muscial improv genius Eliza Skinner (who’s won the ECNY Award for Best Improv twice, has won multiple FringeNYC awards, and is a star member of Baby Wants  Candy) will make up songs on the spot along with “special guests” and invaluable improv pianist Frank Spitznagel in Skinner Alive!

7:00 pm ($5): Over a dozen female improvisors—including this year’s surprise hit Doppelganger—making up scenes at Girls Gone Funny

7:00 pm ($5): Jenny Dunne and Rick Andrews improvise a single moment in two characters’ lives again and again, exploring three parallel realities, and the difference that a look or tone can make; and Willy Appelman, Tom Costello, Ben Furnas, David Ross, and Ross Taylor make stuff up, in the double-bill The Cascade and Thunderbirds 4Life

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($42 & 2-drink min.): A stand-up comedy superstar headlining through Thursday at Carolines: Dave Attell

8:00 pm to Midnight ($5): Four full hours of improv for only five bucks—tonight featuring UCBT house troupes Sandino, Badman, Robber Baron, DeCoster, and Monstro; and at 11:00 pm, a gala end-of-the-year improv jam open to everyone and hosted by Badman—all at Harold Night

8:00 pm ($5): Rob Paravonian (guitar-playing stand-up; for his wonderful YouTube hit, please clickhere), sketch troupe The Fools, and musical guests Mike Doughty (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien; formerly of band Soul Coughing; solo album Sad Man Happy Man), Eden & John’s East River String Band (old-time country-folk blues), and CatCatCat (alt rock) performing in the Lolita Bar at Liam McEneaney’s Tell Your Friends

8:00 pm ($10): The worlds of “magic, mind-reading, and mutilation” are explored by Matthew Holtzclaw and Prakash Puru in Strange Things

8:15 pm ($5—with FREE PIZZA!): Kurt Braunohler (Comedy Central; co-creator & co-star of UK TV series Penelope: Princess of Pets; co-host with Kristen Schaal of Hot Tub Variety), Matt McCarthy (Comedy Central, AMC, Verizon FIOS guy, Front Page Films, The Other Guys, comedy CD Come Clean), and contortionist Amazing Amy performing at the Magnet Theatre for Adam Lerman’s and Willy Appleman’s variety show Deep Traffic

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Kurt Braunohler (Comedy Central; co-creator & co-star of UK TV seriesPenelope: Princess of Pets; co-host with Kristen Schaal of Hot Tub Variety), Roger Hailes (Chappelle’s Show, VH1), and weather-condition-dependent surprises performing at Ella (9 Avenue A) hosted by the wonderful Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Sweet

9:30 pm ($10): The PIT house comics tell tales about “Hating the Holidays” at the comedic storytelling show Campfire Stories

[FREE] 11:00 pm: A breathtaking 40 comics are given 2 minutes each in this rapid-fire open-mic stand-up show hosted with wit and energy by Jay Welch: Bring It

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

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Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Sunday 12/27/09

December 27, 2009

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

Stand-up superstar Dave Attell headlines tonight through Wednesday at Carolines

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

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10) and 9:30 pm [FREE]: UCBT’s signature improv comedy extravaganza, which typically includes stars in the improv world, and sometimes even TV & movie stars such as Amy Poehler and Horatio Sanz: ASSSCAT 3000

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($42 & 2-item min.): A stand-up comedy superstar headlining through Wednesday (with Amy Schumer) at Carolines: Dave Attell

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Jessimae Peluso (The Tyra Banks Show, TruTV), Yamaneika (BET), and Adam Lehman (Here! TV’s Hot Gay Comics) performing stand-up at a free weekly gay-themed show at Therapy hosted by Brad Loekle: Electro Shock Therapy Comedy Hour

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Wednesday 7/29/09

July 29, 2009

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

Dave Attell heads an all-star group of hilarious stand-ups tonight at ComedyJuice

Dave Attell heads an all-star group of hilarious stand-ups tonight at ComedyJuice

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

[FREE] six free hours of improvisation in The PIT’s Super Free Wednesday (6:00 pm-midnight),

[TOP PICK] brilliantly funny character actress Kate McKinnon (co-star of Logo’s Big Gay Sketch Show) debuting her exciting new one-woman show about the entertainment biz (Five women, One f*cked up industry), plus a comedic play with music, dancing, and fisting from Mary Elizabeth Ellis & Artemis Pebdani, in the double-bill Kate McKinnon: Best Actress and Mother May I Dance with Mary Jane’s Fist? (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] [$] John Oliver (stand-up comedy genius and star correspondent of The Daily Show), Wyatt Cenac (correspondent for The Daily Show, cast member of upcoming HBO Kanye West show), Pete Holmes (one of the very best stand-ups in the country; warm-up comic for The Daily Show; Comedy Central,VH1′s Best Week Ever, The New Yorker, co-host of hit show Punch Up Your Life), and JR Havlan (five-time Emmy Award-winning staff writer of The Daily Show) performing stand-up with Co-Executive Producer of The Daily Show Rory Albanese at The Daily Show and Friends (8:00 pm),

[FREE] sharp NYC comics Pat O’Shea, Lisa Kaplan, Joe Pontillo, Joel Stice, Mangina, and Lisa Haim at a free weekly show hosted by Sharon “Mama” Spell: Shrink (8:00 pm),

[FREE] Hannibal Burress (Comedy Central, Craig Ferguson, concert film The Awkward Kings of Comedy), Jesse Popp (Comedy Central, Beauty Bar Comedy), Greg Barris (Heart of Darkness, MTV’s All That Rocks), and Bob Powers (author of new humor book The Terrible, Horrible, Temp-to-Perm Debacle) at a free weekly Brooklyn extravaganza hosted tonight by Gabe Liedman and Max Silvestri: Big Terrific (8:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] a show featuring rejected material and the associated tales of woe from top writers and comedic performers—who tonight include Margot Leitman, Will Leitch, Eliot Glazer, and Andy Ross—at Jon Friedman’s The Rejection Show (9:30 pm),

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] a not-to-be-missed monthly event, this powerhouse showcase for star stand-ups at the elegant Comix Comedy Club tonight features Dave Attell (comedy superstar; Comedy Central’s Insomniac with Dave Attell, Comedy Central Presents; multiple appearances on David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Howard Stern, Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn), Pete Holmes (one of the very best stand-ups in the country; warm-up comic for The Daily Show; Comedy Central, VH1′s Best Week Ever, The New Yorker, co-host of hit show Punch Up Your Life), Christian Finnegan (three Comedy Central specials, commentator on MNBC’s Countdown with Keith Oberman and VH1′s Best Week Ever; Chappelle’s Show, The Today Show), Godfrey (NBC’s 30 Rock, Comedy Central Presents, VH1; films Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane; 7 Up Yours ads), Jay Larson (Comedy Central, Craig Ferguson), and The Greg Wilson (Comics Unleashed): Dave Attell, Pete Holmes, Christian Finnegan, Godfrey, and More at ComedyJuice (10:00 pm),

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

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

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Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Wednesday 4/29/09

April 29, 2009

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

Dave Attell

Dave Attell

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

[FREE] six free hours of improvisation in The PIT’s Super Free Wednesday (6:00 pm-midnight),

[TOP PICK] new improv duo Peter Gwinn (The Colbert Report) and Thomas Middleditch (genius improv troupes Baby Wants Candy and Improvised Shakespeare), and new stand-up/storytelling/sketch comedy duo Jordan Carlos (The Colbert Report, Comedy Central’s Live at Gotham, VH1′s Best Week Ever) and Dan Ahdoot, (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central) in the double-bill Gwindleditch and Triple S (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] [$] Daily Show star correspondent John Oliver (Comedy Central’s Terrifying Times), world-class hilarious stand-up Pete Holmes (Comedy Central, VH1, The New Yorker), Daily Show producer Adam Lowitt (host of This is It!), and more at this extravaganza created by The  Daily Show’s Co-Executive Producer Rory Albanese: The Daily Show and Friends (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] brilliant comedic singer/songwriter/actor Micah Bucey performing a tour de force series of parodies in the form of mini-musicals for his intimate and joyful monthly show The Gay Agenda (8:00 pm),

[FREE] Mike Drucker (freelance writer for Saturday Night Live and The Onion), Tom McCaffrey (Comedy Central, VH1; recently released his first comedy CD, Lou Diamond Phillips?), Ross Hyzer (23/6.com), Ben Kissel, and Molly Knefel at a free weekly comedy show hosted by Matt Maragno & the luminous Margie Kment: Now We’re Talking (8:00 pm),

[FREE] typically terrific NYC stand-up comics at a free weekly Brooklyn extravaganza hosted by Gabe Liedman, Jenny Slate, and Max Silvestri: Big Terrific (8:00ish pm),

[FREE] superb NYC stand-ups Mike Drucker, Becky Yamamoto, Sean Crespo, Mark Normand, Sue Funke, and Dan Curry at a free show hosted by Sharon “Mama” Spell: Shrink (8:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] some of most razor-sharp and uproariously funny storytellers in the country—tonight including Anthony Atamanuik, Curtis Gwinn, Joe Mande, and Jenny Slate—telling memorable tales of “Illness” at one of the finest shows in NYC, Dave Martin’s The Nights of Our Lives (9:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] a killer lineup of comedy stars—Dave Attel, Judah Friedlander, Rich Vos, Joe DeRosa, Jay Larson, and James Smith—at the NYC debut of a stand-up series that’s been immensely popular in LA and is now making a home at the elegant Comix Comedy Club: ComedyJuice (10:00 pm),

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

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

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Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Friday 4/10/09

April 10, 2009

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

Jim Breuer

Jim Breuer

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

[$] a former cast member of Saturday Night Live who’s also performed a Comedy Central hour-long special, appeared frequently on Conan O’Brien, co-starred in the film Half Baked, and is an acclaimed stand-up comic, headlining tonight and Saturday at the elegant Comix Comedy Club: Jim Breuer (8:00 pm & 10:30 pm),

[TOP PICK] comedy stars Wyatt Cenac (correspondent for The Daily Show) and Paul F. Tompkins (host of VH1′s Best Week Ever, commentator on Countdown with Keith Olbermann) visit Jessica Chaffin & Jamie Denbo playing book authors offering sage advice to Jewish singles at Ronna & Beverly’s All Jew Revue (8:00 pm),

comics experiencing the rush of performing with no clothes on in The Naked Comedy Showcase (8:00 pm),

stand-up comics Brad Loekle (TruTV’s The Smoking Gun Presents, host of The Electro Shock Therapy Comedy Hour), Beth Stelling (Chicago Underground Comedy), Lisa Kaplan (here! TV’s Hot Gay Comics), and more at a gay-themed comedy show hosted by Jenny Rubin: The Back Room (9:00 pm),

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

[TOP PICK] [$] a killer lineup of top national comedy stars at Stand Up NY’s late show, including 30 Rock’s Judah Friedlander, Dave Attell, Ted Alexandro, Jessica Kirson, and Vic Henley: Judah Friedlander and More (10:00 pm),

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

[TOP PICK] a sketch show (with some improv thrown in) that just won its superb stars the 2009 ECNY Award for Best Sketch Comedy Group: Derrick (11:00 pm),

[TOP PICK] [FREE] UCBT’s free monthly open-mic stand-up show, where deliciously odd things tend to happen around 1:30 am, hosted by lightning-quick & hilarious Pete Holmes (Comedy Central, VH1; one of the finest comics in the country) at Gutbucket (12:20ish am),

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

For full details, please visit HyReviews.com.

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