Ted Alexandro | Best New York Comedy

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 3/30/13

March 30, 2013

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.
Demetri Martin has a new book. Please check it out here.

Don’t miss Ted Alexandro, one of the finest stand-ups alive, perform a masterful and thoroughly hilarious set (I caught it yesterday) headlining one last night at the Gotham Comedy Club…

Allison Goldberg, Jen Jamula, and Severus Snape

…and experience Allison Goldberg’s & Jen Jamula’s show about Teletubbies sex with Severus Snape, intercourse with dolphins, a reinactment of Hulk Hogan getting it on, and lots more at Blogologues: #SexyTime

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] 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 Dicks and Stones, Durian at the Movies, and Petting Zoo at The Magnet kicking off your Saturday evening: The Rundown

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 7:00 pm & 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): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo (might be 9:00 pm only), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC), Andrew Schulz (MTV2’s Guy Code), and more performing stand-up at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

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

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Shannon O’Neill (comedy genius), Morgan Grace Jarrett (wonderful comedic actress), Lydia Hensler (member of red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes), and/or Brandon Scott Jones (top sketch troupe Stone Cold Fox, red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes, top comedic play Death Wears Stilettos) play host to stand-up Sarah Spear, storyteller and character/sketch comic Cody Lindquist, plus an audience talent show (“the weirder, the better”) at the UCB East theatre: Ladies Night: Men Welcome

7:00 pm ($10): Stand-up, sketch comics, and improv groups mix up their regular routines; plus host Kissing Disease performs an improvised monoscene based on an audience member’s suggested obstacle at The PIT upstairs theatre: Kissing Disease Tries Something

[FREE] 7:00 pm: A unique musical improv open-mic show that lets both beginners and veterans get on stage and belt one out accompanied by brilliant improv pianist Frank Spitznagel at the Comedy Bar (134 West 29th Street) hosted by Douglas Widick: Spot Song

[$] 7:30 pm ($15): 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 Dixon Place (161A Chrystie Street): Shut Up, Emily Dickinson

7:30 pm ($7): Sharp Magnet improvisors “perform organic freeform improvisation in two mind-blowing parts; the only rule is that there are no rules:” The Weave

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

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:00 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.): One of the very finest stand-ups in the country, who’s performed on David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, and The View, starred in two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials, and frequently opens for Louis C.K., headlining one last night at the Gotham Comedy Club (with openers Rob Cantrell and Jim Mendrinos). I saw this last night and highly recommend you don’t miss the wonderful Ted Alexandro

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($18 at the door or $19.62 in advance online; the latter is recommended because this may well sell out): A top-notch theatrical troupe that’s equally fine at compelling acting and split-second comedy uses actual material on the Web, performed verbatim, to craft laugh-out-loud scenes. This 12th edition of the series (begun in 2011) kicks off Spring by focusing on all things sexy…with the hilarious scenes covering intercourse with dolphins, Harry Potter’s Severus Snape getting it on with Teletubbies, and lots more. The three women in the cast—human dynamo Wendy Joy, and the show’s writer/producers Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula—are each NYC treasures; any of them is worth the trip all by herself. (And if you’re a producer or director, snap them up while they’re still affordable…) For a video sample (a pale shadow of the live show), please click here. Another reviewer called this “like Forbidden Broadway for the Internet,” and that’s pretty close to the mark. There are just four performances left, running tonight and next Thursday-Saturday at 8:00 pm. Grab tickets in advance before it sells out, and then enjoy this production at Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place, between First Avenue & Avenue A): Blogologues: #SexyTime

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($38.25 & 2-drink min.): A comic’s comic who’s performed on David Letterman, Jay Leno, HBO, FX’s Louie, CNN, FOX, and three Comedy Central specials, and has been a frequent guest on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn and Howard Stern, headlining one last night at the Carolines Comedy Club: Nick DiPaolo

8:00 pm ($8): Sketch comedy at The PIT downstairs lounge from National Scandal

[FREE] 8:00 pm: NYC stand-ups performing at The Creek upstairs theatre 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): Barry Rothbart (Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Comedy Central, MTV’s Punk’d, IFC’s Do Whatever), Jermaine Fowler (MTV’s Guy Code, Comedy Central, Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show), Dan Soder (Comedy Central, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), Michelle Wolf (IFC), Jordan Carlos (The Colbert Report, MTV, VH1), and more 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] [FREE] 9:00 pm: NYC stand-ups tell jokes and perform comedy as original characters at The Creek downstairs lounge in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Shakir Standley: Out of Character

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

9:00 pm ($10): “A monthly show featuring long form improv of three diverse schools of thought and culminating in a cross-team closing…that last year broke an all-time attendence record” at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Sharif Ali and Kelly Ann Rockwell: World’s Fair

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] 10:00 pm ($8 online using code FIVE; no 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), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC), Mike Vecchione (Last Comic Standing, Howard Stern), and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Nikki Glaser, Big Jay Oakerson, and More

[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

[FREE] 10:00 pm: NYC stand-ups take a comedic look at the world’s problems at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Tom Dillon: Love, Poverty, and War

[TOP PICK] 10:30 pm ($10): At UCB Chelsea, 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:” 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 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

10:30 pm ($10): An improv double-bill at The Magnet theatre: Eaglefox and Upstate

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($5): Original comedic songs are showcased, with tonight’s performers including Jen Kwok, Will Hines, and Marshall York, at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Justin Perez & Shaina Stigler: Totally Requesty

[TOP PICK] [DISCOUNTED] [FREE] Midnight (totally FREE online using code FIVE; no drink min., but it’d be nice if you bought something from the acclaimed food/drink menu): 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), Kurt Metzger (Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central Presents, Ugly Americans), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV, IFC), Dan Soder (Comedy Central, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), Sam Morril (Comedy Central), and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Nikki Glaser, Kurt Metzger, Dan Soder, and More

Midnight ($5): Keisha Zollar (Doppelganger, Andy Kaufman Award finalist) and Poupak Sepehri (runs UCB’s Difference Blog) host a variety show at UCB East that’s a mix of forms, with tonight’s performers Saad Haroon (stand-up), Shonali Bhowmik (music), and jams with teams led by Sunita Mani, Nivedita Kulkarni, and Roheeni Saxena: The Soul Glo Project

[FREE] Midnight: Bryson Turner performs an hour of stand-up at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Bryson Turner

Midnight ($5): Two duo sketch troupes, Coker & Stratton vs. Cohen & Gentile, competing for audience laughs and votes at UCB Chelsea hosted by sketch troupe Sidecar: Backyard Brawl

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.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Allison Goldberg, Blogologues: #SexyTime, Comedy, Harry Potter, Improv, Jen Jamula, New York Comedy, Severus Snape, Sketch, Stand-Up, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Friday 3/29/13

March 29, 2013

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Demetri Martin has a new book. Please check it out here.

One of NYC’s very finest, star stand-up Ted Alexandro headlines tonight and Saturday at the Gotham Comedy Club…

…star stand-up Nick DiPaolo headlines at Carolines; and hilarious comedic actress Wendy Joy brings her special style to a show that turns verbatim Web text into laugh-packed scenes: Blogologues: #SexyTime

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-2:00 am: Sixty small improv teams perform over eight hours at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: The Fourth Annual Small Team Extravaganza

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($7): Musical improv troupe BEEES! creates stories on the spot using song and dance at The Magnet theatre: BEEES! Musical Improv

7:00 pm ($7): Improv at The Magnet 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:” 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. Nate’s & Paul’s favorite comics from this open-mic will be selected to perform at their midnight Beastmasters show: The Friday Night Hot Chicks Open Mic

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Stone Cold Fox is the only sketch troupe (vs. improv troupe) to ever be honored with an ongoing spot on the prestigious UCB Chelsea weekend schedule. It’s earned this slot because its cast is superb: Brandon Scott Jones, Molly Lloyd, John Murray, Leslie Meisel, Connor Ratliff, and Johnathan Fernandez. I haven’t yet seen this latest show which debuted recently, but will soon; among its writers are the delightful Silvija Ozols, and Brandon Gulya…who also directed: Stone Cold Fox: Hey, Look Over Here!

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Cipha Sounds (Hot 97, Chappelle’s Show) thought it would be cool if a hip-hop star told tales and then improvisors made up scenes based on them. Tonight is the debut of this concept, with The RZA from Wu-Tang Clan “mesmerizing the crowd with amazing stories and linguistic darts to spark the creativity of some of the best improvisers in NYC,” the latter being Chris Gethard, Anthony Atamanuik, Neil Casey, Brandon Gardner, and Abra Tabak at the UCB East theatre: Take It Personal: The Hip Hip Improv Show

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($19.62 in advance online, $18 at the door): A top-notch theatrical troupe that’s equally fine at compelling acting and split-second comedy uses actual material on the Web, performed verbatim, to craft laugh-out-loud scenes. Tonight is the debut of the 12th edition of the series (begun in 2011), and—appropriately for Spring—focuses on all things sexy. While everyone in the cast is exceptional, standouts such as Wendy Joy, and the show’s producers Allison Goldberg and Jen Jamula, are worth the trip all by themselves. For a video sample (a pale shadow of the live show), please click here. Another reviewer called this “like Forbidden Broadway for the Internet,” and that’s pretty close to the mark. This is running March 28-30 and April 4-6 at 8:00 pm. Grab tickets in advance before it sells out, and then enjoy this production at Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place): Blogologues: #SexyTime

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm & 10:30 pm ($38.25 & 2-drink min.): A comic’s comic who’s performed on David Letterman, Jay Leno, HBO, FX’s Louie, CNN, FOX, and three Comedy Central specials, and has been a frequent guest on Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn and Howard Stern, headlining tonight and Saturday at the Carolines Comedy Club: Nick DiPaolo

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00 pm: All-gal stand-up from Erin Judge (Comedy Central; comedy album So Many Choices; for hilarious short bit on men vs. women, please click here), Abbi Crutchfield (MTV, VH1; co-host of Positively Awesome and The Living Room), Hadiyah Robinson (BET), Carrie Gravenson (Pink Comedy Tour), and Kaytlin Bailey (Pink Comedy Tour) at Brooklyn’s Postmark Cafe (326 6th Street) hosted by Luke Thayer: The Living Room

[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

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm & 10:30 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.): One of the very finest stand-ups in the country, who’s performed on David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, and The View, starred in two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials, and frequently opens for Louis C.K., headlining tonight and Saturday at the Gotham Comedy Club (with openers Rob Cantrell, Jim Mendrinos, and Deb DiGiovanni), the wonderful Ted Alexandro

8:30 pm ($10): Sketch comedy from Anne Fidler, Tyler Foltz, Paul Travisano, Mikael Walter, and Kevin Young at The Magnet theatre: Citizen Models

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

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($10): A gathering of comedic musicians, who tonight include Myq & Micah (comedic singing duo Myq Kaplan & Micah Sherman; for a song about distribution of natural resources, please click here) and Squirm & Germ performing at UCB East hosted by superb musical group Summer & Eve (for samples, please click here): Earworm Funny Music Party Show

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

9:30 pm ($8): Sketch comedy writers who normally remain off-stage tonight perform their own sketch, stand-up, and/or stories at The PIT downstairs lounge: Sketchy Stand-Up

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 10:00 pm ($15 both online and at the door using discount code WARD, otherwise $20): This top musical improv troupe has wowed audiences around the world with its skill at making up an hour-long musical moment by moment. The plot and characters, the musical accompaniment, even the song lyrics and the “choreography” are invented on the spot, with no pre-planned structure. BWC is running every Friday night through April 4th at the Soho Playhouse. Come see why this show won a FringeNYC Award for Outstanding Unique Theatrical Event: Baby Wants Candy

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

[$] 10:00 pm ($20): Judah Friedlander (one of the quickest minds in comedy; 30 Rock, Meet the Parents, Along Came Polly, author of How to Beat Up Anybody), Russ Meneve (Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno), Mike Vecchione (Last Comic Standing, Howard Stern), Paul Virzi (FOX, Spike TV), Dan Naturman (David Letterman, Jay Leno), and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Judah Friedlander, Russ Meneve, and More

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

10:30 pm ($10): NYC comics performing stand-up or sketch at UCB East hosted by Brandon Scott Jones, D’Arcy Carden, Justin Tyler, Emily Axford, and/or Alden Ford: Gentrify

[TOP PICK] 11:00 pm ($8): Improvised scenes by duos—Steve Soroka & Paul Gutkowski, Ashley Ward & David Rysdahl, Beth White & Ariel Karlin, and Bill DiPiero & Kaitlin Fontana—based on the “Missed Connections” section of Craigslist at The PIT upstairs theatre: Missed Connections Two-Prov

[TOP PICK] 11:30 pm ($5): Before this Magnet show, audience members may anonymously submit written confessions, secrets, rants, advice and opinions which will be used onstage by the improvisors—who include such talents as Laura Grey (stellar old-time radio style theatrical podcast Horrorgasm, improv troupe Salmon Diane, sketch/improv duo Klepper & Grey): The Friday Night Sh*w

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

[TOP PICK] Midnight ($5): Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here) is tonight’s headliner at this UCB East show that features a top comic, plus comics that did well at the 7:00 pm Hot Chicks Room open mic, plus two comics whose names will be drawn from a hat, hosted by Nate Dern, Sarah Tollemache, and Paul Oddo: Beastmasters: Up From the Mic

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

[TOP PICK] [$] 12:15 am ($20 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Marina Franklin (developing into one of the finest stand-ups in the country, with an uncommonly gentle, graceful style that’s pure joy; Last Comic Standing, Chappelle’s Show, Craig Ferguson, VH1, Comedy Central’s Premium Blend), Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Andrew Schulz (MTV2’s Guy Code), Wil Sylvince (Comedy Central, BET’s Comic View), Phil Hanley (Craig Ferguson, Comedy Central), and Mike Vecchione (Last Comic Standing, Howard Stern) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Keith Robinson (HBO, Comedy Central, Wanda Sykes Show): Marina Franklin, Big Jay Oakerson, and More

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Blogologues: #SexyTime, Comedy, Improv, New York Comedy, Nick DiPaolo, Sketch, Stand-Up, Ted Alexandro, Wendy Joy | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 2/19/13

February 19, 2013

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Kate McKinnon, Ted Alexandro, and Dan Mintz

SNL’s Kate McKinnon is at Sweet (appropriate, because she is); Ted Alexandro helps launch new UCB East stand-up show Beastmasters; Dan Mintz practices for his David Letterman set at ComedyJuice

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

[TOP PICK] [ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): In this delightful weekly open-mic show, each comic has 3 minutes to try out a character-based bit (e.g., for a solo show, sketch, or audition) at The PIT downstairs lounge, hosted by Jen Kwok (Comedy Central) and Keisha Zollar (Doppelganger): Imposter Open Mic

[ALMOST FREE] 6:00 pm ($1): Open-mic sketch that allows you to either perform a sketch with your own performers or bring in pages for the audience to perform at The PIT downstairs lounge, followed by feedback on your bit from PIT “sketch-perts:” Pens & Pencils

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

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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: College Humor head writer Patrick Cassels 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, plus music from band The Baby Grand: Comic Book Club

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Jeff Simmermon (NPR’s This American Life, host of And I Am Not Lying) is the booked guest tonight at this weekly 2-hour open-mic storytelling show that 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

7:00 pm ($5): Stand-up, sketch, storytelling, maybe juggling—it’s an “anything can happen” variety show at The PIT downstairs lounge, with regulars Amber Nelson, Molly Austin, Mike Brown, Shamikah Martinez, and Shak Standley, plus tonight’s guests Billy Prinsell and sketch troupe Grits: The Big Pony Show

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

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Christopher Agostino (tells stories using facepaint), Tammy Hart (Super Show), Damien Lemon (MTV2’s Guy Code, Comedy Central), and musical guest Iron Curtain (Chiptune music composed on a Game Boy) performing at Brooklyn’s Union Pool (484 Union Avenue) along with sketches from Moon regulars Camille Harris, Jordan Clifford, and Tim Skinner, and hosts Nat Towsen & Bob Walles: The Moon Show

8:00 pm ($5): Making great use of UCB East’s previous incarnation as an indie movie theatre, tonight features screenings of select films running five minutes or less—most of them funny—crafted in the style of TV pilots. The shorts receiving the most audience votes get to continue with additional episodes, while the others are “canceled” at Channel 101

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

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

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Kate McKinnon (genius sketch comic and stellar cast member of Saturday Night Live; voice actress for Adult Swim’s Venture Brothers and Comedy Central’s Ugly Americans; one of my favorite people in the word), Har Mar Superstar (Seth’s description: “One of the most beloved, hilarious, and downright fabulous, short, white R&B rappers and vocalists to come out of LA in years, about to release his 5th album, Bye Bye 17, has performed on Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, The Sharon Osbourne Show, and in the films Pitch Perfect, Starsky & Hutch, and Whip It“), Greg Johnson (Sirius Radio host), and more performing at The Slipper Room (167 Orchard Street) hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Sweet

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 9:00 pm: Joe List (HBO, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), Chesley Calloway, Matt Ruby, Sean Donnelly, Gordon Baker Bone, and Dan Kalwhite perform stand-up—with composer Matt Garrisona’s four-piece jazz band playing in the background!—at Queens LIC’s The Creek downstairs lounge hosted by Mike Finoia: Code Name: Comedy and Jazz

9:15 pm-Midnight ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Sherlock & Cookies, A Sparrow, and Guthrie—plus advanced improv students get theatrical and make up on the spot a fully Improvised Play—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): A brand new monthly stand-up show at UCB East which is starting out strong with Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), Carmen Lynch (David Letterman, Last Comic Standing finalist, Comedy Central), Joe List (HBO, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), and more hosted by Nate Dern, Sarah Tollemache, and Paul Oddo: Beastmasters

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Al Madrigal (correspondent for The Daily Show; Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno), Dan Mintz (visiting NYC from LA this week to do his first set on David Letterman; Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central Half Hour, Bob’s Burgers, HBO, MTV), Ryan Hamilton (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, Showtime), Streeter Seidell (Editor-in-Chief of College Humor; Jimmy Kimmel, MTV’s Pranked), and more performing stand-up at the Gotham Comedy Club hosted by Jared Logan (rising star; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, CNN, TBS): ComedyJuice

[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

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Comedy, Dan Mintz, Improv, Kate McKinnon, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Saturday 12/29/12

December 29, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

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

SNL’s Kate McKinnon performs a character bit at Characters Welcome; Ted Alexandro does stand-ups at The Stand (8:30) and Comedy Cellar (11:00)

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] [$] 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) in the West Village: The Old Man and the Moon

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): Kate McKinnon (genius sketch comic and stellar cast member of Saturday Night Live; voice actress for Adult Swim’s Venture Brothers and Comedy Central’s Ugly Americans), Sasheer Zamata (highly charming, innovative rising star; host of UCBT’s School Night, member of red-hot improv troupe Doppelganger, sketch troupe The Prom, and Harold Night troupe Bucky), and many more performing character bits at UCB East hosted by Justin Tyler and Michael Hartney: Characters Welcome

7:00 pm ($5): A one-woman show by Anna Drezen about “lonely cannibals, clingy ghost roomies, manic pixie devil worshipers, and other adorable stains-on-society who just want to make a friend” at The PIT upstairs theatre: Spooky Jerks

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($7): A sharp musical improv troupe makes up stories with song and dance based on an audience suggestion: Choral Rage

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

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm ($20): TV & movie star Janeane Garofalo, Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Comedy Central; opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), Sherrod Small (writer/performer on TBS’ Are We There Yet?, Comedy Central, VH1), and Yannis Pappas performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street): Janeane Garofalo, Ted Alexandro, Rachel Feinstein, and More

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($10): James Adomian (hilarious, super-charged character comic-impressionist; finalist on most recent Last Comic Standing; Harold and Kumar 2), Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Claudia Cogan (Last Comic Standing, MTV, Logo, here! TV), Andy Haynes (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Last Comic Standing), Alice Wetterlund (improv troupe Garamond; College Humor), and Toby Muresianu performing stand-up at UCB East guest-hosted by Nick Turner: If You Build It

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 typically sells out in advance): Erik Bergstrom (cartoonist/author of Grimmer Tales, The New Yorker, Comedy Central’s Indecision 2012), Amber Nelson (fearless, innovative rising star; sketch troupe The Prom, co-host of Late Night Stand and Mustache Party), Tom McCaffrey, Pete Lee, Christie Walsh, Nick Turner, Nate Fridson, Nathan Anderson, Abigoliah Schuman, Ron Krasnow, and Joel Walkowski performing stand-up for this show in which comedy 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 improv troupe Airwolf—which includes such talents as John Frusciante, Molly Lloyd, Tim Martin, and Emily Axford—makes stuff up at UCB East based on hellish experiences of audience members: Airwolf: Let’s Go Back to Your Place

10:30 pm ($7): Magnet Instructors Louis Kornfeld and Rick Andrews pair together for one night of improvisation as comedy duo Kornfeld & Andrews

[TOP PICK] [$] 11:00 am ($20 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), Pete Correale (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Comedy Central one-hour special), Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Greer Barnes (David Letterman, Chappelle Show, For the Love of the Game), Lenny Marcus (David Letterman, MTV), Robert Kelly (Louie, Comedy Central, Opie & Anthony), and Matt Simons (Jay Leno) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Ardie Fuqua: Ted Alexandro, Pete Correale, and More

[TOP PICK] Midnight ($5): Adam Newman (Comedy Central, MTV, College Humor, comedy CD Not for Horses), Leah Bonnema (VH1, WeTV, Logo), Missy Baker, and Tim Dillon share true-life longish funny tales at this UCB East mashup of stand-up and storytelling hosted by Alison Leiby: It’s a Long Story

Midnight ($5): Sketch troupes Coker & Stratton and a challenger TBA compete for audience laughs and votes at UCB Chelsea hosted by sketch troupe Sidecar: Backyard Brawl

[FREE] Midnight: NYC stand-ups (not announced) at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City hosted by Nick Turner (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Midnight Run

[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

[TOP PICK] [$] 12:45 am ($20 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Pete Correale (David Letterman, Jay Leno, Comedy Central one-hour special), Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Greer Barnes (David Letterman, Chappelle Show, For the Love of the Game), Modi (HBO’s The Sopranos, Comedy Central), and Dan Naturman (David Letterman, Jay Leno) performing stand-up at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) hosted by Ardie Fuqua: Big Jay Oakerson, Pete Correale, Mark Normand, and More

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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 12/11/12

December 11, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Star stand-up Ted Alexandro performs at Comedy Cellar and Schtick a Pole In It for Xmas…

…and autotune masters The Gregory Brothers make the holidays sing 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:

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

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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Comics creators Brandon Perlow & Paul J. Mendoza (Watson and Holmes) joining super-hosts Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler, and Pete LePage in a lively & hilarious discussion about four-color pop culture at Fontana’s (105 Eldridge Street), with giveaways of comics and gift certificates: Comic Book Club

7:00 pm ($5): A one-man show by Shawtane Monroe Bowen featuring storytelling, characters, and a song at The PIT downstairs lounge: I Don’t Even Have Shoes

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

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), Hannibal Buress (former staff writer for 30 Rock, Saturday Night Live; David Letterman, Jimmy Fallon, Louie, The Eric Andre Show, host of Comedy Night, one-hour Comedy Central special Animal Furnace), Gregg Rogell (Conan O’Brien, Jay Leno, Louie, Comedy Central), Keith Robinson (HBO, Comedy Central, Wanda Sykes Show), Jeff Lamp (Jay Leno), and Dan Soder (Comedy Central, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here) performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) with emcee William Stephenson: Ted Alexandro, Hannibal Buress, and More

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min.): 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), Kyle Dunnigan (Comedy Central Presents), Louis Katz (Jimmy Fallon, HBO, Comedy Central Presents), Emily Heller (Comedy Central; staff writer for Rooftop Comedy; for ruminations on pregnancy, please click here), Chazz Hawkins, and Josh Gondelman performing stand-up on this week’s topic Story of Us at Sidewalk NYC (94 Avenue A) produced by Chenoa Estrada, Emily Heller, and George Gordon and hosted tonight by Emily Heller: The Afterlife: Story of Us

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Shannon O’Neill (comedy genius), Morgan Grace Jarrett (wonderful comedic actress), Lydia Hensler (member of red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes), and Brandon Scott Jones (top sketch troupe Stone Cold Fox, red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes, top comedic play Death Wears Stilettos) host a showcase of female comics at UCB East who tonight are Sue Smith, Athena Reich, Nicole Pasquale, Julie Kraut: Ladies Night: Men Welcome

8:00 pm ($5): Jeffrey Joseph (Jay Leno, HBO, FOX’s In Living Color, Comedy Central), Michael Che (David Letterman, Comedy Central), Jim Tews, Zach Broussard, Nate Fridson, and more performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Union Hall for this show hosted by Calvin Cole & Sharron Paul that calls attention to its inexpensive price: Cheap Date

8:00 pm ($10 at the door or $11.75 online): A bizarre mix of comedy and pole dancing for the holidays, featuring world-class stand-up Ted Alexandro (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), plus stand-ups Adam Lehman, Dan Goodman, Kerryn Feehan, and JoAnna Ross, and a whole bunch of gal pole dancers, at R Bar (218 Bowery, between Rivington and Prince Streets): Schtick a Pole In It for Xmas

8:00 pm ($8): “A special cancery retelling of A Christmas Carol that will warm your heart and make you get a cancer screening” starring H. Alan Scott at The PIT upstairs theatre: A SRSLY Grumpy Holiday

8:00 pm ($5): Four sketch comics (not announced) each show off his or her best solo character work for this unique show at The PIT downstairs lounge, hosted by Sam Martin & Matthew Robert Gehring: Comedy Expo

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

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm ($15 plus 2-drink min.): Big Jay Oakerson (Comedy Central Presents, HBO, Showtime, MTV), Joe Matarese (David Letterman, Chelsea Lately, Comedy Central Presents, Bravo, IFC), Dave Smith, Luis J. Gomez, and more performing stand-up at The Stand Comedy Club (239 Third Avenue & 20th Street) for the Legion of Skanks Live Podcast

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): Neal Brennan (razor-sharp, edgy comedy veteran; HBO, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, co-creator of Chappelle’s Show), The Gregory Brothers (awesome autotune guys), Seaton Smith (Opie & Anthony Virus Tour), Kara Klenk (Comedy Central, Spike, Nickelodeon; host of If You Bring It), and more performing stand-up at The Slipper Room (167 Orchard Street) hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, 30 Rock, VH1): Sweet

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Andy Sandford (member of The Beards of Comedy), Nick Maritato (Meatsteak, This American Life), Erin Lennox (host of DTF, co-host of The Orphanage; for a sample of Erin’s dynamite Seriously Sports show, please click here), Gibran Saleem (The Gun Show), and Zach Sims (MTVU) performing stand-up at this weekly show at Brooklyn’s The Alligator Lounge (600 Metropolitan Avenue) hosted by Sean Donnelly, Steve O’Brien, Robert Dean, and/or Kevin McCaffrey: Comedy at Alligator Lounge

9:15 pm-Midnight ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Guthrie, A Sparrow, and Bucky—plus advanced improv students “are going to challenge themselves by performing a show that they only just learned,” summed up as Instant Gratification—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): A weekly wild experiment in dark comedy, blending sketch and improv, from two of the most brilliant, fearless, and innovative comics in the biz, John Gemberling (Death by Roo Roo, Adult Swim, Comedy Central) and Anthony Atamanuik (Death by Roo Roo, 30 Rock, Conan O’Brien, Huffington Post, The Nights of Our Lives)—with tonight’s theme “The Buttcracker, some old communist’s stupid dance-play about a common worker, a plumber, who fixes a politburo elites shit-stuffed toilet on Christmas eve. Bring your children so we can fondle them”—at UCB East, plus tonight’s guests Jamie Lee (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, MTV’s Ridiculousness, VH1), Trevor Williams (Comedy Central, CollegeHumor), and Brian Frange, plus producer Andy Rocco: The Tony and Johnny Show

9:30 pm ($8): A dozen sharp talents deliver brand new sketch comedy at The PIT upstairs theatre: Big Business

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($12 plus 2-item food/drink min.): Dave Attell (star of Comedy Central’s Insomniac, David Letterman, IFC), Godfrey (Comedy Central Presents, Louie, 30 Rock, VH1; films Zoolander, Original Gangsters, Soul Plane; 7 Up Yours ads), Jermaine Fowler (FOX’s new In Living Color, MTV, Adult Swim’s The Eric Andre Show), Modi (HBO’s The Sopranos, Comedy Central), Ryan Hamilton (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, Showtime), Sherrod Small (writer/performer on TBS’ Are We There Yet?, Comedy Central, VH1), and Mike Vecchione (Mike Vecchione (Last Comic Standing, Howard Stern) performing at Comedy Cellar (117 MacDougal Street, between 3rd Street & Minetta Lane) with emcee William Stephenson: Dave Attell, Godfrey, and More

[$] 10:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Jessica Kirson (Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, HBO, Showtime, Bravo, VH1, Logo one-woman show My Cookie’s Gone), Matt Fulchiron (Comedy Central Half Hour, Tosh.O), Pete Lee (Comedy Central Half Hour), Adam Lowitt (Co-Executive Producer of The Daily Show), Andrew Schulz (MTV 2’s Guy Code), and more performing stand-up at the Gotham Comedy Club hosted by Jared Logan (rising star; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central): ComedyJuice

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 10:00 pm: NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing dirty, smutty, filthy jokes at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Jefferson: Blue

[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

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Comedy, Improv, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Ted Alexandro, The Gregory Brothers | Permalink
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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 11/20/12

November 20, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Note: A huge THANK YOU to UCB Chelsea and stellar host Sean Patton for last night’s Whiplash featuring three of the greatest stand-ups alive: Anthony Jeselnik, Aziz Ansari, and Chris Rock!!! Chris & Aziz performed extra-long sets, keeping the 11:00 pm extravaganza going until 1:30 am.
Aziz said, “This is a $300 show you guys are seeing for free.” Exactly right. Again, THANK YOU.

Sean Patton, Sara Schaefer, and Ted Alexandro

Four of the finest stand-ups in the country—Sean Patton, Sara Schaefer, Ted Alexandro, and Todd Barry (not pictured)—perform at Seth Herzog’s Sweet…

…while the lovely Amber Nelson & Ashley Brooke Roberts host sketch, stand-up, tarot readings, and more at The Dream Show

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

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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Marvel Comics Editor Jordan D. White and comedian Scott Eckert 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

[TOP PICK] [$] [DISCOUNTED] 7:30 pm ($28 with discount code BBOX [otherwise $40]): 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] [FREE] 7:30 pm tarot readings, 8:00 show ($5): Wonderful sketch comics Amber Nelson & Ashley Brooke Roberts host a free variety show featuring tarot readings at 7:30 from Kat Toledo, and then stand-up, character acts, improv, and/or music from improv brothers Will & Kevin Hines, Sabrina Jalees, and Nick Maritato performing at Brooklyn’s Pete’s Candy Store (709 Lorimer Street): The Dream Show

7:30 pm-9:00 pm ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Rocks, Sherlock & Cookies, and A Sparrow at this first half of Harold Night

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($26 via the box office or $30 online): UK TV star Simon Amstell (BBC’s Do Nothing, Grandma’s House) performs a brilliant one-man show about the anxieties of success and the meaning of life—and yes, he will tell you the meaning of life before the evening ends (worth the price of admission right there…). While the show is tightly scripted, Simon is one of the most lightning-quick wits in comedy, and at the performance I attended reminded me of Daniel Kitson by crafting many of the best moments on the fly from responses to the audience. (For example, when a woman in the first row abruptly got up to leave Simon did several minutes on that; and when she returned from the bathroom and explained she hadn’t missed anything because she’d seen Numb before, Simon replied, “I don’t know whether that makes it better or worse. Does that mean you waited until the part of the show you liked the least?”) Take advantage of this too-brief run in NYC—only two performances left!—and nab tickets at the lovely Theatre 80 St. Marks (80 St. Marks Place, between First and Second Avenues) for Simon Amstell: Numb

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): A unique show in which everyone on the lineup performs something inspired by a song—be it stand-up, a story, sketch, or what have you—and then sings that song karaoke-style. Tonight’s star storytellers are 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), Tom Shillue (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, The Daily Show, Comedy Central Presents, 2011 ECNY Award for Best Storyteller, host of Funny Story), Natasha Rothwell (Hodapp & Rothwell, The Story Pirates, The Curfew, Dinner), and Andy Ross (Real Characters) performing at Brooklyn’s Union Hall hosted by Steve Heisler, Steve Jacobs, and Margaret Lyons: The Jukebox

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): The lovely and talented gals (and one guy) of HelloGiggles.com share personal tales about emailing, emoticoning, and online romancing at UCB East, with tonight’s storytellers including Jena Friedman (wry dark comedy stand-up and rising star; former staff writer for David Letterman, host of Entertaining the Bartender) and Jodi Lennon (TruTV, Annoyance Theatre, Second City, IO): HelloGiggles: The Internet Edition

[TOP PICK] [$] 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) in the West Village: The Old Man and the Moon

8:00 pm ($8): A dozen sharp talents deliver brand new sketch comedy at The PIT downstairs lounge: Big Business

8:00 pm ($8): Comedy troupe THEM performs a scripted musical for the holidays at The PIT upstairs theatre: Plymouth Rock: The Pilgrim Rock Opera

[FREE] 8:00 pm: Barry Rothbart (Jay Leno, Comedy Central, MTV’s Punk’d, IFC’s Do Whatever), Henry Zebrowski (member of award-winning sketch troupe Murderfist), Emmy Blotnick (staff blogger for Jimmy Fallon), and Bill Stiteler performing at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by the wonderful Joe Pera, Dan Licata, and Charles Gould: Dan + Joe + Charles’ Show

8:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min.): Al Jackson (Comedy Central’s John Oliver’s New York Stand-Up), Jim Tews, Doug Smith, Nate Fridson, and Justin Morgan performing stand-up—with this week’s theme Gluttony—at Sidewalk NYC (94 Avenue A) produced by Chenoa Estrada, Emily Heller, and George Gordon and hosted tonight by Erin Judge (Comedy Central; comedy album So Many Choices; for hilarious short bit on men vs. women, please click here): The Afterlife: Deadly Sin Gluttony

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($5): All-star lineup of four of the finest stand-ups in the country: Ted Alexandro (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), 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), Sean Patton (killer sets on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central, VH1, feature film Wifed Out; co-host of Comedy as a Second Language, frequent guest-host of Whiplash), and Sara Schaefer (inventive, luminous comic; co-star of MTV’s The Nikki and Sara Show; Emmy-nominated staff writer for Jimmy Fallon; VH1’s Best Week Ever; co-host of hit podcast You Had to Be There) performing at The Slipper Room (167 Orchard Street)—along with a surprise DJ, and more—hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Sweet

[FREE] 9:00 pm: Jeffrey Joseph (Jay Leno, HBO, FOX’s In Living Color, Comedy Central), Ross Hyzer (Huffington Post), Dan Wilbur (How Not to Read), Jonathan Morvay, and Joel Walkowski performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s The Alligator Lounge (600 Metropolitan Avenue) hosted by Sean Donnelly, Robert Dean, Steve O’Brien, and/or Kevin McCaffrey: Comedy at Alligator Lounge

9:15 pm-Midnight ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Bucky, Guthrie, and Salmon Diane—plus advanced improv students “strips the Harold down to its component parts and rearranges them into a rhythmically complex, mashup-inspired performance piece” for a form called Scramble NYC—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

9:30 pm ($5): A monthly stand-up competition at UCB East in which “new and emerging stand-up comics face off against each other in front of a panel of judges eager to provide unsolicited advice and even more unsolicited scores”—the judges being Brian Cichocki (Caroline’s, Stand-Up New York), and Shannon Coffey. Tonight’s contestants include highly likeable albeit not-so-new comic RG Daniels (long-time host of Sunday Night Stand-Up): Stand-Up Smackdown

9:30 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at The PIT downstairs lounge with host Chris Grace: Cold Soda Comedy

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Steve Rannazzisi (creator/co-star of FX’s The League; Comedy Central, MTV’s Punk’d), 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), Leonard Robinson (MTV’s Wild and Out, Death Valley; FX’s The League; NCIS; Mr. and Mrs. Smith), Dan Soder (Comedy Central, VH1; for set about being a hypochondriatic drug user, please click here), Aaron Berg, and more performing at the Gotham Comedy Club hosted by Jared Logan (rising star; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central): ComedyJuice

[FREE] 10:00 pm: Sean L. McCarthy (TheComicssComic.com) interviews a professional comic (not announced) about the highlights of his or her career at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre: Last Things First

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

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

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Amber Nelson, Ashley Brooke Roberts, Comedy, Improv, New York Comedy, Sara Schaefer, Sean Patton, Sketch, Stand-Up, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Monday 10/15/12

October 15, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Stand-up giants Ted Alexandro, Myq Kaplan, and more perform at John Morrison’s Morrison Motel…

…three rising stars—Jared Logan, Mike Lawrence, and Dan St. Germain—do stand-up as The Dark Lords of Comedy; and the spectacular Erin Lennox hosts Mark Normand, Emily Heller, and more at new Brooklyn show DTF

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: Weekly hour-long open-mic storytelling show, with audience members chosen from a bucket of names getting to tell tales for 8 minutes each at The PIT downstairs lounge along with host Jake Hart: The Dump

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

[FREE] 6:00 pm: An open-mic stand-up show running about 90 minutes at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City with host Chris Gaynor: Open Mic Mondays

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($12 at the door or $11.30 online): Storytellers Jeff Simmermon (co-host of And I Am Not Lying), Naomi Azar (Story Collider) , ) Ilaria Amadasi (Drafts Ensemble), and Clay McLeod Chapman telling tales about this month’s topic “Words Words Words” at Under St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place) with host Seth Lind (NPR’s This American Life): Told: Words Words Words

7:00 pm ($5): Jen Curran is moving to Los Angeles. Join her before she leaves at this show performed by her and some close friends at The PIT downstairs lounge: Jen Curran, Until We Meet Again (Moving to LA)

7:00 pm ($8): In this unique show, the audience texts the improvisers on stage their lines—i.e., it’s “the only show that won’t tell you to put away your cell phones—at The PIT upstairs theatre: Text Me My Line

[MEGA-TOP PICK] [$] 7:30 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[FREE] 7:30 pm: Four improvisers form teams with comics they’ve never performed with before at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: The Kaleidoscope

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

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Scott Adsit (cast member of 30 Rock, and co-writer/director/producer & cast member of Adult Swim’s awesome & Emmy-winning Moral Orel) teaming up with fellow 30 Rock actor John Lutz (who previously spent six years as a staff writer for Saturday Night Live) to form a super-smart and hilarious star improv duo that’s become one of the very best attractions at UCB Chelsea and should not be missed: John & Scott

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($9.47 online or $8 at the door): W. Kamau Bell (host of Totally Biased), 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), Rachel Feinstein (finalist on Last Comic Standing; Comedy Central; opens for Sarah Silverman on tour), and Jermaine Fowler & Kevin Barnet as HomoThugs performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Littlefield (622 Degraw Street) hosted by Nimesh Patel, Mike Denny, and/or Michael Che: Broken Comedy

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00ish pm: Bridey Elliott (David Letterman, Witstream) debuts a stand-up show just for kicks, with tonight’s guests Ted Travelstead (Vanity Fair, author of Sex: Our Bodies, Our Junk), Jon Friedman (Jimmy Fallon, The Rejection Show), and Jacqueline Novak performing at Brooklyn’s Saint Vitus Bar (1120 Manhattan Avenue): Captain Howdy Comedy Hour

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 8:00ish pm: Mark Normand (hilarious stand-up; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central; co-host of Hot Soup and We’re All Friends Here), Emily Heller (Comedy Central; staff writer for Rooftop Comedy; for ruminations on pregnancy, please click here), Victor Varnado (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central, NBC’s My Name is Earl, Adult Swim, Comedy Central’s The Awkward Comedy Show; films Pluto Nash, End of Days, A Guy Thing), Michael Che (IFC’s Bunk, Comedy Central), and Nick Turner (Jimmy Fallon) performing stand-up at Brooklyn’s Grand Victory Bar (245 Grand Street) for this twice-a-month extravaganza hosted by the razor-sharp & delightful Erin Lennox (co-host of The Orphanage; for a sample of Erin’s dynamite Seriously Sports show, please click here) and Nick Maritato: DTF

8:00 pm ($5): Hari Kondabolu (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, Comedy Central Presents, , FX’s Totally Biased), Adam Newman (Comedy Central, MTV, College Humor, comedy CD Not for Horses), Ben Kronberg (Jimmy Kimmel, MTV), Kate Berlant (MTV, CNN, host of Crime & Punishment, notable hair), Michael Che (IFC’s Bunk, Comedy Central), Gabe Liedman (co-host of Big Terrific), and Team Submarine performing stand-up at UCB East hosted by Sam Morril: Comedy Central Corporate Retreat

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($10): Storytellers Robin Gelfenbien, Nisse Greenberg, Aaron Wolfe, and Glennis McCarthy, plus songs from Ben Lerman, at The PIT upstairs theatre: Bare! True Stories of Sex, Desire and Romance

[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): Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), 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), JR Havlan (7-time Emmy winning writer for The Daily Show; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, HBO’s Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher), Carmen Lynch (Last Comic Standing finalist, Comedy Central), Janine Brito (writer for FX’s Totally Biased), and Grant Cooper performing at the Cornelia Street Cafe for John Morrison’s Morrison Motel

8:30 pm ($5): At The Magnet, a mini-play from Chris Nester & Ross Taylor about aspiring Country Western musicians: The Oakwood Boys: The End of the World

[TOP PICK] 9:00 pm ($10 at the door or $10.70 in advance online): Three of the hottest rising star nerds of stand-up perform at Brooklyn’s Union Hall—Jared Logan (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, host of ComedyJuice), Mike Lawrence (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central’s John Oliver’s NY Stand-Up), and Dan St. Germain (quick-witted & enormously likeable; Jimmy Fallon, The Electric Company, MTV, VH1): The Dark Lords of Comedy

[TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): Two UCB Chelsea house sketch troupes try out new bits: Fambly (which includes wonderful rising star Mamrie Hart, Nicole Byer, Dan Chamberlain, Veronica Osorio, and a sharp crew of writers), and Biege (which includes Dan Hodapp, who recently co-starred in FringeNYC smash hit Tail! Spin!): Maude Night: Fambly and Beige

9:30 pm ($5): The debut of 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] 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 Charlie Kasov, Rachel Parenta, Hilary Schwartz, John Mooney, Nathan Macintosh, Taylor Ketcham, and more performing at Brooklyn’s Freddy’s Backroom (627 5th Avenue) with host Pat O’Shea: Ed Sullivan on Acid

10:00 pm ($5): A variety show in which comics perform characters, stand-up, and other bits at The Magnet hosted by Jon Bander: What’s to Get?

[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

[FREE] 10:30 pm: Karaoke at the UCB East Bar for the 9:30 BYOT improvisors and more: Karaoke Night at the Hot Chicks Room

[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 (while Leo Allen is in LA): Whiplash

[FREE] 11:00 pm: 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

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Comedy, Dan St. Germain, Erin Lennox, Improv, Jared Logan, Mike Lawrence, Myq Kaplan, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
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NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 10/2/12

October 2, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.
For free & $5 Greenwich Village Comedy Club tickets, please click here.

Michael Showalter, Dave Hill, and other stars will attempt to put aside their differences and raise funds for school bands at Elna Baker’s & Kevin Townley’s The Talent Show…

…and The Daily Show’s Al Madrigal and ace stand-up Ted Alexandro will fight for the people at ComedyJuice

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

[FREE] 6:00 pm: 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:” Pen & Pencils

[TOP PICK] [$] 7:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), Al Madrigal (correspondent for The Daily Show), Nate Bargatze (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central Presents), and more performing stand-up at the Gotham Comedy Club hosted by Jared Logan (rising star; Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central): ComedyJuice

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm-11:30 ($7 for the whole evening): In this 4 1/2-hour extravaganza, each of six of The Magnet’s singing improv troupes make up a musical on the spot based on an audience suggestion: The Montels and Aquarius at 7:00, Atticus and BEEES! at 8:30, and Legend and Mint Condition at 10:00: Magnet Tuesday Musical Megawatt

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Ben Acker & Ben Blacker, the creators of The Thrilling Adventure Hour (a staged show in the style of old-time radio), joining super-hosts Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler, and Pete LePage in a lively & hilarious discussion about four-color pop culture at Fontana’s (105 Eldridge Street), with giveaways of comics and gift certificates: Comic Book Club

7:00 pm ($5; includes FREE COOKIES): Mostly-gal improv “specializing in upbeat montages that explore real human emotions in a fun way,” plus free cookies, at The PIT downstairs lounge: Baked by MMDK

7:30 pm-9:00 pm ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Bucky, Rocks, and Johnny Romance at this first half (see 9:15 pm for more) of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:00 pm ($20 at the door, or $24 in advance online): This fundraiser for a school band program is a tad pricey, but the lineup is great: Michael Showalter, Eugene Mirman, Dave Hill, Supercute, and more performing at Brooklyn’s The Bell House (149 7th Street, between Second and Third Avenues), with hosts movie & TV actor Kevin Townley (Men in Black III, The Sitter, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, Law & Order) and storytelling jewel Elna Baker (NPR’s This American Life, author of The New York Regional Mormon Singles Halloween Dance): The Talent Show: Save the Band!

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Shannon O’Neill (comedy genius), Morgan Grace Jarrett (wonderful comedic actress), Lydia Hensler (member of red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes), and/or Brandon Scott Jones (top sketch troupe Stone Cold Fox, red-hot improv troupe Grandma’s Ashes, top comedic play Death Wears Stilettos) host a showcase of female comics at UCB East who tonight include Julie Kraut (storytelling), Pirate Sugar (sketch), Kara Klenk (stand-up), and The Reformed Whores (musical performance): Ladies Night: Men Welcome

[TOP PICK] 8:00ish pm (no cover, 1 drink min.): Emily Heller (Comedy Central; staff writer for Rooftop Comedy; for ruminations on pregnancy, please click here), Emmy Blotnick (Jimmy Fallon), Roger Hailes (Chappelle’s Show, VH1, MTV; writer for FUSE’s A Different Spin with Mark Hoppus), Brian Moote (MTV’s Money from Strangers), and Josh Gondelman performing on this week’s topic River Styx at Sidewalk NYC (94 Avenue A) produced by Chenoa Estrada, Emily Heller, and George Gordon and hosted tonight by George Gordon: The Afterlife: River Styx

8:00 pm ($10): Rob Cantrell (Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, VHI, documentary Metaphysical Graffiti, High Times), Nick Vatterott (Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Fallon, Comedy Central’s The Half Hour, MTV, Second City, 2012 Andy Kaufman Award), Dan Crossley, and Marcus Monroe performing stand-up at The PIT upstairs theatre: The Andy Kaufman Fun House

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

[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

9:15 pm-Midnight ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Guthrie, A Sparrow, and The Regulars—plus advanced improv students make up an entire feature film for a form called The Movie—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

[MEGA-TOP PICK] 9:30 pm ($5): A weekly wild experiment in dark comedy, blending sketch and improv, starring brilliant, fearless, and innovative John Gemberling (Death by Roo Roo, Adult Swim, Comedy Central)—who is moving back to LA this week, so catch him while you can—and Anthony Atamanuik (Death by Roo Roo, 30 Rock, Conan O’Brien, Huffington Post, The Nights of Our Lives) at UCB East with tonight’s guests 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), Craig Baldo (Conan O’Brien, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central, VH1, The Onion), and Nimesh Patel (co-host of Broken Comedy): The Tony and Johnny Show

9:30 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing stand-up at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by Chris Grace: Cold Soda Comedy

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

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

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Al Madrigal, Comedy, Dave Hill, Improv, Michael Showalter, New York Comedy, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Tuesday 9/18/12

September 18, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Comedy stars David Wain and…

…Ted Alexandro are among the comedy stars celebrating the 8th Anniversary of Seth Herzog’s “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] 6:30 pm ($5): Ace all-gal improv troupe Doppelganger makes up scenes based around audience tattoos at UCB Chelsea in Doppelganger Gets Inked

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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 7:00 pm: Calista Brill (Senior Editor of First Second Books) and comedian Scott Eckert joining super-hosts Alex Zalben, Justin Tyler, and Pete LePage for a lively & hilarious discussion about four-color pop culture at Fontana’s (105 Eldridge Street), with giveaways of comic books and gift certificates: Comic Book Club

7:30 pm-9:15 pm ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes Johnny Romance, Creature, and Surfing at this first half of Harold Night

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): Stand-up from Irish comic David O’Doherty and the delightful Camille Harris, magic from Vinny DePonto, rock from Quiet Loudly, Andrew W.K. (party-rock icon), and comic book giveaways from Forbidden Planet at Brooklyn’s Union Pool (484 Union Avenue) along with sketches from Moon regulars Camille Harris, Jordan Clifford, James Beard, Tim Skinner, and Tim Whitney, and hosts Nat Towsen & Bob Walles: The Moon Show

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm ($5): A beloved show that brings dead celebrities back to life at UCB East, with magical comedic chameleon Livia Scott (Conan O’Brien, Law & Order, Dirty Movie) hosting tonight as a delightfully diverse grouping of Maria Callas, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and Christopher Hitchens! Joining the party are Ben Lerman (nuanced raunchy comedic singer/songwriter; Logo TV’s NewNowNext, Sirius Radio’s Frank DeCaro Show), John Early (30 Rock), and sketch troupe Rejected Pitches: Livia’s Castle of Enchantment

[TOP PICK] 8:00 pm (no cover, 1 drink min.): Erin Judge (Comedy Central; comedy album So Many Choices; for hilarious short bit on men vs. women, please click here), Jamie Lee (Last Comic Standing, MTV’s Ridiculousness, VH1), Amber Nelson (fearless rising star; sketch troupe Thunder Gulch, co-host of Late Night Stand and Mustache Party), Hari Kondabolu (Comedy Central Presents, Jimmy Kimmel, FX’s Totally Biased), and “a guest so special and sooo secret they won’t even tell me who he/she is” performing on this week’s topic Going to Live on the Farm at Sidewalk NYC (94 Avenue A) hosted tonight by Emily Heller (Comedy Central): The Afterlife: Going to Live on the Farm

8:00 pm ($8): Head writer & director Jen Curran (Harvard Sailing Team, The Baldwins, Jen & Steve) and a dozen other talents perform brand new sketch comedy at The PIT downstairs lounge: Big Business

[TOP PICK] [$] 9:00 pm ($15 at the door or $18.83 online): Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), David Wain (member of seminal MTV sketch show The State and comedy group Stella; writer/director whose work includes feature films Wanderlust, Role Models, Little Big Men, The Ten, Wet Hot American Summer), Will Forte (Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock), and “very special guests” performing at The Studio at Webster Hall (125 East 11th Street, between 3rd and 4th Avenues) for the Eighth Anniversary of this wonderful comedy show hosted by Seth Herzog (Jimmy Fallon, VH1): Sweet

9:15 pm-Midnight ($5): Long form improv known as The Harold from UCB Chelsea house troupes The Pox, Good Girl, and Sandino—plus advanced improv students mash up forms LaRonde and Montage by starting with a series of unlikely pairings and then ending “somewhere deep inside a pile of hilarious character” for a hybrid form called LaRONTAGE—at this second half (continued from 7:30 pm) of Harold Night

9:30 pm ($5): Barry Rothbart (Jay Leno, Comedy Central, MTV’s Punk’d, IFC’s Do Whatever) performs a one-man show at UCB East consisting of stand-up, stories, and characters: Barry Rothbart’s Evening of Evening Comedy

9:30 pm ($5): NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at The PIT downstairs lounge with host Chris Grace: Cold Soda Comedy

[FREE] 9:30 pm: NYC stand-ups (not announced) performing at this monthly gay-themed show at Queens LIC’s The Creek upstairs theatre hosted by Tom Steffen: Rapier Wit

[TOP PICK] [$] 10:00 pm ($15 & 2-drink min.): 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), Nate Bargatze (David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Comedy Central Presents), Maronzio Vance (Jay Leno, Last Comic Standing, Comedy Central), and Sean O’Connor (Conan O’Brien, The Sports Show with Norm MacDonald) performing stand-up at the Gotham Comedy Club: ComedyJuice

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

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

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Comedy, Comedy NYC Tonight, David Wain, Improv, Seth Herzog's Sweet, Sketch, Stand-Up, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
Posted by hybender

NYC Top Comedy Choices for Friday 8/31/12

August 31, 2012

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.
For FringeNYC Encore Series coverage, please click here.

Ted Alexandro continues his headlining run at the Eastville Comedy Club…

…and Joe DeRosa headlines this weekend 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

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($5): One of my favorite people, Julie Sharbutt—who’s performed with some of the greatest improvisors alive at UCBT’s Gravid Water—goes for improv gold herself with comedy partner Cathleen Carr (Birds, The Scene, Dos Experimentos) as they “hope to establish themselves as the leading voices in contemporary South Boston crime noir improv comedy. Watch them, along with special guests Bob Kulhan and Chris Roberti, unspool a suspenseful, heavily-accented mystery thrilla” at The PIT downstairs lounge: Mystic Improv

[TOP PICK] 7:00 pm ($7): One of my favorite writer/actress/improvisors, the brilliant and luminous Lauren Olson, teams with Jon Bander and Karsten Cross at The Magnet to perform as improv trio Mr. Gorsky; plus in the second half of this double-bill, improv troupe LD50

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Improv geniuses Chris Gethard and Gavin Speiller are tonight’s guests with regulars Nate Dern (UCBT Artistic Director), Zhubin Parang (writer for The Daily Show), Tracey Wigfield (writer for 30 Rock), Michael Kayne (Baby Wants Candy, Diamond Lion), and more at UCB East making up scenes based on interviews with audience members about their love lifes: What I Did For Love

[TOP PICK] 7:30 pm ($10): Stone Cold Fox is the only sketch troupe (vs. improv troupe) to ever be honored with an ongoing spot on the prestigious UCB Chelsea weekend schedule. It’s earned this slot because its cast is one of the finest in comedy, with each performer strong enough for potential stardom. As for its writers, they sizzle when at their best; but when I saw this new show about two months ago, it was a work in progress. Regardless of the current state of the script, you’re virtually guaranteed a good time from the all-star cast—Fran Gillespie, John Murray, Brandon Scott Jones, Molly Lloyd, D’Arcy Carden, and Johnathan Fernandez. (The scary faces Molly Lloyd makes are worth the trip all by themselves…) Directed by ace improvisor Ryan Karels: Stone Cold Fox: You Probably Think This Show Is About You

[TOP PICK] [$] 8:30 pm & 10:30 pm ($25 & 2-drink min.) A razor-sharp comic who’s performed on HBO’s Bored to Death and Down and Dirty, stars in a Comedy Central Presents special, and released comedy CD The Depression Auction), headlining tonight and Saturday at the Gotham Comedy Club: Joe DeRosa

[TOP PICK] 8:30 pm ($7): A rotating cast of veteran improvisors make up scenes based on the improvised monologues of the co-owner of The Magnet Theatre: The Armando Diaz Experience

[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): Ted Alexandro (one of the very finest stand-ups in the country; David Letterman, Conan O’Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, two Comedy Central Presents half-hour specials; frequently opens for Louis C.K.), Mike Yard (Comedy Central), and more performing at the only comedy club in the East Village: Eastville Comedy Club

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

[TOP PICK] [FREE] 10:00 pm : Sara Benincasa (NBC’s Today Show, The Joy Behar Show, CNN, MTV, The Sarah Palin Vlogs, Sex and Other Human Activities podcast, host of Family Hour, book Agorafabulous) is moving to LA. Come party one last time with her in NYC at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City: Sara Benicasa’s Going Away Bash

10:00 pm ($5): Freestyle rapping long-form improv troupe North Coast recently clobbered some of the best improv groups in NYC at UCBT’s Cage Match. Tonight come see it perform without the pressure of competition at The PIT upstairs theatre, and also catch an improv group that includes Keisha Zollar (Doppelganger): North Coast and Nobody’s Token

[$] [DISCOUNTED] 10:00 pm ($15 [vs. $25] online or at the box office using discount code BBOX): Telly Savalas returns to life to entertain you and provide life guidance in this 50-minute show that was a hit at FringeNYC 2011 and is now enjoying an open-ended Friday night run at the Soho Playhouse’s downstairs Huron Club. The script is at times very smart, especially in its choices of hilarious video clips and music tracks from the real Savalas…who, in his more intense moments, apparently rivaled William Shatner at his silliest. But even when Hunter Nelson’s writing isn’t consistent, actor Tom DiMenna—who is a professional comic with great timing and skill at engaging an audience—will keep you entertained: Who Loves You, Baby?

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

[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] 11:00 pm ($5): NYC comics John Knefel, Angel Yau, Jeff & Buttons, Jason Quarles, Marcy Currier, and Meg Ferrill performing at The PIT downstairs lounge hosted by terrific sketch duo Skinny Bitch Jesus Meeting (Leah Rudick and Katie Hartman) : Daddy’s Basement: A Comedy Variety Freakshow

[TOP PICK] 11:30 pm ($5): Before this Magnet show, audience members may anonymously submit written confessions, secrets, rants, advice and opinions which will be used onstage by the improvisors—who include such talents as Laura Grey (stellar old-time radio style theatrical podcast Horrorgasm, top Maude sketch troupe Gramp’s, sketch/improv duo Klepper & Grey): The Friday Night Sh*w

[FREE] Midnight: NYC stand-ups at The Creek upstairs theatre in Queens’ Long Island City, with host Andy Haynes promising “a rowdy late night comedy melee with beers being thrown, jokes being told, partial nudity, audience participation…there’s no telling what might happen:” Midnight Run

Midnight ($5): A three-person improv competition at UCB East hosted by Brian Glidewell, Josh Patten, and Ben Rameaka: Three for All

For more, please visit HyReviews.com.

Leave a Comment » | Best New York Live Comedy Shows | Tagged: Comedy, Comedy NYC Tonight, Gotham Comedy Club, Improv, Joe DeRosa, Sketch, Stand-Up, Storytelling, Ted Alexandro | Permalink
Posted by hybender

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