solo show – Page 2 – The Comedy Bureau

Pick of the Day: Kenice Mobley: Don’t Kill Yourself Yet (in NYC) 7/29

June 29, 2023

kenice mobley, nyc comedy, solo show, union hall

Of the messages that are crucial to get out to folks these days, “don’t kill yourself yet” is a pretty important one. Thankfully, the hilarious Kenice Mobley has a whole solo show that has that message as its title (and, ostensibly, as the takeaway/moral for the show) coming to NYC soon.

Centered on her experience of having to deal with a near death experience while working through depression and inherited trauma (amongst other wells that comedians often go to for their comedy), Kenice is going to bring her exacting comedic lens to why we should keep staying around on this mortal coil. Opening for Kenice will be NYC comedy favorites Zach Zimmerman, Brittany Carney, and Rohan Padhye.

Kenice Mobley: Don’t Kill Yourself Yet is set for Union Hall on Sat. Jul. 29th at 5PM. Tickets are $11.55 a pop and you really ought to have a formative experience/a great time at a comedy show by buying some here.

Pick of the Day: Anna Seregina: Tour of Anna (in NYC) 6/17

May 24, 2023

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anna seregina, nyc comedy, solo show

While LA is treated to the comedic marvel that is one Anna Seregina, NYC hasn’t been so fortunate to see what a perfect blend of clowning and stand-up can be. So, it behooves us here at TCB to notify all of you in and around the five boroughs when Anna is in town, especially if she’s doing a very special solo evening at one of NYC’s hippest, most underground (even though it’s upstairs) venues.

Yep, Anna Seregina is coming to NYC next month to put on a Tour of Anna at Life World in Brooklyn on Sat. Jun. 17 at 8:30PM. Tickets are only $10 and the address is sent to you upon purchase of tickets (since this show is such the place to be that Saturday night). Go get your tickets right now right here.

Pick of the Day: Chloe Radcliffe: CHEAT (in NYC) 4/6-4/7

April 5, 2023

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chloe radcliffe, nyc comedy, solo show

Seeing the name Chloe Radcliffe on a bill or a line-up should be reason enough to make an outing for an evening of comedy. The whipsmart candor and charm of Radcliffe has made her into an undeniable NYC comedy scene staple. Also, the notion of seeing a solo show about cheating from the perspective of the repeat cheating offender has to, at the very least, make you do a double take.

Combined together will be Chloe doing her solo show wherein she talks through her seemingly insurmountable struggles as a serial monogamist who has cheated in almost every one of her relationships. Knowing Radcliffe, it’ll be thoroughly engrossing as it will be illuminating, funny, and definitely worth the price of admission.

Speaking of which, Chloe is putting up this solo show, aptly named CHEAT this Thurs. Apr. 6th and Fri. Apr. 7th at The Under St. Marks Theater at 7:30PM. Tickets are $18.07 and you can (and should) go buy them here.

Pick of the Day: Comedy Dynamics Festival Tapings (near LA) 4/5-4/9

April 3, 2023

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comedy dynamics, comedy festival, comedy special, el portal theatre, free show, los angeles comedy, solo show, tv taping

To throw a comedy festival in LA, you have to bring something special to the table. The fact that there’s a festival’s worth of live comedy on a nightly basis (now that everything venue/show/etc. has returned after the pandemic) hasn’t really changed throughout the Greater LA Area.

With that in mind, Comedy Dynamics, one of the biz leader’s when it comes to producing comedy specials, is putting an entire eponymous festival this week, run out of NoHo’s El Portal Theatre that relies on their expertise. That’s right, it’s an entire week of comedy special tapings that hopes to capture lightning in a bottle from their favorites sourced from coast-to-coast including Samantha Ruddy, Cara Connors, Subhah Agarwal, Rachel Scanlon, Mary Basmadjian, Leah Rudick, Laurie Kilmartin, and Kylie Brakeman.

As it’s all tapings, the festival just so happens to be free to attend (so long as you RSVP) leaving you very little reason not to go. This Comedy Dynamics Festival runs from this Wed. Apr. 5th through Sun. Apr. 9th and you can RSVP for individual shows/tapings here.

Pick of the Day: Fiona Landers: Funeral Bouquet (in LA) 4/7

March 30, 2023

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fiona landers, los angeles comedy, lyric hyperion, musical comedy, solo show

Thinking about how live comedy is occurring basically at the levels from the before times, we’ve been delightfully reminded, over and over, that many of the things we enjoyed from what seems like decades ago are still around. With a renewed energy coming out of the pandemic, it’s a truly nice surprise to know that there are many a grand thing that we haven’t lost.

One of those things is Fiona Landers‘ ambitious solo musical show Funeral Bouquet that fearlessly and hysterically unpacks a specific grief-filled time in her life. Years and year ago, after we first saw it, we wrote, “Truly, Fiona’s stories accompanied by deftly constructed songs that touch on cancer, death, and rape cover the range of being so damn funny to being so damn heartbreaking (all in the best way possible),” and we still stand by that. Knowing that Fiona is putting Funeral Bouquet up once again at the Lyric Hyperion next week on Fri. Apr. 7th at 7:30PM, it’s thus imperative that we urge you to catch this next performance.

Tickets are $10 and you best go get them here and revel in her show next Friday.

Pick of the Day: Gemma Soldati: The Poor Rich (in LA & NYC) 3/21 & 3/24

March 15, 2023

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ars nova, clowning, gemma soldati, solo show, the elysian

Gemma Soldati’s Poor Rich was one of our picks for 100 Best Things in Comedy We Were Witness To in 2022 and for all the satirical revelry that Soldati engages in when picking apart late stage capitalism, it’s a show that as many folks as possible should see in 2023.

Soldati is putting on once again at the place we saw it, the beloved Elysian on Tues. Mar. 21st at 9:30PM PT (tickets on sale now at $16 a pop), but she is also putting up in NYC at forward thinking performance space, Ars Nova on Fri. Mar. 24th at 7PM ET, which might be the first time New Yorkers might get to see it. Lucky for you guys that the show is Pay What You Can and has a livestream available as well.

So, you kind of don’t have an excuse to see Gemma’s brilliant, hysterical work no matter where you live.

The Comedy Bureau Field Report Ep. 155: Ben Wasserman & Doing Comedy at Funeral Homes

March 15, 2023

News, The Comedy Bureau Field Report

Ben Wasserman, comedy about death, grief, solo show

Though it might be strange to read, comedy can really exude its healing/relieving powers when done in a funeral home. NYC based Ben Wasserman has been proving that while touring with his most personal work to date, Live After Death, a wild solo show about grief and loss created in the aftermath of several deaths of family members and friends in the span of a few years. It’s a rambunctious show that brings an exuberance and a communal joy while also very much holding space for those any and all that are currently or have ever been beset with grief. Wasserman talks candidly to us about how all this came about and how it has changed his comedy and his entire trajectory with performing.

Follow Ben @benwassergram on IG and @benwassertweet on Twitter

The Comedy Bureau @thecomedybureau across platforms and please, please support TCB via Patreon or on Venmo (@jakekroeger).

Produced by Jake Kroeger
Music by Brian Granillo
Artwork by Andrew Delman and Jake Kroeger

Pick of the Day: Ismael Loutfi-HEAVENLY BABA: MY DAD’S PLAN TO CONVERT FLORIDA TO ISLAM (in NYC) 1/17

January 6, 2023

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caveat, ismael loutfi, nyc comedy, solo show

We put the brilliantly funny Ismael Loutfi on our 100 Best Things in Comedy We Were Witness To for his great half hour special that was released via Comedy Central. 2023 should be yet another year where you should take every chance to catch Ismael comedically explore the Muslim American experience in an unforgettable and astute and, of course, damn hilarious way.

This solo show has Loutfi follow the story of his Dad’s ill-fated plan to try to convert all of Florida, one of the wildest states in the lower 48, all to Islam. Already, that sounds like a movie and Loutfi will probably deliver the tale in a way where it should be even more clear that it ought to be a movie.

Heavenly Baba: My Dad’s Plan to Convert Florida to Islam is set for Tues Jan. 17th at 9:30pm at Caveat on NYC’s LES. Tickets are $15 right now and you really ought to go get them here.

Pick of the Day: Colin Quinn-Small Talk (in NYC) 1/6-2/11

January 3, 2023

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colin quinn, james fauvell, lucille lortel theatre, nyc comedy, solo show

At this point, Colin Quinn is an institution unto himself in comedy and in NYC. Even before his big shows taking on the history of NYC and the U.S. Constitution, Quinn had, for our money, his reputation crystalized from his stand-up and hosting Tough Crowd (which would be a perfect show for right about n0w).

That’s all to say that you should always go out of your way to watch his next big thing, which, for 2023 is a show all centered on the art of “small talk”. For your money, Quinn is going to relate his mastery of casual conversation and, very likely, make your life all the better for it both at the show and later on in life.

Colin Quinn: Small Talk is set for a run on the Lucille Lortel Theatre in NYC from Jan. 6th-Feb. 11th. Tickets start at $41 and you can (and should) go get them here.

Pick of the Day: How to Poison an Audience with Kate Hollowell (in LA) 11/26

November 23, 2022

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kate hollowell, los angeles comedy, musical comedy, solo show, the elysian

Just off of title alone, comedy mult-hyphenate Kate Hollowell certainly knows how to hook one’s curiosity with her playfully, carefully “unhinged” stage show as pop star persona. When we first heard about it, the show was joyfully called “Number One Popstar Presents: A Sold Out Show *Plenty of Tickets …”, which we’re all in for. Now, it’s even more maniacally and splendidly called “How to Poison an Audience with Kate Hollowell”.

Hollowell does a magnificent and hysterical job sending up the idea of wanting to be a big time pop star and what a desire for fame can do to one’s psyche (on top of making genuine bops throughout the show). Also, Kate still goes the extra mile with having indelible backup dancers for many of her numbers and an actual child playing her very own inner child (that doesn’t take notes very well). Honestly, this does what Lonely Island’s Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping set out to do, but much better.

The next How to Poison the Audience with Kate Hollowell is set for this Sat. Nov. 26th at 7:30PM at The Elysian. Tickets are $12 and you very much can and should get them here.

Pick of the Day: NATE by Natalie Palamides (in LA) 12/1-12/4

November 11, 2022

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elysian, los angeles comedy, natalie palamides, nate, solo show

Perhaps you’ve gotten to see the brilliance of Natalie Palamides’ NATE via Netflix. If you haven’t, you might want to go do that right now and be awe struck at Palamides thrilling comedic dissection of toxic masculinity. OR, you could go see it live in person in 2022 at the Elysian Theater in just a couple weeks.

That’s right, Palamides’ award winning, critically acclaimed, star-turn making special is going to be put up for a special exclusive run at The Elysian on Dec. 1st, 3rd, and 4th (as a benefit for the theater). If you’re into anything experimental or you’re just a big comedy fan or if you’re wondering/hoping what sort of very good, very funny thing men need to see to have a figurative mirror shoved back at them in order for them to deal with their own reinforced bad behaviors, you really ought to not miss this.

Tickets are $25 and you need to go get them here because who knows when Natalie is going to be NATE again.

Pick of the Day: Anna Seregina: WORK IN PROG II (in LA) Various Dates in Nov.

October 28, 2022

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anna seregina, elysian, los angeles comedy, solo show

For all the years that we’ve seen Anna Seregina, we’ve seen as true an artist as you can be as a comedian. Seregina has pushed, evolved, experimented, and grown all while being so damn funny as a stand-up, clown, actor, writer, and more. Whether it’s doing an impression of her doing stand-up or getting into post-modern comedic hijinks with her key comedic accomplice Kyle Mizono, we’re always thrilled to see what Seregina has up her sleeve.

So, Anna doing a work-in-progress show is something that absolutely not be missed. Lucky for Angelenos, Anna is mounting WORK IN PROG II at The Elysian next month. There will be three free rehearsals on 11/5, 11/8, 11/12, all at 6PM, leading to a final show on Tues. Nov. 15th at 7:30PM (tickets are $16 for that one).

Don’t miss one of the LA comedy scene’s truly brilliant voices and see her in this latest run. Get all details here.

The Elysian’s Very First Festival Will Be Called ‘Forget About Spaghetti Festival’ and Promises as Much Delightful Comedy Weirdness as Possible

September 6, 2022

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elysian theater, experimental comedy, los angeles comedy, solo show

The Elysian is just rounding the corner on being officially one year old and they’re marking the occasion by putting on their very first comedy festival, Forget About Spaghetti Festival. In that time, The Elysian has become a beacon for all things wonderfully weird in comedy per the direction of theater’s Executive Artistic Director Kate Banford.

So, from Oct. 20th-30th, there are 17 completely original, untraditional, atypical comedy shows that range from pondering the upside of being a coma, getting into bone fashion, examining nature of existence and the corporeal form via ducks, attending a multi cam sitcom set at Thomas Jefferson’s house, and watching rats auditioning to open for Ricky Gervais just to give an overview. The likes of some of LA comedy’s most innovative voices inlcuding Cricket Arrison, Magi Calcagne, Isabelle Gerasole, David Brown, Kristin Lynne Wallace, and Kim Seltzer & Aliya Kamalova will be bringing this unique cornucopia of shows that you probably would only get to see at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Get the full line-up, schedule, details, and tickets for Forget About Spaghetti Festival here.

Oh, if you’re wondering about the festival’s name, it’s part of a friendly feud with Rick’s, a dining establishment about a mile down the road on Riverside Dr. that famously put “SPAGHETTI IS BACK” on their marquee. Thus, it’s kind of the perfect name.

Pick of the Day: Touched by Jet Eveleth (in LA) 9/24

August 29, 2022

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clowning, jet eveleth, los angeles comedy, solo show

When it comes to clowning in LA, Jet Eveleth, along with all of her work with Clown Church and the Highland Park Clowns, is one of the central figures that you really ought to follow obsessively. Eveleth’s vulnerability and cleverness in her clowning performances simultaneously connects with the audience’s humanity, but still revels in delightful chaos.

So, with that in mind, you really ought to catch her solo show, Touched by Jet Eveleth, at the end of next month in LA’s newly minted experimental comedy theater, Public Displays of Altadena. It’s set for Sat. Sept. 24th at 7PM. Tickets are only $10. All proceeds will go to the theater.

Altadena might not be close to where you’re at in LA, but trust that Jet is always worth the drive.

Pick of the Day: Kate Berlant Is Kate (in NYC) 8/20-10/8

July 18, 2022

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bo burnham, connelly theater, kate berlant, nyc comedy, solo show

Kate Berlant, often thought by many to be a crucial trailblazer in this era of comedy, has achieved such notions by her persistent experimentation in comedy with form, expectation, perspective, and subversion. For the last several months, she has treated LA to the delight of cultivating a solo show that NYC is now going to delight in the fruits of that labor.

Called Kate Berlant Is Kate, Kate will be running the show for an extensive run at the East Village’s Connelly Theater with Bo Burnham set as director (in case you needed some extra incentive for some reason, though you really shouldn’t). It’ll run from August 20th-October 8th, specifically going up at 7PM Mondays through Saturdays with a matinee performance at 3PM on Saturdays. There will be a single Sunday performance on Sept. 4th at 7PM and the show will go dark on Mon. Sept. 5th.

By the way, Kate herself says of this show: All my previous work has been a pale shadow, a humiliation, an impotent suggestion always gesturing toward, yet never quite arriving… now I’m here. And it feels really good.

Tickets starts at $31 for previews and $47 after opening night 9/7. Go get your tickets for this important milestone in comedy before they sell out at kateshow.net.

Pick of the Day: Edinburgh Fringe Preview Day (in LA) 7/23

July 14, 2022

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amber glancy, amirta dhaliwal, brianna ahlmark, business casual, edinburgh fringe, elysian, hannah pilkes, john norris, kate berlant, Kylie Brakeman, los angeles comedy, solo show

One of the world’s biggest and most preeminent performance festivals, especially when it comes to comedy, is the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Thousands of shows that happens over the course of a month and every square inch of Edinburgh, Scotland becomes a show or part of a show.

While that’s all brilliant and it’s a blur of dazzling, mind bending show after show after show after show after show, there is the issue of actually getting to Scotland and where to stay during the festival. That usually runs up a tab of several thousands of dollars and not a lot of folks just have that in a back pocket they forgot about.

So, The Elysian is doing LA a solid by putting on a whole entire day of preview shows for The Edinburgh Fringe on Sat. Jul. 23rd featuring many of LA’s most daring performers putting on their solo shows one last time before they head abroad with it.

So that’ll feature

11 AM – Amber Glancy: Wine Show
12:20 PM – Brianna Ahlmark: Gertrude
1:40 PM – Kylie Brakeman: Linda Hollywood’s Big Hollywood Night
3 PM – Amrita Dhaliwal: Driving Around
4:20 PM – Brian McElhaney: A Completely Untested Hour of Stand Up
5:40 PM – Hannah Pilkes: Woman On the Verge
7 PM – Kate Berlant: Like You’ve Never Seen Her Before
8:40 PM – Business Casual: FERAL
10 PM – John Norris: Mr. Chonkers

You can either buy tickets for the first five shows for $18 or second four shows for $26 or get access to all of them plus admission to Tomorrow! with Ron Lynch for $60. That’s still thousands of dollars cheaper than actually going to the Fringe if you weren’t tabulating the math. Go get your tickets here.

Pick of the Day: Alison Leiby: Oh God, A Show About Abortion (in NYC in August & LA 7/20)

June 29, 2022

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abortion, abortion rights, alison leiby, cherry lane theatre, comedy show, largo, los angeles comedy, nyc comedy, solo show

Of course, Alison Leiby didn’t know that her acclaimed solo show that gets into the humanity of her experience with abortion, “Oh God, A Show About Abortion”, would just happen to coincide with the current Supreme Court guaranteeing themselves on being on the wrong side of history by overturning Roe vs. Wade, yet, here we are.

Leiby’s now-more-crucial-than-ever show, presented by Ilana Glazer and directed by Lila Neugebauer, has ascending through NYC comedy into an extensive Off Broadway run at the Cherry Lane Theatre that just got extended with a three week run in August running M-F from 8/8-8/26. For LA folks, there will be an exclusive night at Largo at the Coronet Theatre on Wed. Jul. 20th at both 8PM PT & 10PM PT.

You can get tickets for any and all of these dates for Alison Leiby: Oh God, A Show About Abortion at ohgodshow.com.

Oh, if you’re looking for upcoming comedy shows that are supporting abortion funds, we got a page for you here.

Pick of the Day: Going Up with Sara Schaefer-Free Rehearsals (in LA) 6/17 & 6/20

June 16, 2022

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elysian, going up, how to do comedy, los angeles comedy, meta comedy, sara schaefer, solo show

Very few comedians are as studious about the actual art form as one Sara Schaefer, a very, very splendid comedian herself. Schaefer herself has done spectacular work in almost every discipline of comedy and almost on every level and now, with that wealth of experience and acclaim, is doing a perfectly biting satirical solo show on “how to become a comedian”.

Called, “Going Up”, Sara is currently developing this show that piercingly examines the scaffolding that the art form of comedy has propped up for itself and does what does comedy best, point out the most ridiculous parts of it for the purpose of making people laugh (see Sara’s lesson on anti-comedy for further understanding).

Going Up with Sara Schaefer is currently a work in progress show that has two upcoming dates at The Elysian on Fri. Jun. 17th and Mon. Jun. 20th at 6PM PT. Best of all, you can revel in Sara’s reckoning with stand-up comedy on those dates for FREE.

Pick of the Day: Jen Kirkman: Gonna Panic Like It’s 1999 (in NYC) 6/15-8/21

April 26, 2022

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jen kirkman, nyc comedy, solo show, storytelling

Following her genius final stand-up album OK, Gen-X, Jen Kirkman is very much done with stand-up comedy for so many heartbreaking reasons. That said, we’re thrilled to know that she’s not done with performing as Jen has set up a run of work in progress solo shows this Summer at Union Hall entitled, Gonna Panic Like It’s 1999.

Off of that perfection of a title, she’s going to run through a collection of stories that she has worked on throughout the years, but never made it all into one solo show that include, but are definitely not limited to:

-Her grandmother’s views of Armageddon that were validated by her childhood priest.
-Trying to move to Hollywood to live on the set of “Family Ties.”
-Trying to get famous by tap dancing in the school talent show.
-Taking a fear of flying course and failing the graduation flight due to an outburst on the plane.
-On Y2K when the world didn’t end….realizing she had no idea how to live life.

Jen is, without a doubt, one of comedy’s best storytellers and this upcoming run for her solo shows will and the entire spectrum of emotional colors that will run this show ought to be something beautiful.

Dates for the show are as follows:

6/15 @ 7:30PM ET

6/17 @ 7:30PM ET
6/26 @ 5:30PM ET
7/14 @ 7:30PM ET
7/17 @ 5;30PM ET
7/31 @ 5;30PM ET
8/7 @ 5:30PM ET
8/17 @ 7:30PM ET
8/21 @ 5:30PM ET

Tickets are $20 a pop and you better snag them quick as it doesn’t get much more intimate than Union Hall.

Pick of the Day: Sweet Lorraine with Jordan Temple (in LA) 5/14

April 11, 2022

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elysian, jordan temple, los angeles, solo show, sweet lorraine

OK, if you don’t already know the name Jordan Temple, you really ought to commit it to memory. As both a stand-up and a writer (of so many different types), he has set himself apart with one-of-a-kind voice that is subtle, introspective, wildly imaginative, and so powerfully funny.

For one, Temple has been writing on Atlanta, but he also wrote a play based off the awards season flub of Hidden Fences that was one of the most hysterical stage productions we’ve seen in years.

So, Jordan is embarking on a solo show, Sweet Lorraine, that celebrates the life of his grandmother, Lorraine, and, given his resume, it should be something wholly affecting and very special.

Don’t miss out on Jordan putting it up at The Elysian on Sat. May 14th at 8PM PT. Tickets are $16 and you can (and very much should) go get ’em here.

Pick of the Day: Ilana Glazer Presents: Alison Leiby-Oh God, A Show About Abortion (in NYC, Off Broadway) 4/25-6/4

March 17, 2022

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alison leiby, cherry lane theatre, ilana glazer, nyc comedy, solo show

The Cherry Lane Theatre has become the go-to off-Broadway theater for stand-up comedians transitioning into solo shows on a bigger stage. Colin Quinn, Mike Birbiglia, Hasan Minhaj, and, most recently, Alex Edelman have all had great runs with their respective solo shows that had humble beginnings at various stages in and around NYC.

Now, Alison Leiby will join be the latest addition to the pantheon of comedians to play The Cherry Lane Theatre as her critically acclaimed Oh God, An Hour About Abortion that has made the rounds at Caveat, Union Hall, etc. is now going to be Ilana Glazer Presents Oh God, a Show About Abortion with veteran theater director Lila Neugebauer on board. The show itself is very likely one of the more timely solo shows out there at the moment, considering the rise in anti-abortion legislation in the U.S. over the last few years.

Leiby’s run will go from Mon. Apr. 25th-Sat. Jun. 4th @ 7PM ET with a 3PM ET Saturday matinee, except for May 5th and 30th. Also, a single Sunday performance of Oh God, a Show About Abortion will happen on May 29th @ 7PM ET.

Tickets starts at $37 and highly suggest you snag them right now at ohgodshow.com.

Pick of the Day: Ben Wasserman: Live After Death (in NYC) 3/26

March 15, 2022

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Ben Wasserman, brooklyn, death, Devon Walker, experimental comedy, nyc comedy, solo show

Death, even now, is still a strange, somewhat impenetrable topic to talk about in everyday conversation in America. While other cultures celebrate its relation to life and that, in some cases, is thought more of as a part of an infinite cycle, many of us think of it as something that’s inevitable and, in its inevitability, terrifying.

Comedy, from time to time, does what it does best and brings levity and illumination to the matter of dying whether it be doing a comedy show in Hollywood Forever Cemetery or Sean White doing an excellent entire concept album about losing a good majority of his family (on top of getting divorced) in a very small window of time.

Coming up soon, Ben Wasserman, a cherished, wild NYC multi-disciplinary comedian, is taking another step forward and mixing up death with comedy with his new solo show, Live After Death. Not only will be a show dedicated and inspired to the passing of several people he was close to within 3 years, but it’ll be a mix of stand-up, crowd work, and clowning, and it’ll be performed at an actual funeral home (Comedy Is Dead @ Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever can’t even claim that).

Wasserman will be performing Live After Death in the perfect setting, specifically at Sparrow: A Contemporary Funeral Home in Brooklyn with Devon Walker doing an opening set on Sat. Mar. 26th at 8:30PM ET. Tickets for what is sure to be an unforgettable, cathartic show are only $10 right now (and $15 at the door). We highly suggest you snag your tickets right now.

*poster by Zaq McCollum

Pick of the Day: Adam Cayton Holland: Happy Place (in NYC) 4/9

February 16, 2022

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adam cayton holland, brooklyn, happy place, nyc comedy, solo show, union hall

At this current point in time, even though the pandemic isn’t over, it does seem like we are now legitimately picking up where we left off in March 2020 and as we’re nearing the actual two year mark of when lockdown happened, we’re reminded of all the great things that came to a screeching halt around then.

The brilliant Adam Cayton-Holland was on the path of touring his solo show loosely based off his critically acclaimed tragi-comic memoir, Tragedy Plus Time, resulting in a beautiful, funny, and heart-wrenching hour. Now, on this side of the pandemic, we have no doubt that there’s even more to the show that will be timely and so cathartic, especially as the themes of “suicide, mental illness, stand-up comedy and Nancy Kerrigan,” have become prevalent in our lives in 2022 (Kerrigan comes to mind because of the Winter Olympics happening right now).

Adam will be bringing his Happy Place show back to Brooklyn’s Union Hall on Sat. Apr. 9th at 7:30PM ET. Tickets are only $15 and you best not miss your chance to watch Cayton-Holland’s most arresting and affecting work to date. Get tickets here.

Pick of the Day: Sad Sacks (in NYC) 12/1

November 18, 2021

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anthony devito, casey james salengo, chris gethard, doug smith, ny comedy, solo show

With the exposure of solo shows from the UK and Australia and the ever changing DNA of comedy specials these days, we hope that you’ve expanded your consideration of what constitutes an hour of comedy these days. Certainly, in America, it can be quite difficult to develop such material as there has been historical expectation at comedy shows of cut and dried jokes, honed or raw. The inclination towards vulnerability in comedy, even though that was Richard Pryor’s bread and butter, has only really become a trend over the last decade.

With that in mind, it’s important to have space for such genre bending, more emotionally deep works of comedy that fall into that age old label of “solo show”. Thus, Sad Sacks @ Caveat in NYC’s LES is born. Celebrated and seasoned comedians Chris Gethard, Casey James Salengo, Anthony Devito, and Doug Smith all have their solo shows that they’re working on and will be performing excerpts of it together at this very special showcase. It’ll be a comedy show that has the whole range of emotional color that, we’d argue, makes for a much more enriching experience.

So, do not miss out getting tickets for Sad Sacks on Wed. Dec. 1st at 7PM ET. They’re $15 and you can go get them here.

Pick of the Day: Natalie Palamides’ LAID (in LA) 12/2-12/4

November 1, 2021

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elysian theater, laid, los angeles comedy, natalie palamides, solo show

LAID was the very first solo show we saw from Natalie Palamides and it’s no overstatement to say that it changed us forever. The show is literally and figuratively so transformative, both for the audience and Natalie herself, that the memories of Palamides’ reimagining of the life cycle as a solo comedy show is beautifully seared into our brains forever. In fact, it might be just a little more out there than Nate?

Also, it’s an internationally renowned show that garnered Natalie so many awards.

We’d go into more detail, but, in case you haven’t seen it, we very much don’t want to spoil it for you.

We’ll, instead, just say that Palamides is doing an exclusive limited run of performances of LAID as a fundraiser for the Elysian Theater from Thurs.-Sat. on Dec. 2nd-4th at 8:30PM. After the thousands of shows that we’ve seen, it’s still one of the very best we’ve seen and you should not miss your chance to see it live once more.

Tickets are $25 and you better go snag them before they sell out.

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