Best New York Comedy

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

In Show #10, storytelling genius Mike Daisey says, “I’ve always been willing to throw myself right off a cliff. It’s a beautiful feeling to know that below awaits the water or the rocks. When you’re suspended in that high arc above the brilliant blue, for a moment you are released, you are free…because you could live or die. I crave that:” If you crave seeing that, catch Mike live at Joe’s Pub; or experience this 29-night epic for free via iTunes: “All the Faces of the Moon”

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] Noon-5:00 pm: A picnic and series of silly contests at this 10th Annual celebration of The PIT community taking place at Brooklyn’s 95 Prospect Park West: PITnic

[FREE] 5:00 pm: A smorgasbord of of stand-up, comedic music, comedic dance, sketch, and more at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Chris O’Neil: Mishmash Variety Hour (and a Half)

[TOP PICK] 6:00 pm ($5): At The Magnet theatre, Elana Fishbein performs a one-woman show about the characters in her life in Pepita, plus an audition for sketch show This One Time at Jew Camp…

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 7:00 pm ($20 at the door or $26.50 online using discount code DAISEY; no food/drink min.): Why is genius yarn-spinner Mike Daisey telling 29 new stories in a row (working off mere one-page outlines) in a 29-night, 44-hour monologue? Part of the answer appears near the start of Show #10: “I’ve always been willing to throw myself right off a cliff. It’s a beautiful feeling to know that below awaits the water or the rocks. When you’re suspended in that high arc above the brilliant blue, for a moment you are released, you are free…because you could live or die. I crave that.” If you crave seeing that, catch Mike live at Joe’s Pub (425 Lafayette Street, between East 4th Street & Astor Place); or experience this epic adventure at your convenience for FREE via iTunes: All the Faces of the Moon

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:00 pm ($15; no drink min.): 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), Mark Douglas (Key of Awesome), Todd Womack, and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Dave Hill, Mark Douglas, and More

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

[$] 7:30 pm ($35 & 2-drink min.): A cast member of the much-missed Chappelle’s Show headlining one last night at the Carolines Comedy Club: Donnell Rawlings

7:30 pm ($5): A one-woman sketch comedy show by Emily Shapiro at The Magnet theatre: Emily is a Character

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Readings from comedic authors Ophira Eisenberg (brilliant storyteller with notable bangs; Comedy Central, VH1, Showtime, The Today Show, host of NPR’s trivia/puzzle show Ask Me Another, bestselling book being made into movie Screw Everyone), Mindy Raf (brilliant comedic singer/songwriter; VH1, College Humor; author of YA novel The Symptoms of My Insanity; often performs as alter ego Leibya Rogers), and Selena Coppock (author of book The New Rules for Blondes, host of Connotation) at Brooklyn’s Union Hall: Blondes, Screwing, and Insanity: Readings from Ophira Eisenberg, Mindy Raf, and Selena Coppock

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm, 9:45 pm, and 11:30 pm ($14 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight’s lineups include SNL writer Michael Che and NBC host Tom Papa at 8:00 pm and Ted Alexandro at 9:45 pm performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Sunday

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): From Dan Hodapp & Micah Sherman (producers of The Scene), improvisors make up one-act plays on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge: Act One

8:00 pm ($5): Luke Cunningham (Jimmy Fallon, The Colbert Report), Roger Hailes Adrienne Iapalucci (Last Comic Standing, VH1), Roger Hailes (Jimmy Fallon, Chappelle’s Show, VH1, MTV; writer for FUSE’s A Different Spins; Web series Mansome), (Fuse, MTV, VH1), Mike Recine (Comedy Central), Paul Oddo (co-host of The Friday Night Hot Chicks Mic), and Doug Smith performing stand-up at UCB East with host Kara Klenk (Comedy Central, Spike, Nickelodeon): If You Build It

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Seaton Smith (Opie & Anthony Virus Tour), Neal Stasny, Harry Terjanian, J.F. Harris, Jayson Cross, and Merrill Davis performing at the Three of Cups lounge (83 First Avenue at 5th Street) hosted by RG Daniels: Sunday Night Stand-Up

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Stand-ups attempt to perform tight sets—”no fat, no filler, just funny”—at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Mike Speirs: Trim the Fat

[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): Nikki Glaser (co-star of MTV’s The Nikki and Sara Show; Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central Half Hour; podcast You Had to Be There), 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), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

9:00 pm ($5): At The Magnet theatre, Brian Frange & Rob Stern perform sketches as Frange & Stern, plus Kaitlin Fontana & Gretchen Poole perform in Cagey Sketch

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Matt Koff (writer for The Daily Show), Robbie Collier, Sandy Danto, and Subhah Agarwal 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 Beauty Bar

Sunday Open Mics & Open Stages

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

[FREE] 5:30 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 Emmy Blotnick, Matt Nedostup, and/or Sachi Ezurafor: Sledgehammer

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

[ALMOST FREE] 9:30 pm ($1): Open-mic comedy, with 4 minutes per performer, at The PIT downstairs lounge: Child Support

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

[FREE] 10:15 pm: Open-mic show for sketch and character bits running 3-5 minutes at The Magnet hosted by Sebastian Conelli. Everyone who signs up—at 9:45 pm at the box office—is likely to get onstage: Sketch in Progress

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

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

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

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

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

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

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Storytelling genius Mike Daisey continues crafting a brand new tale every night this month. Ironically, finishing up another genius storyteller’s book proposal has kept me from this epic project until this morning; but what Mike’s doing is breathtaking and must not be missed, and I’ll be tuning into or attending every one of his 29 stories. See it live yourself at Joe’s Pub, or experience it at your convenience via iTunes: All the Faces of the Moon

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] 5:00 pm: A mix of longform, shortform, and musical improv from five groups, typically including Mishmosh, at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Michael Venzor: The Long and Short of It

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 7:00 pm ($25 at the door or $31.50 online, and no food/drink min.; please note Mike says discount code DAISEY will get you $20 tickets, and while it’s not working online it might if you buy at the box office): MIke Daisey is one of the finest and most respected storytellers alive; and he’s not resting on his prior achievements. Just within the past year Mike churned out an amazing nine new shows at Joe’s Pub (including such instant classics as Fucking Fucking Fucking Ayn Rand and Five Technical Rehearsals in India)…and that was a mere prequel. Mike is now embarked on telling 29 new shows in a row in a 29-night, 44-hour monologue that’s “a living theatrical novel.” See it live at Joe’s Pub (425 Lafayette Street, between East 4th Street & Astor Place), or experience it at your convenience via iTunes: All the Faces of the Moon

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC) tries out new material every night this week at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Week at the Creek: Big Jay Oakerson

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($8): Gal comics from sketch groups Skinny Bitch Jesus Meeting, National Scandal, Totally Yes, and more perform sketch at The PIT upstairs theatre: Last Chance Dance

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

7:30 pm ($7): Sketch comedy from trio Pat May, Elena Skopetos, and Michael Delisle at The Magnet theatre: The Rolling Scones

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Second Year Anniversary show with Rich Vos (stand-up star on two seasons of Last Comic Standing and on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn; Comedy Central Presents; Opie & Anthony radio show), Bonnie McFarlane (HBO, David Letterman, Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Guy Granum (Totally Biased, Chelsea Lately), Jared Logan (rising star; Comedy Central Half Hour, Last Comic Standing, CNN, TBS), Ben Gleib, and “a special guest” performing stand-up at UCB East with host Kara Klenk (Comedy Central, Spike, Nickelodeon): If You Build It

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: Stand-up from Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien, upcoming Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), Rob Cantrell (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, HBO, VHI, FX’s Totally Biased, documentary Metaphysical Graffiti, High Times), Jeff Wesselschmidt, Jono Zalay, Jim Tews, and Rojo Perez, plus debates about silly topics—e.g., Tony Zaret & Eli Sairs on “Electric Guitar Comedy vs. Acoustic Guitar Comedy,” and Tim Dillon & Justin Flanagan on “Foodie vs. Pig”—all hosted by Michael Shawki & Tim Dimond at at The Creek upstairs theatre: The Great Debate: Sean Patton, Rob Cantrell, and More

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): All-gal storytelling show of “true tales with feelings; so many feelings…,” tonight starring Cammi Climaco (co-host of Tell Me Stories), Diana Spechler, and Charla Lauriston at The PIT upstairs theatre hosted by Caitlin Brodnick and Lisa Kleinman: Shut Up: An All-Female Storytelling Show

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm, 9:45 pm, and 11:30 pm ($14 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight’s lineups include TV & Broadway star Colin Quinn and SNL’s John Mulaney at the 8:00 pm show, Judah Friedlander at the 9:45 show, and Mark Normand and Ryan Hamilton at the 11:30 show performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Sunday

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Pat Dixon (Comedy Central Presents, FOX, VH1, E!, host of Nearly Naked Lady Comedy Hour), Joe Larson (Jay Leno), Janelle James, Matteo Lane, Casey James Salengo, and Josh Spear performing at the Three of Cups lounge (83 First Avenue at 5th Street) hosted by RG Daniels: Sunday Night Stand-Up

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 9:00 pm (FREE TICKETS if you reserve in advance by calling (212) 260-2445 and mention HyReviews.com, but there’s still a 2-drink min. per person): Todd Barry (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central Presents, FX’s Louie, HBO’s Flight of the Conchords and Bored to Death, Adult Swim, feature films The Wrestler and Pete Smalls is Dead), Harris Stanton (Comedy Central), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Sketch comedy from Lauren Olson, Jana Schmieding, Jon Bander, Eagle Fox, and more at The Magnet hosted by Sebastian Conelli: Sketch Sundays

9:30 pm ($8): A veteran sketch troupe performs at The PIT upstairs theatre: City Hall

Sunday Open Mics & Open Stages

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

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

[FREE] 5:30 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 Emmy Blotnick, Matt Nedostup, and/or Sachi Ezurafor: Sledgehammer

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

[ALMOST FREE] 9:30 pm ($1): Open-mic comedy, with 4 minutes per performer, at The PIT downstairs lounge: Child Support

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

[FREE] 10:15 pm: Open-mic show for sketch and character bits running 3-5 minutes at The Magnet hosted by Sebastian Conelli. Everyone who signs up—at 9:45 pm at the box office—is likely to get onstage: Sketch in Progress

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

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

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

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

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

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

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

Kate McKinnon and other SNL stars at Wednesday’s gala Sweet.

One of our finest storytellers, Mike Daisey, is doing a 29-night, 44-hour monologue that’s “a living theatrical novel”…

…See it live at Joe’s Pub, or experience it at your convenience via iTunes: “All the Faces of the Moon”

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] 5:00 pm: A smorgasbord of of stand-up, comedic music, comedic dance, sketch, and more at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Chris O’Neil: Mishmash Variety Hour (and a Half)

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:00 pm ($25 at the door or $31.50 online, and no food/drink min.; please note Mike says discount code DAISEY will get you $20 tickets, and while it’s not working online it might if you buy at the box office): MIke Daisey is one of the finest and most respected storytellers alive; and he’s not resting on his prior achievements. Just within the past year Mike churned out an amazing nine new shows at Joe’s Pub (including such instant classics as Fucking Fucking Fucking Ayn Rand and Five Technical Rehearsals in India)…and that was a mere prequel. Mike is now embarked on telling 29 new shows in a row in a 29-night, 44-hour monologue that’s “a living theatrical novel.” See it live at Joe’s Pub (425 Lafayette Street, between East 4th Street & Astor Place), or experience it at your convenience via iTunes: All the Faces of the Moon

7:00 pm ($8): In this mini-play, “Cookie, a slightly depressed laboratory technician, agrees to give an improv lesson to Chip, a therapist, in exchange for a free session. When Chip’s cat dies of illness and Chip has to leave the city, Cookie is in need of a new therapist” at The PIT upstairs theatre: Free Session

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

7:30 pm ($7): Sketch comedy at The Magnet, tonight from groups Risky Bottom (which includes one of my favorite comics, Lauren Olson) and Breakfast for Dinner: Magnet Sketch Teams

[TOP PICK] 8:00 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 2013 edition of this group performs tonight at The PIT upstairs theatre as part of a world tour: The Cambridge Footlights: Canada

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: Sean Patton (one of the finest stand-ups in the country; killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), 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), Mike Cannon (MTV’s Money From Strangers), Giulia Rozzi (Jimmy Kimmel, MTV, VH1, Playgirl Magazine, co-host of Dive Comedy and Stripped Stories), George Gordon, Amanda Baramki, and Evan Williams performing at the Three of Cups lounge (83 First Avenue at 5th Street) hosted by RG Daniels: Sunday Night Stand-Up

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): From Dan Hodapp & Micah Sherman (producers of The Scene), improvisors make up one-act plays on the spot at The PIT downstairs lounge, with tonight’s groups The Jessicas (featuring Jessica Sherr), Gilda, Skycopter, and The Lottery (featuring Julie Sharbutt): Act One

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm, 9:45 pm, and 11:30 pm ($14 per show, plus 2-item food/drink min.): Tonight’s lineups include TV & Broadway star Colin Quinn and SNL’s Michael Che at the 8:00 pm show, Gary Gulman and Nick Griffin at the 9:45 show, and Mark Normand at the 11:30 show performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane): Comedy Cellar Sunday

8:00 pm ($5): Victor Varnado (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central, NBC’s My Name is Earl, Adult Swim), Phil Hanley (Jay Leno), Erin Lennox (co-host of The Orphanage), Damien Lemon (MTV2’s Guy Code, Comedy Central), Chris Laker (host of The Show at The Creek), Joe Machi, and Anton Shuford performing stand-up at UCB East guest-hosted by Sean Donnelly (David Letterman, MTV), : If You Build It

[FREE] 8:00 pm: A variety show featuring stand-up, sketch, improv, music, and/or video at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by James Ferrarella: Fun Fun Yea

9:00 pm ($7): Sketch comedy at The Magnet, tonight from groups Dispacho and Fat Kids and Jacktown: Magnet Sketch Teams

[FREE] 9:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (not yet announced) performing in the East Village’s Beauty Bar for this free weekly show hosted by Adam Sokol, Brad Austin, and/or Nate Fridson: Comedy at Beauty Bar

9:30 pm ($8): Stand-ups Greg Stone (VH1, weekly podcast The Rad Dude Cast) and Doug Smith (co-host of See You in Hell) each perform 30-minute sets at The PIT upstairs theatre: Long Sets

Sunday Open Mics & Open Stages

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

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

[FREE] 5:30 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 Emmy Blotnick, Matt Nedostup, and/or Sachi Ezurafor: Sledgehammer

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

[ALMOST FREE] 9:30 pm ($1): Open-mic comedy, with 4 minutes per performer, at The PIT downstairs lounge: Child Support

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Best NYC Stand-Up Comedy Clubs

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.