Best New York Comedy

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For comprehensive coverage of the spectacular FringeNYC 2011 Festival, please click here.

Stellar stand-ups John Mulaney ("Totally J/K") and Sara Schaefer ("Staycation")

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: Six free hours of improvisation at The PIT’s Super Free Wednesday

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:30 pm: Sara Schaefer (inventive, luminous comic; Emmy-nominated staff writer for Jimmy Fallon; VH1’s Best Week Ever; co-host of hit podcast You Had to Be There), Jared Logan (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, co-host of Righteous Kill), Dan St. Germain (quick-witted rising star; Jimmy Fallon, MTV, VH1; for reenactment of Dan’s breakup, please click here), Joe Pera, and more performing stand-up at the Housingworks Bookstore Cafe hosted by Elihu Dietz: Staycation

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($5): John Mulaney (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; writer/performer for Saturday Night Live; Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, VH1’s Best Week Ever; for John’s great bit on Weekend Update, please click here), Colin Jost (also a writer for Saturday Night Live), and Neal Stasny joining best bud hosts Noah Garfinkel & Joe Mande (author of Look At This F*cking Hipster) at Totally J/K

8:00 pm, 9:00 pm, and 10:00 pm ($5): Magnet house troupes performing improv, followed by a free show at 11:30 pm: The Magnet’s Megawatt

8:00 pm ($5—which includes a free beer!): NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Nick Turner: Monsters

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Mike Still (Death by Roo Roo, Diamond Lion) pulls out all the stops for a dynamic one-man show packed with comedic ideas revolving around a tyrant so evil that he machine-guns the audience (twice!), with direction by fellow Roo Roo star Neil Casey: Dictator For Life;

…and in the other half of this double-bill, Paul Welsh performs a one-man sketch play directed by the wonderful Shannon O’Neill: Men in Paintings

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 11:00 pm: 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. Come support the experimentation, and periodic magical surprises, that this uniquely organic rollercoaster of a show 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

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