Best New York Comedy

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Comedy family Abby Elliott, Chris Elliott, and Bridey Elliott are interviewed at a very special Running Late with Scott Rogowsky

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!

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

6:30 pm ($5): Dan Black debuts his one-man show The Definition of Douchebag, plus a show titled Former Business Partners: Everything Must Go!, auditioning for a spot on the schedule of the prestigious UCB Chelsea stage: Spank

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

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

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($5): Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Comedy Central; opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), DC Benny (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Paul Oddo, “a surprise guest” (who’s reportedly a regular visitor to this show), and more at UCB East hosted by Dan Allen & Ray Devito: Sacapuntas!

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Wonderful improvisor Ellena Chmielewski co-wrote and directed this comedy mini-play about modern romance at UCB Chelsea co-written & co-starring John Zachary Townsend (and which, with luck, I’ll be seeing tonight): Standards & Practices…

…and in the other half of this double-bill, a two-man sketch show by Matt Dennie & Josh Sharp that very loosely springs off the real events of the title but is mostly meta-comedy. I would’ve preferred something meatier, especially given the fascinating subject—436 people killed by a tiger whose damaged teeth made it difficult to eat anything other than humans—but there’s lots of energy and performance talent here, making this a solid first-time effort: Maneater: The True Story of the Champawat Tigress

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: A small army of superb stand-ups and other comics—James Adomian, Mike Lawrence, The Cowmen, Joe Pera, Mark Normand, Amber Nelson, Matt Koff, Mike Dobbins, Maddog Mattern, and more—performing at Brooklyn’s The Fifth Estate (506 5th Avenue, between 12th Street & 7th Avenue) hosted by Matt Gifford & Chris Waelti: The Shit Show

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($14 plus 2-item food/drink min.): 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), Mike Yard (Comedy Central, Def Comedy Jam), Lenny Marcus (David Letterman, MTV), Keith Robinson (HBO, Comedy Central, Wanda Sykes Show), Modi (HBO’s The Sopranos, Comedy Central), Jeff Lamp (Jay Leno), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Tom Papa, Mike Yard, and More

[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

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, Hello Laser, Junior Varsity, and The Boss 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 Level 1 students vs. The Magnet’s owners!: The Magnet’s Night Out

8:00 pm ($10): A pseudo news show hosted by Margo Rose, tonight featuring Stephen Wallem (Thor on Nurse Jackie), Gillian Berrow (ghost author of Glee Summer Break), Marla Schultz (Inventor of The Racktrap), and ” Stephen the Starbucks Guy” at The PIT upstairs theatre: Margo Rose Live

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm ($15 plus 2-drink min.): 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), Pat Dixon (Comedy Central Presents, FOX, VH1, E!, host of Nearly Naked Lady Comedy Hour), Louis Katz (Jimmy Fallon, HBO, Comedy Central Presents), Gregg Rogell (Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Louie, Comedy Central), and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street) hosted by Joe Machi & Sam Morril: Nikki Glaser, Pat Dixon, and More

[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 and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): 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), Justy Dodge (co-host of Too Much Information on comicalradio.com; “I was kind of a tomboy growing up. Like, I had Barbies, but only because my Ninja Turtles needed bitches;” for dark bio video, please click here), Chazz Hawkins, Karl Hess, and Nate Fridson performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Adam Conover & Emily Heller: Fresh Out

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

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($10 at the door or $11.34 online): An awesome evening with comedy family the Elliotts: Chris Elliott (comedy legend), Abby Elliott (Saturday Night Live), and Bridey Elliott (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Witstream), including clips from Chris’ unreleased Comedy Central pilot Chrissy: Plain and Simple, and more, at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Scott Rogowsky (The Onion): Running Late with Scott Rogowsky

[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

9:30 pm ($5): If you’re a fan of CollegeHumor.com, you can see the folks behind it plus like-minded comics on the UCB Chelsea stage—tonight including Streeter Seidell (Editor-in-Chief of College Humor; Jimmy Kimmel, MTV’s Pranked), Dan St. Germain (quick-witted & enormously likeable rising star; Jimmy Fallon, The Electric Company, MTV, VH1), and Jermaine Fowler (FOX’s new In Living Color, MTV, Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show): CollegeHumor Live

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($14 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), Jessica Kirson (Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, HBO, Showtime, Bravo, VH1, Logo one-woman show My Cookie’s Gone), Louis Katz (Jimmy Fallon, HBO, Comedy Central Presents), Godfrey (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, 30 Rock, VH1; films Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane; 7 Up Yours ads), Dan Soder (Comedy Central, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), Sherrod Small (writer/performer on TBS’ Are We There Yet?, Comedy Central, VH1), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Judah Friedlander, Jessica Kirson, and More

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:30 pm ($5 & 2-item food/drink min.) Comics heckle a cheesy genre feature film—with tonight’s victim 1979’s The Driller Killer—at Queens LIC’s Laughing Devil Comedy Club (4738 Vernon Blvd.): Devil Science Theater 3000

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($5): Hip-hop improv troupe North Coast (which was on a winning streak this year) goes up against agent-of-chaos troupe Fuck That Shit as they compete for audience laughs and votes at UCB Chelsea for the raucous Cage Match

11:00 pm ($5): A sketch comedy radio show/podcast live on the UCB East stage, with tonight’s guests parody sequel Harry Potter 9 3/4, with performers including superb comic Aaron Jackson: Left Handed Radio

[TOP PICK] [$] Midnight ($14 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Uncensored stand-up from Dave Attell (star of Comedy Central’s Insomniac, David Letterman, IFC), 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), Lynn Koplitz (IFC’s Z Rock, host of WB’s Life & Style), Kurt Metzger (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Ugly Americans), Andrew Schulz (MTV 2’s Guy Code), and more performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV): The Nasty Show: Dave Attell, Nikki Glaser, 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.