Janeane Garofalo | Best New York Comedy

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 5/7/13

May 7, 2013

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Last week’s Inside Amy Schumer debut included NYC comedy icons Michael Showalter, Ted Alexandro, Sasheer Zamata, and Rob Lathan. Tune in at 10:30 on Comedy Central to see who’ll be on tonight.

J.J. Sedelmaier ( Saturday TV Funhouse, Beavis and Butthead)…

…and rock stars Parquet Courts explain how they got started at “Beginnings”…

…and Janeane Garofalo performs with Dave Hill at “The Tyler and Sagar Show” and with Chris Gethard at “Sweet”

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

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] 6:15 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 Jay Dean and Tynan DeLong: Two Nice Guys Open MIc

7:00 pm ($12 at the door, $13.86 online): Singer/sketch performer/downtown cult figure Tanya O’Debra performs “a serious comedy about loneliness, mental illness, and perception. Holed up in her bedroom for eternity, crazy old Emily Dickinson unsuccessfully woos the object of her affection, a disembodied voice. A pseudo-historical, quasi-biographical psycho-romantic look at the life of America’s most annoying poetess” at at Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place, off First Avenue): Shut Up, Emily Dickinson

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm-Midnight ($7 for the whole evening): In this 5-hour extravaganza, five of The Magnet’s singing & dancing improv troupes make up a musical on the spot based on an audience suggestion: Vulcan and Legend (at 7:00), Mint Condition and Canons (at 8:00), and Aquarius (at 9:00), followed at 10:15 by a free show that lets audience members join in with veteran musical improvisors to make up stories in song: Magnet Musical Megawatt

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Comic book artist Jamal Igle (Molly Danger) 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

[FREE] 7:00 pm: This weekly 2-hour open-mic storytelling show allows each performer a full 8 minutes to tell a compelling and funny tale at Queens LIC’s The Creek downstairs lounge hosted by Jake Hart: The Dump

7:30 pm-9:15 pm ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house teams Big Margaret, Sherlock & Cookies, and GoodGirl at this first half of Harold Night

[$] [DISCOUNTED] 7:30 pm ($7.37 online using code BREAKOUT, plus 2-drink min.) A comic who’s appeared on MTV’s Failosophy, written for The Huffington Post, and stars in a Frat Dude Goes To Web series headlines for one night only at the Carolines Comedy Club, with openers including Mark Normand Mark Normand (hilarious rising star; Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; opens for Amy Schumer; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Alison Leiby (The Onion), and Nora Davis (Russell Simmons Presents The Ruckus): Jared Freid

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Interviews with J.J. Sedelmaier (SNL’s Saturday TV Funhouse, Beavis and Butthead, Harvey Birdman Attorney at Law), Sam Seder (actor/writer/comic; FOX’s Bob’s Burgers, Air America’s The Majority Report), and indie rock stars Parquet Courts about “their earliest creative experiences and the nuances of having a creative career,” plus music from Dan Friel (Thrill Jockey Records), for a weekly podcast that once a month goes live on the UCB East stage with hosts Andy Beckerman & Mark Bisi: Beginnings

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Killer lineup of Amy Schumer (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; star of Comedy Central’s Inside Amy Schumer; Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Last Comic Standing, 30 Rock, great new DVD/CD Amy Schumer: Mostly Sex Stuff), Nick DiPaolo (star stand-up, with numerous appearances on David Letterman, Jay Leno, Louie; Emmy-nominated comedy writer, talk show host), Gary Gulman (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), Gregg Rogell (Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Louie, Comedy Central), Keith Robinson (HBO, Comedy Central, Wanda Sykes Show), and Robert Kelly (Louie, Comedy Central, Opie & Anthony) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Erik Rivera (Jay Leno, MTV): Amy Schumer, Nick DiPaolo, Gary Gulman, and More

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($20): TV & Broadway stand-up star Colin Quinn performs a show he’s been developing for months for this off-Broadway run (through June 3rd) that looks at US history “from the Founding Fathers to the Kardashians” at the Barrow Street Theatre (27 Barrow Street, just one block from the #1 subway’s Christopher Street stop): Colin Quinn: Unconstitutional

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

[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] [FREE] 8:30 pm: TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Dave Hill (one of the most original and hilariously sharp alternative comics in the country; HBO, Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, NPR, The Dave Hill Explosion, bands Valley Lodge and Diamondsnake, champion rapper, author of Tasteful Nudes), Dan Soder (Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), and Seaton Smith (Opie & Anthony Virus Tour) performing stand-up at a new weekly show at the West Village’s Caffe Vivaldi (32 Jones Street, near Bleecker Street & Seventh Avenue) hosted by Tyler Fischer and Sagar Bhatt: The Tyler and Sagar Show

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Chris Gethard (comedy genius; Comedy Central, IFC; star of The Chris Gethard Show; The Stepfathers, The Nights of Our Lives; author of bestseller A Bad Idea I’m About to Do and Weird New York), Mary Mack (does mandolin sing-alongs; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), and Trevor Noah (South African comic; Jay Leno, Chelsea Lately; performing one-man show Born A Crime this month at 45 Below Theater), and more performing at The Slipper Room (167 Orchard Street) hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Sweet

[FREE] 9:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing 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 Namaste, Graceland, and Grammer—plus 16 advanced improv students perform “cool, weird Non-Traditional Harolds ranging from the Silent Movie Harold to the infamous Black Tuesday (Tragic) Harold”—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Brilliantly innovative Anthony Atamanuik (Death by Roo Roo, 30 Rock, Conan O’Brien, The Nights of Our Lives) plays a different character each week working from a loose premise and improvising as he goes along; plus tonight he’s joined by guests Rob Cantrell (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, HBO, VHI, FX’s Totally Biased, documentary Metaphysical Graffiti, High Times), Adam Conover (VH1′s Best Week Ever, College Humor, host of Fresh Out), and John Frusciante (UCBT Artistic Associate, Airwolf) performing stand-up, and producer Andy Rocco, all at the UCB East theatre: The Tony Show

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Four short romantic comedies by Leslie Moniot that pose these fairy tale questions: “What happens when you run into a unicorn…with your car? What do you do when your boyfriend, who happens to be a tooth fairy, is leading a secret life? What if you find out your crush is dating somebody else—and a damn Fairy King won’t stop eavesdropping? What if you’re a little girl and your favorite dolls can suddenly talk..and make out?” It all happens at The PIT downstairs lounge: Enchanted Apple

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Nick Griffin (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents), Keith Alberstadt (David Letterman, VH1, contributor to SNL’s Weekend Update), Greer Barnes (David Letterman, Chappelle’s Show, For the Love of the Game), Dan Soder (Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), Phil Hanley (Craig Ferguson, Comedy Central), and Godfrey (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, 30 Rock, VH1; films Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane; 7 Up Yours ads) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Erik Rivera (Jay Leno, MTV): Judah Friedlander, Nick Griffin, Keith Alberstadt, 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.

3 Comments | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Improv, J.J. Sedelmaier, Janeane Garofalo, New York Comedy, Parquet Courts, Sketch, Stand-Up, TV Funhouse | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Monday 2/18/13

February 18, 2013

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

A traveled host, plus Dave Hill and John Flynn, share their brave tales at the debut at Adventures with Melanie Hamlett…

…Ted Alexandro, Colin Quinn, Judah Friedlander, Rich Vos, Hannibal Buress, Carmen Lynch, Bonnie McFarlane, and more do a benefit for NYC pets at The Stand…

…Janeane Garofalo (a huge pet fan herself) and more at Morrison Motel…

…and Brent Weinbach performs a 45-minute set at both 8:00 and 10:00 for Brooklyn’s Sack Magic

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): Cammi Climaco (co-host of Ask Me Stories) hosts this weekly hour-long open-mic storytelling show, with typically six audience members chosen from a bucket of names getting to tell tales for 6-7 minutes each at The PIT downstairs lounge: Cammi Climaco’s Storytelling Open Mic

6:00 pm ($5 cover for comics, no cover for audience with code HyReviews, plus 1-drink min.): The perfect show for short attention spans—open-mic stand-up with 4 1/2 minutes per set and 20 comics crammed into 2 hours—at the Greenwich Village Comedy Club (99 MacDougal Street) for John Morrison’s Village Motel

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

[FREE] 6:00 pm: An open-mic stand-up show, with 10 comics each performing for 5 minutes, at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Abigoliah Schamaun & Peggy O’Leary: Dicks Open Mic

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($8.71 online, or $7 at the door if it doesn’t sell out in advance…but it probably will): Melanie Hamlett is a Moth Grandslam Champion, co-author of the book Leave the Lipstick, Take the Iguana, and a contributor to Marie Claire Magazine and Nerve.com. She’s also a roving adventurer who tours the globe to find memorable tales. Tonight Melanie debuts her monthly storytelling show at Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place, off First Avenue) with fellow brave souls Dave Hill (one of the most original and hilariously sharp alternative comics in the country; HBO, Comedy Central, MTV, VH1, NPR, The Dave Hill Explosion, bands Valley Lodge and Diamondsnake, champion rapper, author of Tasteful Nudes), John Flynn (rising star storyteller/actor; Saturday Night Live, The Nights of Our Lives, host of storytelling show Oh, Hey Guys!), and Daisy Rosario (NPR, Moth GrandSlam Champion). I’ll be attending this; come join me for travel slides, a campfire vibe, and amazing stories: Adventures with Melanie Hamlett

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Wonderful improvisors—and real life wife & husband—Mary Theresa Archbold and Pat Shay work up a sweat to make you laugh, along with improv troupe Glitter Face, at The PIT downstairs lounge: CardioProv

7:00 pm ($7): Sketch troupe Shelby Company performs oddball bits for this Magnet sketch show show that in the past has included two-timing monsters and presidential ninjas: Ephemerama

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 One and One Bar’s Downstairs Nexus Lounge (76 1st Street, corner of First Avenue) 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] 7:30ish pm ($5): Brooke Van Poppelen (MTV’s Girl Code; trutV, TLC, co-host of Dive Comedy; for stand-up videos about overindulging at 30 and impersonating Morrisey, please click here and here), Aparna Nancherla (delightfully wry stand-up; writer for FX’s Totally Biased), Harrison Greenbaum (writer for Mad Magazine; head writer of Tu Nite con Lorenzo Parro on NBCU/Telemundo; winner of the 2010 Andy Kaufman Award), and Max Silvestri (VH1, The Onion, co-host of Big Terrific) performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Pete’s Candy Store (709 Lorimer Street) hosted by Sabrina Jalees (Last Comic Standing, MTV): Jennifer Laugh Hewitt

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Long sets from two of the finest rising star stand-ups in NYC—each of whom is practicing for a Comedy Central half-hour special to be taped in two weeks—Mike Lawrence (nerd persona but razor-sharp mind has made this comic red-hot; Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central’s John Oliver’s NY Stand-Up) and Nikki Glaser (co-star of MTV’s The Nikki and Sara Show; Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing; podcast You Had to Be There) performing at UCB East hosted by Pete Davidson: Comedy Central Corporate Retreat

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm & 10:00 pm ($5): Brent Weinbach (Conan O’Brien, Comedians of Comedy; 2007 Andy Kaufman Award winner; co-host of The Legacy Music Hour podcast) performs a 45-minute set for two consecutive shows (with openers by show hosts Louis Katz & Grant Gordon, plus “a special guest”) at Brooklyn’s Legion Bar: Sack Magic: Brent Weinbach Headlines

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10): Kevin Allison (legendary MTV sketch series The State, HBO, Comedy Central, VH1, host of award-winning storytelling show Risk!), Damian Bellino (host of My High School Boyfriend Was Gay), Shannon Cason (Do Not Submit), Justin Morgan (stand-up), and musical guest Robin Gelfenbien (host of Yum’s The Word) sharing their tales of passion at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Jefferson: Bare: True Stories of Sex, Desire, and Romance

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($8 at the door or $9.47 online): 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), Desiree Burch (Edinburgh Fringe Festival), Matt Koff (Onion News Network, WitStream), and Josh Gondelman performing stand-up, plus an interview with QuestLove of The Roots, at Brooklyn’s Littlefield (622 Degraw Street) hosted by Wyatt Cenac (former star correspondent for The Daily Show, Comedy Central hour-long special, Adult Swim): Night Train

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($30): A star-packed evening of stand-ups Ted Alexandro, Colin Quinn, Judah Friedlander, Rich Vos, Hannibal Buress, Carmen Lynch, Bonnie McFarlane, and more raising funds for NYC animals at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Sit, Stay, and Stand Up Benefit

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00ish pm: Mike Drucker (hilarious stand-up; staff writer for Jimmy Fallon; freelance writer for SNL, The Onion, McSweeney’s), Joyelle Johnson (opens for Chappelle and Maria Bamford), Sheng Wang (Comedy Central Presents), Ashley Brooke Roberts (co-host of The Dream Show), Andrew Short, and Nate Fridson performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Grand Victory Bar (245 Grand Street) for this twice-a-month extravaganza hosted by Nick Maritato and the razor-sharp & delightful Erin Lennox, who proclaims “This week we have a Grammy!!!! (an old woman we found on the bus and now can’t get rid of):” DTF

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/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), 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), Gary Gulman (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), Keith Alberstadt (David Letterman, VH1, contributor to SNL’s Weekend Update), Greer Barnes (David Letterman, Chappelle Show, For the Love of the Game), and Jermaine Fowler (FOX’s new In Living Color, MTV, Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Ardie Fuqua: Marina Franklin, Tom Papa, Gary Gulman, Keith Alberstadt, and More

8:00 pm ($5): UCBT star & Chris Gethard Show icon Riley Soloner is a sweet and silly comic almost impossible to not like. His character Vacation Jason is over-the-top ridiculous, which means Riley has to walk a tightrope between getting laughs and creating a reality believable enough to make us care about what’s going on. This first attempt at a sketch show falters on the latter; and I’d encourage Riley to be bolder about doing sharp, smart comedy, even with dumb characters, as he moves forward with his young and promising career. But script aside, there are worse ways to spend 30 minutes then watch Riley on stage while you’re wearing a show-supplied Hawaiian lei of flowers around your neck: Vacation Jason’s Island Flavors…

…and in the other half of this UCB Chelsea double-bill, young talents—gay and otherwise—put on a meta-musical spoofing Broadway musicals of the future that’s hit-or-miss, but fun overall:The 2017 Tony Awardz: A Parody of Musical Proportions

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] 8:30 pm ($15 if you mention HyReviews.com [otherwise $20], which includes one drink; calling 212.989.9319 to reserve seats is recommended): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, 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), Emily Heller (Comedy Central, FX’s Totally Biased; staff writer for Rooftop Comedy; for ruminations on pregnancy, please click here), Hari Kondabolu (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central Presents, , FX’s Totally Biased), and Tom Ryan (David Letterman, Bill Maher, Showtime) performing stand-up at the Cornelia Street Cafe for John Morrison’s Morrison Motel

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 9:00 pm: Racing over from UCBT East’s 8:00 pm show, rising stars Mike Lawrence (nerd persona but razor-sharp mind has made this comic red-hot; Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central’s John Oliver’s NY Stand-Up) and Nikki Glaser (co-star of MTV’s The Nikki and Sara Show; Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing; podcast You Had to Be There), plus Shakir Standley, Jordan Ferber, and Neruda Care Bear Williams performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Bar Matchless back room (557 Manhattan Avenue, near the G subway’s Nassau Avenue stop) hosted by Nimesh Patel, Mike Denny, and/or Michael Che: Broken Comedy

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 9:30 pm: In celebration of post-Valentine’s Day, one of the best-known romantic comedies of the past two decades skewered by stand-ups Michelle Wolf, Jared Fried, and more at Queens LIC’s The Creek downstairs lounge with host Robbie Collier: Hey We Live There!: You’ve Got Mail

9:30 pm ($5): Two UCB Chelsea house sketch troupes try out new material: Supereasy (which includes comedy chameleon Livia Scott) and Onassis (which includes such talents as Lauren Adams and Frank Hejl): Maude Night: Supereasy and Onassis

[FREE] 9:30 pm: Following a club format, hosts Nore Davis & Andrew Short perform stand-up throughout for a total of 25 minutes, two comics each perform a 15-minute set, and then a seasoned headliner closes out the show with a 20-minute set, all at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: On the Road

[FREE] 9:30 pm: NYC stand-ups Hilary Schwartz, Joe Rocha, J.F. Harris, Angry Bob, Alex Fosella, and Jason Kantner performing at Brooklyn’s Freddy’s Backroom (627 5th Avenue) with host Pat O’Shea: Ed Sullivan on Acid

9:30 pm ($5): The only open-stage show for entire groups of improvisors and sketch comics, running weekly at UCB East hosted by Austin Rodrigues, Sharon Spell, Anna Callegari, and Sue Smith: Bring Your Own Team: Improv/Sketch Team Jam

[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), Nick Griffin (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Comedy Central Presents), Joe List (HBO, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Dan Soder (Comedy Central, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), Andrew Schulz (MTV2′s Guy Code), and Godfrey (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, 30 Rock, VH1; films Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane; 7 Up Yours ads) performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Ardie Fuqua: Dave Attell, Nick Griffin, Joe List, Dan Soder, and More

10:00 pm ($8): A group of actors and improvisors attempt to duplicate the success of UCBT’s Gravid Water by putting improvisors in the middle of classic theatre scenes at The PIT upstairs theatre. UCBT uses top Broadway and improv talent for its show, making it extraordinary. The participants of this show are unannounced; but the format is so strong that this might work anyway, despite the awful title: The Actor’s Worst Nightmare

10:00 pm ($5): Improv is dominated by guys, so this is a rare treat—a dozen female improvisors “for an evening of comedy that will delight men, women, babies, and kittens” at The Magnet hosted by Megan Gray: We Might Just Kiss

[FREE] 10:30 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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 11:00 pm: Some of the finest comics in the world—who are no longer being announced in advance, but it’s virtually always a great lineup—at UCB Chelsea hosted by someone wonderful: Whiplash

[ALMOST FREE] 11:00 pm ($1): If you’re an audience member who loves stand-up, Monday at 11 should be Whiplash! night (see listing above). If you’re a comic who couldn’t get booked on UCBT’s all-star show, though, you can opt to instead practice your skills at this exceptionally supportive stand-up open-mic at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Jared Reed: Fresh

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Brent Weinbach, Comedy, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Melanie Hamlett, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Sunday 12/16/12

December 16, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Judah Friedlander performs in the West Village at Comedy Cellar…

…but first performs in the East Village with Janeane Garofalo at Eastville

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] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 3:00 pm ($25 [vs. $65] using discount code PENMAS): This isn’t pure comedy, but an enchanting hodgepodge of original tall tales fueled by laughs. The 2-hour play from the wonderful guys of PigPen blends shadow puppetry, songs, inventive staging, and more to create living dreams. For my review of PigPen’s two previous shows at FringeNYC, please click here and here. This newest work is their most ambitious, and that sometimes results in the story feeling too slow or padded; but it also yields a deeper emotional payoff. And even though not all the bits hit the mark, so many of them do that you’re likely to feel satisfied—and missing PigPen’s world after the show is over. The production is at The Gym at Judson (243 Thompson Street) in the West Village: The Old Man and the Moon

[FREE] 4:00 pm: An unusually early walk-in open-mic stand-up show at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Face-Plant Comedy Showcase

[FREE] 6:00 pm: A smorgasbord of of stand-up, comedic music, comedic dance, sketch, and more at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Mishmash Variety Hour (and a Half)

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

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10) and 9:30 pm [FREE]: UCB Chelsea’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

7:30 pm ($5): Improv troupes not affiliated with any comedy school compete at UCB East for audience laughs and votes—and the privilege to go on to perform at the primary Cage Match show at UCB Chelsea—in this show hosted by the delightful Amey Goerlich & R an Karels (Krompf): Indie Cage Match

[FREE] 7:30 pm: Sketch, improv, and more at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City from comedy troupe Froduce

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($14 plus 2-item food/drink min.): TV & Broadway star Colin Quinn, Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Kurt Metzger (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Ugly Americans), Keith Alberstadt (David Letterman,, VH1, contributor to SNL’s Weekend Update,), Jeff Lamp (Jay Leno), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Mike Yard (Comedy Central, Def Comedy Jam): Colin Quinn, Mark Normand, and More

[$] 8:00 pm ($38.25 plus 2-drink minimum): A former Saturday Night Live star, cast member of Showtime’s Weeds, star of his own Comedy Central special, and actor in over two dozen comedy feature films—including Anger Management, Happy Gilmore, The Wedding Singer, Daddy Day Care, Get Smart, and You Don’t Mess With The Zohan—headlining tonight through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Kevin Nealon

8:00 pm ($8): Ora Fruchter & Christopher Scheer put a hand-puppet through improvised therapy at The PIT upstairs theatre: Puppet Therapy

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Sheng Wang (Comedy Central Presents), Maddog Mattern (Sirius Radio, Howard Stern TV; to see Maddog handle a heckler, please click here), Damien Lemon (MTV2′s Guy Code, Comedy Central, The Amazing Spider-Man), and more performing at the Three of Cups lounge (83 First Avenue at 5th Street) hosted by RG Daniels: Sunday Night Stand-Up

8:00 pm ($5): A one-woman show at The Magnet about how “Molly Marjorie Rosenblatt is in New York and her musical theater career isn’t taking off. She doesn’t have a job, but thinks finding a boyfriend will make life easier. Learn how she comes into her own as a broke and unemployed hot mess living in Queens through Facebook stalking, online dating, and adventures in Brooklyn. Told primarily through original songs (music and lyrics by Mallory Schlossberg, arrangements by Joel Esher), and directed by Jen Sanders: Molly Marjorie Rosenblatt Needs A Man

[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): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo (9:00 pm only), Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Phoebe Robinson (TV Guide’s 100 TV Shows To See Before You Die and 25 Biggest Reality Star Blunders, Huffington Post), Brent Sullivan (Comedy Central; for video about crying while reading The Giving Tree, please click here), Mark Chalifoux, and Brian Frange performing stand-up in the East Village’s Beauty Bar for this free weekly show hosted by Adam Sokol, Brad Austin, and/or Nate Fridson: Comedy at the Beauty Bar

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Typically sharp stand-ups (not announced this week) performing at Brooklyn’s Knitting Factory (361 Metropolitan Avenue) typically hosted by the wonderful Hannibal Buress: Comedy Night

9:00 pm ($5): Improv veterans Brandon Gardner, Chelsea Clarke, and Phillip Jackson hosting & performing in a show at UCB East with guest improvisors: Improv Nerds

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): All-gal storytelling show of “true tales with feelings; so many feelings…,” tonight starring Ophira Eisenberg (brilliant storyteller with notable bangs; Comedy Central, VH1, Showtime, host of NPR’s trivia/puzzle show Ask Me Another), Malaika Gordon, and Anita Flores at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Caitlin Brodnick and Lisa Kleinman: Shut Up: An All-Female Storytelling Show

9:30 pm ($5): Magnet sketch comedy teams Jacktown, Risky Bottom, Breakfast for Dinner, and Dispacho try out new material at this show with the on-the-nose title Magnet Sketch Teams

9:30 pm ($1): Open-mic stand-up, with four minutes per comic, at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Molly Austin & Mike Brown: Vicious Cycle

[TOP PICK] [$] 9:45 pm ($14 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Killer line-up of Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds 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, feature films The Wrestler and Pete Smalls is Dead), 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), Louis Katz (Jimmy Fallon, HBO, Comedy Central Presents), Tony Woods (David Letterman), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Todd Barry, Judah Friedlander, Marina Franklin, and More

10:00 pm ($5): 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

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Judah Friedlander, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Thursday 12/13/12

December 13, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Jon Glaser (Delocated)…

…Adira Amram and Janeane Garofalo…

…comedy genius Chris Gethard, and more perform at Arden Myrin’s blowout holiday show: The Party Machine

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] [FREE] 6:00 pm: Michelle Markowirz (Failing Our Twenties) and Zach Dressler guest-host this weekly open-mic storytelling show at UCB East, with each performer given a whopping eight minutes to captivate & impress (while usual host John Flynn entertains Hong Kong): Oh, Hey Guys!

[ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): PIT musical improv troupe Adorable mixes with musical improv novices on-stage at the downstairs lounge for Pitch

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open-mic stand-up with comics’ names drawn from a bucket and each chosen receiving two 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

7:00 pm ($5): Two singing improv troupes make up entire musicals on the spot in this double-bill at The PIT downstairs lounge: Punchbowl and THEM

[$] 7:00 pm ($20): Sue Costello (Last Comic Standing finalist, star of 1998 FOX sitcom Costello) performs a 90-minute one-woman show at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre: Minus 32 Million Words

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

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($5): Sharp improvisors at UCB East—Fran Gillespie, Michael Kayne, Amber Petty, Tim Martin, Ashley Ward, Morgan Phillips, and Winston Noel—making up a musical on the spot (formerly named Diamond Lion): KOSMOS Musical Improv

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($15 at the door or $18.88 in advance online): Arden Myrin (Conan O’Brien, Mad TV, numerous other TV shows & films; for Mad TV samples, please click here and here and here) and Lisa deLarios (Comedy Central) host this delightful monthly mix of stand-up and sketch, with tonight’s holiday blowout featuring TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Chris Gethard (brilliant improvisor and comedic storyteller; star of Comedy Central sitcom Big Lake and Manhattan Cable Access’ The Chris Gethard Show; The Stepfathers, The Nights of Our Lives, author of new bestseller A Bad Idea I’m About to Do and Weird New York), Jon Glaser (star of Adult Swim’s Delocated; long-time writer/performer for Conan O’Brien), Adira Amram (fresh, hilarious rising star singer/songwriter; co-star with Kurt Braunohler of Night of the Living; winner of the 2011 ECNY Award for Best Musical Act), and more performing at Brooklyn’s The Bell House (149 7th Street, between Second and Third Avenues): The Party Machine

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($20): A former roommate & drinking buddy of such comedy giants as David Cross and Marc Maron performs a one-man show that was such a hit at August’s FringeNYC it’s been extended indefinitely. Please read my review by clicking here, and Jason Zinoman’s New York Times review by clicking here; and then come share an intimate hour with Matt Graham at the Soho Playhouse’s downstairs Huron Club so he can explain life and meaning and why This Too Shall Suck

[TOP PICK] 8:00 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

[$] 8:00 pm ($41 plus 2-drink minimum): A former Saturday Night Live star, cast member of Showtime’s Weeds, star of his own Comedy Central special, and actor in over two dozen comedy feature films—including Anger Management, Happy Gilmore, The Wedding Singer, Daddy Day Care, Get Smart, and You Don’t Mess With The Zohan—headlining tonight through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Kevin Nealon

8:00 pm ($5): Two singing improv troupes make up entire musicals on the spot in this double-bill at The PIT downstairs lounge: Hemlock and Dagger

8:00 pm-MIdnight ($7 for the entire evening): The Magnet house troupes Featherweight, Junior Varsity, The Boss, and Hello Laser performing improv for two hours, followed at 10:00 pm by The Narrator (a storyteller tells a tale, based on audience suggestions, which other improvisors then turn into a musical on the spot), and then at 11:00 improv competition Inspirado (like UCBT’s Cage Match, but with a game-like challenge component), tonight featuring a wild three-way battle between Upstate, Brick, and Eaglefox: The Magnet’s Night Out

[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

[$] 8:00 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.) A comic who’s performed on HBO, ABC, NBC, and Comedy Central headlining through Saturday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Mario Cantone

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 9:00ish pm: Terrific NYC stand-ups (the lineup is typically announced around 3:00 pm; for an update, please click here) performing on this free weekly show at the Kabin Bar and Lounge hosted by Chesley Calloway and comedy genius Sean Patton: Comedy as a Second Language

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Joe DeRosa (razor-sharp rising star stand-up; HBO’s Bored to Death and Down and Dirty, Comedy Central Presents, comedy CD The Depression Auction), Carmen Lynch (David Letterman, Last Comic Standing finalist, Comedy Central), Claudia Cogan (Last Comic Standing, MTV, Logo, here! TV), Matt Ruby (MTV; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here, blog Sandpaper Suit), Kunal Arora, and Josh Rabinowitz performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Adam Conover and/or Emily Heller: Fresh Out

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($10): A. J. Daulerio (Editor-in-Chief of Gawker), Abbi Jacobson & Ilana Glazer (Broad City), Jean Grae (rapper/hip-hop producer), and Julianne Smolinski (@boobsradley) performing and sharing insider stories at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Scott R.: Running Late with Scott Rogowsky

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Comedy duo Nick Kocher & Brian McElhaney perform new sketches at UCB Chelsea, as well as host stand-up and improv guests: BriTANicK: The Monthly Mankerthon

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Improvisors make up one-act plays on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge, produced by Dan Hodapp & Micah Sherman: The Scene

[FREE] 10:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (lineup not announced) performing at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Justin Williams: Death Comedy Jam

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:30 pm ($5 & 2-item food/drink min.) Comics heckle a cheesy genre feature film—with tonight’s victim 1962′s KIng Kong Vs. Godzilla—at Queens LIC’s Laughing Devil Comedy Club (4738 Vernon Blvd.): Devil Science Theater 3000

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($5): Two UCBT weekend improv troupes, Grandma’s Ashes and What I Did for Love, compete for audience laughs and votes at UCB Chelsea for the raucous Cage Match

[TOP PICK] 11:00 ($5): 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), Adam Lash (HBO, Showtime, Comedy Central), Jason Salmon (30 Rock, and Mike Recine (Comedy Central) performing stand-up at UCB East as part of the Reddit.com online community, hosted by Nathan Anderson: /r/standup

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Adira Amram, Arden Myrin, Chris Gethard, Comedy, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Jon Glaser, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Friday 10/26/12

October 26, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Janeane Garofalo (above) and Christian Finnegan perform at the Eastville Comedy Club…

…and Paul Mecurio headlines at the Gotham Comedy Club

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] 6:00 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 hosts Erin Lennox and Eli Sairs: The Orphanage

7:00 pm ($5): Improv that flows from moment to moment, with no sweeps or tag outs—”each exit starts a new scene, while performers use devices ranging from monologues to in-scene questions to break into characters and relationships quicker and deeper” at The PIT downstairs lounge from Evan Barden, Tony da Costa, Jenny Dunne, Brian Lisi, and Dan Scivoletti: Scoresby

[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 Nate Dern and Paul Oddo: The Friday Night Hot Chicks Mic

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): UCBT Artistic Director Nate Dern, Zhubin Parang (writer for The Daily Show), Tracey Wigfield (writer for 30 Rock), Michael Kayne (Baby Wants Candy, Diamond Lion), and more perform improv at UCB East springboarding scenes off interviewing an audience member about his or her love life: What I Did For Love

7:30 pm ($10): UCB Chelsea Maude team Onassis performs some of its best bits—and features “a super special guest:” Onassis for the Hour

[FREE] 8:00 pm: NYC stand-ups Matt McCarthy (HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm and Bored to Death, host of AMC’s Action Pack, Comedy Central, hilarious shorts with Pete Holmes for Front Page Films, national TV ads as Verizon FIOS guy, feature film The Other Guys, host of Marking Out), Dante Nero, Warren Holstein, and John F. O’Donnell performing in the East Village’s Beauty Bar for this free weekly show hosted by Josh Carter, Josh Homer, and/or Adam Mamawala: Zebra Cake

8:00 pm ($5): Freestyle rapping long-form improv troupe North Coast clobbered some of the best improv groups in NYC this year at UCBT’s Cage Match. Tonight come see it perform without the pressure of competition at The PIT downstairs lounge, 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

[$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($38.25 & 2-drink min.) A comedy star you either love or actively avoid headlining through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Tom Green

[FREE] 8:00 pm: An open-mic show that’s first come, first serve (sign-ups start at 7:30 pm), with each comic getting five minutes on stage at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens’ Long Island City: Mic and Cheese

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm & 10:30 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.) A former writer and current warm-up act for The Daily Show—who’s also performed on Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Comedy Central, CNN, and MSNBC—headlining tonight and Saturday at the Gotham Comedy Club: Paul Mecurio

[TOP PICK] 8:30 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, top Maude sketch troupe Gramp’s, sketch/improv duo Klepper & Grey): The Friday Night Sh*w

[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): Sharp improvisors at UCB East—Amber Petty, Ashley Ward, Morgan Phillips, Michael Kayne, and Winston Noel—making up a musical on the spot: Diamond Lion

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 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 (9:00 pm only), 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), DC Benny (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($5): Sketch troupe SidViscous performs a brand new and scary show for Halloween at The PIT downstairs lounge: SV Halloween Spooktacular

9:30 pm ($10): A PIT improv troupe making up a musical on the spot after a friendly greeting: Hello

10:00 pm ($7): Singing improvisors at The Magnet using an interview with an audience member to craft The Made-Up Musical

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Long-form improv from troupe CSO at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Casual Sex Offenders

[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

10:30 pm ($5): NYC comics (not announced) performing at UCB East hosted by Emily Axford, D’Arcy Carden, Alden Ford, Brandon Scott Jones, and/or Justin Tyler: Gentrify

[TOP PICK] 11:30 pm ($5): Most of the improv you’ll see in NYC is longform. Tonight at The Magnet the original and still-vibrant short form version will be performed via a variety of quick games played by quick-witted talents: Late Night Party Prov

[TOP PICK] Midnight ($5): Chris Gethard (brilliant improvisor and comedic storyteller; star of Comedy Central sitcom Big Lake and Manhattan Cable Access’ The Chris Gethard Show; The Stepfathers, The Nights of Our Lives, author of new bestseller A Bad Idea I’m About to Do and Weird New York), Ilana Glazer (Broad City), Brandon Scott Jones & D’arcy Carden (Stone Cold Fox, Death Wears Stilettos: A Noir Comedy), Murray Hill, JD Ama to, Joey Price, and more performing a variety of comedy acts at UCB East hosted by sketch duo Matt Dennie & Josh Sharp: Cool Shit / Weird Shit

[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

[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

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Gotham Comedy Club, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, New York Comedy, Paul Mecurio, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 10/13/12

October 13, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Wyatt Cenac headlines one last night at Carolines, and Janeane Garofalo performs at Eastville

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] 1:30 pm-1:00 am ($45 for an all-you-can-see festival pass, or pay-per-show): The next-to-last day of a sketch comedy extravaganza at The PIT theatres: The New York City Sketch Festival

[TOP PICK] [$] 2:00 pm & 8:00 pm ($65): This isn’t pure comedy, but an enchanting hodgepodge of original tall tales fueled by laughs. The 2-hour play from the wonderful guys of PigPen blends shadow puppetry, songs, inventive staging, and more to create living dreams. For my review of PigPen’s two previous shows at FringeNYC, please click here and here. This newest work is their most ambitious, and that sometimes results in the story feeling too slow or padded; but it also yields a deeper emotional payoff. And even though not all the bits hit the mark, so many of them do that you’re likely to feel satisfied—and missing PigPen’s world after the show is over. The production is at The Gym at Judson (243 Thompson Street) through November 26th: The Old Man and the Moon

[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”) at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Jhoel Walkowski & Evan Davis: The Amateur Hour

6:00 pm ($5): Improv troupes Michael Loves Greg, The Bartender, and Pumpkin at The Magnet kicking off your Saturday evening: The Rundown

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: A TV & Broadway stand-up star hones material at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre—for free!: Colin Quinn Tries Stuff Out

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): A comedy quiz show full of heavily researched quirky facts in which comedy contestants get points if their answers are correct but get more points if their answers are “quite interesting” at UCB East created & hosted by Katey Healy-Wurzburg: The Fascinator

7:30 pm ($10): Talented improvisors 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

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($7): “Organic freeform improvisation in two mind-blowing parts; the only rule is that there are no rules” at The Magnet theatre: The Weave

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($27.25 & 2-drink min.) A star correspondent for The Daily Show headlining one last night at the Carolines Comedy Club: Wyatt Cenac

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5 at the door or $7.63 online): Arden Myrin (Conan O’Brien, Mad TV, numerous other TV shows & films; for Mad TV samples, please click here and here and here) and Lisa deLarios (Comedy Central) host this delightful monthly mix of stand-up and sketch, with tonight’s guests Tom Shillue (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, The Daily Show, Comedy Central Presents, 2011 ECNY Award for Best Storyteller), Brooke Van Poppelen (writer for MTV’s Epic Fall; trutV, TLC, co-host of Dive Comedy; for stand-up videos about overindulging at 30 and impersonating Morrisey, please click here and here), Ben Lerman (nuanced raunchy comedic singer/songwriter; Logo TV’s NewNowNext, Sirius Radio’s Frank DeCaro Show), Dave Siegal, Casey Jost, and Jay Miller performing at Brooklyn’s Union Hall on this month’s special movie theme: The Party Machine: John Hughes Party

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: Three stand-ups (not announced) performing sets and then being interviewed about their personal lives at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Matt Ruby & Mark Normand (who says “all these guys were hand-picked because they’re funny and have some serious problems; when you read this lineup you’re gonna be like ‘oh yeah, that guy is a mess’”): We’re All Friends Here

[$] 8:00 pm & 10:00 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.): A stand-up who’s performed on Comedy Central, MTV, Oxygen, and more headlining tonight through Sunday at the Gotham Comedy Club: Tony Rock

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($10): Star storyteller Tom Shillue (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, The Daily Show, Comedy Central Presents, 2011 ECNY Award for Best Storyteller), Jared Logan (rising star; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, host of ComedyJuice), Amber Nelson (fearless, innovative rising star; sketch troupe The Prom, co-host of Late Night Stand and Mustache Party), Brent Sullivan (Comedy Central; for video about crying while reading The Giving Tree, please click here), Jason Saenz, and Doug Smith performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Kara Klenk: If You Build It

[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

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 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): Killer great lineup of TV & movie stars Janeane Garofalo (9:00 pm only), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Comedy Central; opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Tony Woods (HBO Half Hour, Comedy Central Presents), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($7): Magnet improvisors team up with poets at Kiss*Punch*Poem

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($20): The return of one of the funniest comedies—and finest comedic ensembles—to grace New York, and what ended up as the very best show of this year’s FringeNYC Festival, playing at the Soho Playhouse’s upstairs theatre. Please read my review by clicking here, and then take advantage of this opportunity to see the Chicago-based 5 Lesbians Eating a Quiche

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15): 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] 10:30 pm ($10): Improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes—which includes stellar talents Ryan Karels, Morgan Grace Jarrett, Brandon Scott Jones, and more—promises to “take your stories of the tragic and depraved and scatter them into laughter” at this newest UCB Chelsea show to be honored with a weekend time slot: Grandma’s Ashes Gets Dark

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): UCBT improv troupe Airwolf—which includes such talents as John Frusciante, Molly Lloyd, Tim Martin, and Emily Axford, and this year crushed 12 improv groups in a row at Cage Match, entirely owns the UCB East stage tonight at Airwolf: Let’s Go Back to Your Place

10:30 pm ($7): Nick Kanellis & Peter McNerney performing at The Magnet as comedy duo Trike

Midnight ($5): A special New York Comic Con edition of this nerdy show, with tonight’s guests Dave Johnson (cover artist for Deadpool, 100 Bullets, Superman: Red Son), David Murray (seibei.com), Jesse Falcon (Marvel, Disney, Children’s Hospital), and Mike Drucker (freelance writer for SNL, The Onion, McSweeney’s) performing at UCB Chelsea hosted by Pat Baer: 404ing It: Breaking (Down) the Internet

[FREE] Midnight: Mike Dobbins is a unique stream of consciousness comic (for an interpretive dance of his breakup, please click here). Tonight he shares his special perspective on life at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Mike Dobbins Blows Your Little Mind

[FREE] Midnight: A weekly chance for you to shine at The Magnet, as students and veteran improvisors share the stage to form “rare and wonderful one-night-only teams,” with sign-up starting at 11:30 pm: Magnet Mixer

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Wyatt Cenac | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 9/15/12

September 15, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Comedy stars Colin Quinn, Janeane Garofalo, and a mystery guest perform stand-up at “If You Build It”…

…Brian Posehn headlines at Carolines, and Amy Schumer headlines at Gotham (earlier shows are sold out, but nab tickets for Amy’s finale at 11:45 pm)

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] 4:30 pm-11:00 pm ($15-$20): Top comics from NYC and elsewhere—including UK phenom Daniel Kitson—gather tonight for three different shows, in Brooklyn’s Union Hall and Bell House, for the next-to-last day of the Fifth Annual Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival

[TOP PICK] 5:30 pm ($10 plus 1 drink min.): “Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the theater, a shark swims right into your heart.” Beloved storyteller/stand-up/sketch comic John Flynn stars—superbly—as a singing shark, along with two wonderful finds, powerhouse singer Laura Daniel and comedy dynamo Brett Douglas, in this 40-minute musical written & composed by Wayne Henry at the Broadway Comedy Club (318 West 53rd Street, between 8th & 9th Avenues) that really should be doubled in length via a second act but in the meantime is worth catching as is: Jaws: The Musical

[FREE] 5:30 pm: New improv teams experimenting with new forms at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City, hosted by Andy Rocco and Jon Monje: Anybody Vs. Everybody: An Improv Show for You

6:00 pm ($5): Improv troupes Gunther, Big Fat Liars, and Sad Kids at The Magnet kicking off your Saturday evening: The Rundown

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($10): The UK’s renowned Cambridge University is known for great scholarly achievement…but also a comedy troupe named The Footlights that helped launch the careers of John Cleese (Monty Python), Hugh Laurie (House), Emma Thompson (Love Actually), Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat), and more. The 2012 edition of this group performs tonight at UCB East as part of a world tour: Cambridge Footlights: Perfect Strangers

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Original comedic songs are showcased, with tonight’s superb performers Jessica Delfino (I Wanna Be Famous album), Amy Albert (Delilah Dix and her Bag of Tricks), Juliet Jeske (Huffington Post video blogger), Ashley Brooke Roberts, and Kathleen Armenti at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Justin Perez & Shaina Stigler: Totally Requesty

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($7): Two of the most respected improvisors in the country, Magnet co-owner Armando DIaz and Christina Gausas, team up as Diaz & Gausas

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($27.25 & 2-drink min.) A unique organic talent who’s a regular guest on Conan O’Brien, and co-stared in the Comedians of Comedy tour and Comedy Central’s The Sarah Silverman Program, headlining tonight and Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Brian Posehn

8:00 pm ($5): Katie Hartman (Skinny Bitch Jesus Meeting), Jon Bander (Harvey), and Jenn Dodd (Buttski and Glasscock’s Talent Blowout) perform comedic characters at The PIT downstairs lounge along with host Delilah Dix: What a Bunch Of Dix!

8:00 pm ($10): Two of the most respected PIT improv troupes performing on this weekly double-bill—and occasionally with comedy giants Kristen Schaal and/or Kurt Braunohler participating: Big Black Car and The Baldwins

[FREE] 8:00 pm: NYC stand-ups performing stand-up at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Ray DeVito, Ben Kronberg, Nick Cobb, and/or Tim Dimond: Shoot the Shite

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($10): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, TV & Broadway star Colin Quinn, “a very special guest we can’t even name,” and more celebrating the One Year Anniversary of this weekly stand-up show at UCB East hosted by Kara Klenk and Nick Turner: If You Build It

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 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): Comedy stars Ted Alexandro (possibly just 9:00 pm), Christian Finnegan, and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($5): “Ashley Rebecca King and Gregory von Portz present a post-dinner poolside party for their hippest and most sophisticated friends. Menthol-cool musical stylings and intellectual discourse abound as you are treated to a floor show with a carefully chosen set list, curated by the world’s foremost cover-band artists, that changes monthly. Dip in; it’s never the same dive twice” at The PIT downstairs lounge: Moon Pools

9:00 pm ($7): Magnet improvisors team up with poets at Kiss*Punch*Poem

10:00 pm ($5): Comics performing as characters at The PIT downstairs lounge, with tonight’s show featuring Matt McCarthy and probably a small army of others, hosted by Rob Stern: Overload the Machine

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Stand-up, sketch, and who knows what else at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by a stand-up/sketch duo: Team Submarine and Friends

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): UCBT improv troupe Airwolf—which includes such talents as John Frusciante, Molly Lloyd, Tim Martin, and Emily Axford, and has so far crushed 10 improv groups in a row at Cage Match, entirely owns the UCB East stage tonight at Airwolf: Let’s Go Back to Your Place

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($7): For a change of pace, improv master Ed Herbstman joins Nick Kanellis & Peter McNerney performing at The Magnet as comedy duo Trike

11:00 pm ($8): A young new all-guy improv troupe making stuff up at The PIT upstairs theatre: Gentlemen Party

[TOP PICK] 11:30 ($8): NYC’s heavy metal version of a sketch troupe, which doesn’t always ht the mark but provides odd, unsettling, and fearless dark comedy—and won an ECNY Award for Best Sketch Group—performing at The PIT downstairs lounge: Murderfist: Late and Dirty

[TOP PICK] [$] 11:45 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.): Amy Schumer is one of the very finest stand-ups in the country, with performances on Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Last Comic Standing, 30 Rock, and more; and Amy’s just getting started with a career that’s likely to skyrocket. Amy’s headlining one last night at the Gotham Comedy Club. Tickets are mostly sold out, but there are still some left for the 11:45 pm finale; grab them while you can…: Amy Schumer

Midnight ($5): “Jason Saenz and Riley Soloner have invited the worst people in NYC to come and talk about their sh*tty situations in front of a studio audience in hopes that they can better themselves and turn their lives around. HAHAHA! Just kidding! We’re exploiting these people for ratings!” Featuring over a dozen comics performing at UCB Chelsea, including Nicole Byer and Rob Lathan: Late Night Trash

Midnight ($5): Screenings at UCB East (which used to be an indie film theatre) of brand new comedy videos that haven’t yet been released: Test Screening

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

2 Comments | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Amy Schumer, Brian Posehn, Colin Quinn, Comedy, Comedy NYC Tonight, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 9/8/12

September 8, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

For free & $5 Greenwich Village Comedy Club tickets, please click here.

Janeane Garofalo performs at the Eastville Comedy Club…

…and Godfrey headlines at the Gotham Comedy Club

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:

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

6:00 pm ($5): Improv troupes Warren, Wando, and Orange Augustus at The Magnet kicking off your Saturday evening: The Rundown

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): A comedy quiz show full of heavily researched quirky facts in which sharp contestants—who tonight are Silvija Ozols, Michelle Wolf, Corey Brown, and Phil Jackson—receive points if their answers are correct but get more points if their answers are “quite interesting” at UCB East created & hosted by Katey Healy-Wurzburg: The Fascinator…

…and in the other half of this double-bill, UCBT house manager and tech guy supreme Pat Baer hosts a show about the very medium you’re using to read this: 404ing It: Breaking (Down) the Internet

7:00 pm ($8): At this PIT 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

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($7): Two of the most respected improvisors in the country, Magnet co-owner Armando DIaz and Christina Gausas, team up as Diaz & Gausas

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: NYC stand-ups Mad Dog Mattern, Jono Zalay, and “a special guest” performing sets and then being interviewed about their personal lives at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Matt Ruby & Mark Normand (who says “all these guys were hand-picked because they’re funny and have some serious problems; when you read this lineup you’re gonna be like ‘oh yeah, that guy is a mess’”): We’re All Friends Here

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Drawing from his ongoing series of podcasts, Sam Dingman performs a one-man storytelling show at The PIT downstairs lounge offering “true tales from his days as a taxi driver in New York City, complete with toothless convicts, frozen embryos, murderous city buses, mobbed-up body shops, and much more. Along the way, he finds that no matter how many insane things he sees on the pothole-ridden streets of New York, the craziest one of all may be himself:” The Taxi Tapes

[$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($38.25 & 2-drink min.): A cast member of the much-missed Chappelle’s Show headlining tonight and Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Donnell Rawlings

[$] 8:00 pm & 10:00 pm ($20 & 2-drink min.): A stand-up who’s performed on NBC’s 30 Rock, a Comedy Central Presents half-hour special, VH1, BET; in films including Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane, and Johnson Family Vacation; and was the spokesman for the 7 Up Yours campaign, headlining tonight and Sunday at the Gotham Comedy Club: Godfrey

8:30 pm ($10): Sheng Wang (Comedy Central Presents), Emily Heller (Comedy Central; staff writer for Rooftop Comedy; for ruminations on pregnancy, please click here), Stuckey & Murray (stellar singing duo), Greg Johnson (Sirius Radio host), Nato Green, and Steve O’Brien performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Kara Klenk: If You Build It

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 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 (9:00 pm only), Mike Yard (Comedy Central), DC Benny (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Aaron Berg, and more performing stand-up at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($7): Magnet improvisors team up with poets at Kiss*Punch*Poem

[TOP PICK] 10:00 pm ($11.34 online; or $10 at the door—but this show usually sells out in advance): Jermaine Fowler, Micah Sherman, Ashley Brooke Roberts, Kara Klenk, Françoise Gordon, Michael Che, Greg Johnson, Dave Waite, Matt Fulchiron, Ron Krasnow, Taylor Clark, and Doug Smith performing for this show in which stand-up and burlesque are weirdly blended together based on the reasoning “The nude female form is truly a work of art. That’s why people the world over like to jerk off to it. Who are we to disagree with the world?”at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Pat Dixon (Comedy Central Presents): Pat Dixon’s (Nearly) Naked Lady Hour: Now with Bacon Bar

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): UCBT Harold Night improv troupe Airwolf—which in a phenomenal run has crushed 12 improv troupes in a row so far at Cage Match—makes stuff up at UCB East for an entire hour: Airwolf: Let’s Go Back to Your Place

10:30 pm ($7): Nick Kanellis & Peter McNerney perform at The Magnet as comedy duo Trike

Midnight ($5): Emmy Blotnick (blogger for Jimmy Fallon), Matt Ruby (MTV; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here, blog Sandpaper Suit), Harrison Greenbaum (writer for Mad Magazine; head writer of Tu Nite con Lorenzo Parro on NBCU/Telemundo; winner of the 2010 Andy Kaufman Award), and musical guest Shonali Bhowmik (Variety SHAC, Ultrababy) performing at UCB Chelsea with hosts Andy Rocco & Steve Slate: Underground Americana

Midnight ($5): “A scandalous night of down-right-sexy improv at at The PIT downstairs lounge. Incorrigible performers team up to turn down the lights, slip into something a little more comfortable, and spend the good part of an hour tickling your funny boners. Beware of partial nudity, strong sexual themes, and the possibility to be dragged on stage for a not-so-wholesome game of Truth or Dare: Yes, Yes, Yes…And

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

For free & $5 Greenwich Village Comedy Club tickets, please click here.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Comedy NYC Tonight, Godfrey, Gotham Comedy Club, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 8/4/12

August 4, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.
For best video previews of FringeNYC 2012 shows, please click here.

Judah Friedlander continues his headlining run at Carolines…

…and Janeane Garofalo performs at Fresh Fisch

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:

6:00 pm ($5): Improv troupes The Bartender, Eaglefox, and Orange Augustus at The Magnet kicking off your Saturday evening: The Rundown

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Stellar storytellers Ted Travelstead (Vanity Fair, author of Sex: Our Bodies, Our Junk), Jim O’Grady (The New York Times, Moth GrandSlam Champion), and Erin Barker (Moth GrandSlam champion, co-host of The Story Collider) tell “stories of all sizes that define our place in the universe,” hosted at UCB East by Adam Wade (two-time Moth GrandSlam Storytelling Champion (2006 & 2009) and record-breaking 18-time StorySlam Champion; The New York Times Magazine; host of hilarious monthly storytelling extravaganzas The Adam Wade Show and Whatever Happened to the Nerds?; for a sampling of Adam’s award-winning tales, please click here), : Tales of the Cosmos

7:00 pm ($5): Hip hop musical improv at The PIT downstairs lounge from Nick Brown, Don Romaniello, and Michael Short pretending to be NYC police officers: Rap Crimes Division

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Comedic solo performances—storytelling, sketch, and whatever else isn’t stand-up or improv—at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City with hosts Bill Stiteler & Adam Schwartz: Wank

7:30 pm ($7): Andrew Yurman-Glaser and Dustin Drury perform at The Magnet as improv duo Upstate

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($32.75 & 2-drink min.) Judah Friedlander is a hilarious stand-up and occasional agent of chaos. Judah is a cast member of 30 Rock, and has also performed on VH1’s Best Week Ever, HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, MTV’s Wonder Showzen, and Jay Leno. In addition, Judah has acted in over 20 films, including such hit comedies as Meet the Parents, Zoolander, and Full Grown Men. Judah was nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his role in American Splendor. When asked in an interview about his influences, Judah responded: “Audiences. They are often the forgotten ingredient in stand-up comedy. Stand-up is live entertainment, and a live audience is needed. Also, whatever is happening at the moment. I play off of that. The moment is a big influence. If you’re not playing the moment you’re not doing stand-up comedy–someone just reciting material but not responding with what’s going on in the room is not stand-up comedy.” This playful, anarchic, in-the-moment comedy veteran—and author of the book How to Beat Up Anybody—is headlining tonight through Sunday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Judah Friedlander

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10 at the door or $11.34 in advance online): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Jon Glaser (star of Adult Swim’s Delocated; long-time writer/performer for Conan O’Brien), Gary Gulman (Last Comic Standing, Tourgasm, Comedy Central hour-long special), Bill Stiteler (The Newlywed Game), and Sagar Bhatt performing stand-up at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Tyler Fischer: Fresh Fisch

[FREE] 8:00 pm: “Want to see your favorite stand-up comics get slapped by Satan himself? He only hosts bringer shows, but join Matt Wayne and Doug Smith as they step into the Big Man’s shoes and put NYC’s finest through comedy purgatory. Hula-hoops, celebrity impressions, unwanted audience participation, all incorporated into each performance! Will they triumph or will the nether world eat their souls? Come see for yourself in this monthly showcase” at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre: See You in Hell

[$] 8:00 pm & 10:00 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.) A stand-up who’s performed on David Letterman and Jay Leno, and starred in two Comedy Central specials, headlining tonight and Sunday at the Gotham Comedy Club: Mitch Fatel

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($10): Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Joe List (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), JC Coccoli (Key & Peele; looks great in a hat), Roger Hailes (Chappelle’s Show, VH1, MTV; writer for FUSE’s A Different Spin with Mark Hoppus), Jeff Wesselschmidt, and Nick Maritato performing at UCB East hosted by Kara Klenk: If You Build It

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 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 Todd Barry (might be 9:00 pm only), DC Benny (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($7): Magnet improvisors team up with poets at Kiss*Punch*Poem

9:30 pm ($5): “A monthly show featuring long form improv of three diverse schools of thought and culminating in a cross-team closing” at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Sharif Ali and Kelly Ann Rockwell: World’s Fair

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 10:00 pm: Hilarious, organic show in which stand-ups 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), Ben Kronberg (Jimmy Kimmel, MTV), Adam Conover (College Humor, host of Fresh Out), Greg Stone, Team Submarine, Eli Sairs, Gonzalo Cordova, Luis Gomez, and Kris Tinkle perform anything except stand-up—e.g., sketch, storytelling, improv, songs, dance, puppetry, and things we can’t even imagine—at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City produced by Kelly Fastuca, Reid Faylor, and Andrew Short: Underbelly

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): UCBT Harold Night improv troupe Airwolf—which in a phenomenal run crushed over a dozen improv troupes in a row this year at Cage Match—makes stuff up at UCB East for an entire hour: Airwolf: Let’s Go Back to Your Place

10:30 pm ($7): Nick Kanellis & Peter McNerney perform at The Magnet as comedy duo Trike

11:00 pm ($5): All-gal improv at The PIT upstairs theatre from troupe Goldie and the Hawns (Jennifer Bild, Christine DeNoon, Julianne Dunn, and Brandy Mitchell), plus guest stand-up and sketch gal comics: Boneless! A Night of Women in Comedy

[TOP PICK] [FREE] Midnight: The delightful Amber Nelson (sketch troupe Thunder Gulch, co-host of Late Night Stand and Mustache Party) debuts with Kat Toledo in a sketch show Amber mostly wrote (with help from Jill Morris, Kat Toledo, and Jeff Seal) that “explores the moment before a breakdown, the breakdown, and what happens after” at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Snapped

[TOP PICK] Midnight ($5): Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Erik Bergstrom (cartoonist/author of Grimmer Tales, The New Yorker, blogger for Comedy Central’s Indecision 2012), and Sam Morril performing stand-up at UCB Chelsea with host Andy Rocco: Underground Americana

[TOP PICK] Midnight ($5): A freestyle rap contest at UCB East that includes typically includes superb NYC comics—plus a volunteer from the audience!, hosted by genius human beatbox Chris “Shockwave” Sullivan (The Daily Show, The Electric Company, Freestyle Love Supreme) and Victor Varnado (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central) at one of my favorite monthly shows: The BEATdown

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Comedy NYC Tonight, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Judah Friedlander, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Tyler Fischer's Fresh Fisch | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Wednesday 8/1/12

August 1, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.
For best video previews of FringeNYC 2012 shows, please click here.

Comedy stars Janeane Garofalo and Wyatt Cenac (above), Todd Barry, and more perform in Brooklyn at Tell Your Friends

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] 6:00 pm to midnight: Five free hours of improvisation at The PIT’s Super Free Wednesday

[FREE] 6:00 pm: Open-mic stand-up providing four minutes per comic, with “15 people chosen randomly through e-mail, and five walk-ins; and a guaranteed spot to anyone who performs in character as a famous explorer” at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre: Comedic Exploration Club of Long Island City, West

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Sketch comedy from Brandy Barber (Comedy Central, Late Night Republic), Micah Sherman (Second City, The Scene), Cathleen Carr (Two Girls for Five Bucks, The Scene), Giulia Rozzi (Jimmy Kimmel, MTV, VH1, Playgirl Magazine, co-host of Dive comedy and Stripped Stories), Jerry Mouse (Big Business, College Humor), Chris Roberti (New Excitement), Julia Morales (10K Hours), and Corey Rodriguez performing at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Micah Sherman: Old School Sketch Comedy Show

7:00 pm-12:30 am ($7 for the entire evening): Magnet house troupes The Party Lions, Silver Fox, Millions of Hugs, Brick, The Wrath, Chet Watkins, Leviathan, and Horses performing improv, followed by a free audience interactive show with The Wrath at 11:30 pm: The Magnet’s Megawatt

[FREE] 7:00 pm: Open-mic free speech at this monthly show that dates back to 1755 London and tonight provides five minutes per person at The Penny Farthing (103 Third Avenue at 13th Street) hosted by Nat Townsen (co-host of The Moon Show): Cogers

7:30 pm ($5): Expanding the UCB longform improv showcased on Harold Night is this weekly show at UCB East which tonight features troupes Graceland and Spooky Ghost: Lloyd Night

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($15 at the door, $15.30 in advance online): TV & movie stars Janeane Garofalo, Wyatt Cenac, and Todd Barry, band The Starlight Girls, and more performing at Brooklyn’s The Bell House hosted by Liam McEneaney: Tell Your Friends

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): At UCB Chelsea, “some of UCBT’s best improvisers gather around the couch to turn each others’ bizarre tales and armchair philosophies into an evening of improv comedy. It’s like hanging out with your friends except that your friends are really funny and need to suddenly turn their stories into improv scenes.” In other words, it’s just like previous show Happy Hour minus the beer. The ace improvisors include Fran Gillespie, Charlie Todd, and John Frusciante: The Living Room

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Neil Casey & Anthony Atamanuik, both genius members of Death by Roo Roo, perform the jaw-dropping feat of making up an entire feature film at UCB East as The Two-Man Movie

[FREE] 9:00 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] 9:30 pm ($5): At UCB Chelsea, one of the very best sketch shows of 2012. It’s a noir mini-play written & directed with immense wit by Michael Trapp (Stone Cold Fox), who with this script demonstrates he’s a rising star with a surefire career in the biz. And beyond the pages, Michael’s put together an all-star cast, including John Murray (simultaneously gripping and hilarious as a hardboiled detective with an absurdly short attention span), Brandon Scott Jones (who delivers an unforgettable scene with John that’s worth the trip all by itself), and D’Arcy Carden (who abandons her usual laid-back persona here to be smoking hot). These are all total pros who are virtually assured careers in TV and film. Catch them while they’re honing their craft and waiting to be noticed in one of the most consistently fun shows in NYC: Death Wears Stilettos…

…and in the other half of this double-bill, a (mostly) one-man show by George Kareman titled Incredibly Extreme and Extremely Incredible

[TOP PICK] 10:00 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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 11:00 pm: The wonderful Sasheer Zamata (Doppelganger) hosts 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; and this is often one of the most amazing comedy shows in town. (Tonight’s scheduled performers include Bridey Elliot; for the full lineup, please click here.) Come support the experimentation, and periodic magical surprises, that this uniquely organic rollercoaster of a weekly show at UCB Chelsea makes possible—and don’t forget to toss $1 in the bucket on your way out: School Night

[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

[FREE] 11:00 pm: Your opportunity to perform on the stage of UCB East with improv veterans, hosted by UCBT Harold Night house troupe Grandma’s Ashes: The Improv Jam

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows, Updated Daily | Tagged: Comedy, Comedy NYC Tonight, Improv, Janeane Garofalo, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Tell Your Friends, Wyatt Cenac | Permalink
Posted by hybender

Best New York Comedy

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 5/7/13

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Monday 2/18/13

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Sunday 12/16/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Thursday 12/13/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Friday 10/26/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 10/13/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 9/15/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 9/8/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 8/4/12

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Wednesday 8/1/12

Hy Bender

Search Best New York Comedy

Previous NYC Comedy Listings

Follow BestNewYorkComedy.com

Follow “Best New York Comedy”

May 2013
M	T	W	T	F	S	S
« Apr
		1	2	3	4	5
6	7	8	9	10	11	12
13	14	15	16	17	18	19
20	21	22	23	24	25	26
27	28	29	30	31