|
★ NOW SHOWING ★
This Week in NYC Improv & Sketch
May 11 – May 17, 2026
|
|
Hey there,
Here's a curated digest of what caught our eye on NYC improv & sketch stages this week. Just the stuff we'd actually tell a friend about.
Forwarded this? Subscribe here so you don't miss next week.
|
|
Scroll down for shows every day this week ↓ 🎭 Monday · 🌟 Tuesday · ✨ Wednesday · 🎶 Thursday · 🎉 Friday · ⭐ Saturday · 🌈 Sunday
|
| Monday, May 11 🎭 | 6:30 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) I Am Nobody This musical, from Tony Award-winner Greg Kotis, explores technology's grip on us with a tuneful, timely parable. Featuring original cast members and a strong creative team, it's a unique theatrical comedy experience. | 7:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) MAUDE NIGHT: Reunion Tour & Mom’s World UCB’s house sketch teams, Reunion Tour and Mom's World, present brand new material. Expect sharp writing and performances from some of UCB's best. | 7:00 PM · Caveat (Lower East Side) Tina Friml Known for her distinctive style, Tina Friml brings her stand-up to Caveat for a night of honest and observant comedy. | 8:30 PM · The PIT Mainstage (Flatiron) Side of Ranch This show features 'Operation: Get a New Mom', a long-form sketch styled like a 90's sitcom about twin daughters trying to find their dad a new partner with unconventional tactics. | 8:30 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) Club Gator Harold team Club Gator steps outside their usual format for an explosive and unpredictable improv set. Come see what happens when the Gators wild out. | 9:30 PM · Caveat (Lower East Side) Let's all laugh at my remarkable brain An intriguing title promises a night of comedy centered around a singular perspective. Caveat often hosts unique performances. |
| Tuesday, May 12 🌟 | ★ 5:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) Just For Laughs New Faces Characters Showcase Catch rising character comics vying for a spot at the prestigious Just For Laughs Montreal Comedy Festival. This is a prime opportunity to see future stars. | 7:00 PM · The PIT Mainstage (Flatiron) The Omnivores Present: Eating Everything! The Omnivores build a unique long-form improv journey inspired by audience tales of memorable meals, whether exotic, romantic, or horrifying. | 7:00 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) LiveWire Sketch Teams Magnet's homegrown writers and performers deliver fresh, smart, and often silly sketch comedy. This is a chance to see new material from a talented ensemble. | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Mainstage (Bushwick) The Limbo Talk Show '93 — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) Step back to 1993 for a talk show set in purgatory, live from the BCC. Expect freaks and quirky interviews in this unique concept show. | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Deep Space (downstairs) (Bushwick) Home Teams — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) Experience primo indie improv from BCC's weekly house teams, including Camelot, Bucket TV, and Improvised Columbo. A strong night for long-form lovers. | 7:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) Harold Night: Hot FM & Club Gator & Rhubarb & Your Girlfriend UCB's long-running Harold Night showcases house improv ensembles performing the classic Harold format. See several top teams at the top of their game. | 7:00 PM · Second City New York Mainstage (Williamsburg) Yearn The Hard Way The cast explores themes of love, loss, and risk-taking through a journey across the moors with lovesick clowns. Expect Second City's signature blend of sketch and improv. | 7:00 PM · The Rat (Downtown Brooklyn) The 2026 Twoprov Tournament - Prelims Witness five improv duos battle it out in the 2026 Twoprov Tournament Prelims, competing to advance in NYC's funniest duo competition. |
| Wednesday, May 13 ✨ | 7:00 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) Megawatt Magnet's hand-picked ensembles perform high-powered long-form improv, bringing unique styles to various forms from Harolds to monoscenes. | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Mainstage (Bushwick) Third Ball and Friends Sketch Show — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) Brooklyn-based pinball team Third Ball hosts a sketch show with their friends, promising a unique and probably quirky night of comedy. | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Deep Space (downstairs) (Bushwick) We're the Smellers — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) This improv set is based entirely on smells, offering a big, goofy, and sensory-driven comedy experience at the BCC. | ★ 7:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) Great Americans Join Henry Block (The Onion) for a satirical biographical retrospective celebrating figures who shaped the country. Expect smart, incisive sketch comedy. | 7:00 PM · Caveat (Lower East Side) Peer Revue Caveat's stage hosts 'Peer Revue', a show that often blends science and comedy, making for an educational and entertaining evening. | 8:30 PM · The PIT Mainstage (Flatiron) Torn Alfredo: The Story of Pop-Punk Legends Follow the rise to stardom of the legendary pop-punk band Torn Alfredo in this improvised show, uncovering how they escaped their hometown. | 8:30 PM · BCC Eris Deep Space (downstairs) (Bushwick) Chicken Big — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) As seen on 'America's Got Talent', Chicken Big brings their unique brand of comedy weekly to the BCC stage. | ★ 9:30 PM · Caveat (Lower East Side) Chris Redd SNL alum Chris Redd brings his acclaimed stand-up to Caveat. Don't miss this opportunity to see a top-tier performer. |
| Thursday, May 14 🎶 | 6:30 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) Musical Megawatt A full night dedicated to musical improv, featuring never-before-seen musicals made up on the spot by skilled improvisers. | 7:00 PM · The PIT Mainstage (Flatiron) PIT Ensembles Experience live, long-form, and musical improvisation with The PIT's house teams, including dot com and The Bellhops, all for one ticket. | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Mainstage (Bushwick) Girl Mountain: Yup, We’re Blue Now — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) Girl Mountain presents a new sketch show exploring why, yes, 'the rumors are true, we are blue now.' Expect creative and specific humor. | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Deep Space (downstairs) (Bushwick) The Good Time — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) Improv veterans from Chicago's Second City and iO deliver a fully improvised show based on a single audience suggestion. | 7:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) NUNS/SLUTS/CUNTS – A World Without Men This improv show, performed without men, promises a unique perspective on the world, as intended by its creators. | 8:00 PM · The Rat (Downtown Brooklyn) I Am Going to Die (and All They Gave Me Were These Lousy Cupcakes) An original one-act play by Lochlan MacLean and February Schneck, this show offers a distinct narrative experience at The Rat. | ★ 8:30 PM · BCC Eris Deep Space (downstairs) (Bushwick) Demon Time — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) As featured in The New York Times, 'Demon Time' brings wild and manic improvised sketches. Welcome to hell, it's a party. | ★ 8:30 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) Roo Man Two surviving members of UCB's legendary improv team Death by Roo Roo shake off the cobwebs with a set of long-form improvised entertainment. |
| Friday, May 15 🎉 | 7:00 PM · The PIT Mainstage (Flatiron) Wigs! A high-energy improv show where wigs drive the story, with audience participation to set the genre and conflict. Expect character-driven narratives from quick actors. | 7:00 PM · BCC The BCC Pig Pen (Bushwick) Unsynchable — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) An elite squadron of improvisers brings 'your other selves' to life through performance, promising a unique and unexpected experience. | ★ 7:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) The Stepfathers The legendary UCB improv group, featuring Shannon O’Neill, Connor Ratliff, and Zach Cherry, makes sad things funny in their long-running show. | 7:00 PM · Caveat (Lower East Side) Our Findings Show This Caveat event promises a presentation of discoveries, likely blending comedic performance with intellectual curiosity. | 7:30 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) Premiere: The Improvised Musical NYC's top comedy performers and instructors create a fully improvised musical based on an audience suggestion, complete with characters, songs, and dance numbers. | 8:30 PM · BCC Eris Mainstage (Bushwick) Obsessed With Us — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) A fully improvised long-form show based on an interview with an audience member about their chosen obsession. Expect personal stories to fuel the comedy. | ★ 8:30 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) ASSSSCAT NY UCB’s signature improv show brings together a group of improv comedians from film and TV who take audience suggestions and a special guest monologist to create spontaneous scenes. | 9:00 PM · The Rat (Downtown Brooklyn) Kismet — a Comedy Variety Show Hosted by Morgan Blanchard and Caleigh Lozito, this comedy variety show promises a mix of acts you're destined to enjoy. |
| Saturday, May 16 ⭐ | 7:00 PM · BCC Eris Mainstage (Bushwick) Broads in the Attic — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) Eccentric locals Celia and Mavis seek a new housemate from a cast of unbelievable characters in this fringe show preview. Expect unique characters and a distinct premise. | ★ 7:00 PM · UCB NY - 14TH ST. Mainstage (East Village) Asian AF AAPI Month Edition The nation's premier Asian American comedy variety show returns to UCB for a special AAPI Heritage Month celebration, featuring top Asian American actors and comedians. | ★ 7:30 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) The Armando Diaz Experience The longest-running improv show ever, an NYTimes Critics Pick, features a guest monologist whose true stories inspire a rotating cast of improv all-stars. | 8:00 PM · The PIT LAB (Flatiron) TWO MUCH w/Peter & Matt Winners of PIT’s 2025 March Madness, Peter & Matt, present a half short-form, half long-form improvised show, blending improv games with a fast-paced long-form set. | 8:30 PM · The PIT Mainstage (Flatiron) The Baldwins The PIT’s longest-running team performs their signature brand of long-form improv comedy, praised by TimeOut NY as impressive and absurd. | 8:30 PM · BCC Eris Deep Space (downstairs) (Bushwick) What Makes (You) Laugh? — Brooklyn Comedy Collective (BCC) BCC's longest-running house improv show promises an evening where everything is made up on the spot, creating a unique experience each time. | ★ 9:00 PM · Magnet Theater (Chelsea) Trike A New York Times and Time Out New York Critics Pick, this improv duo delivers impressively layered improv with playful physical transformation and careful scenework. | 10:00 PM · The PIT Fishbowl (Flatiron) The One Day Movie A team of filmmakers will conceive and create a full feature film in just one day, culminating in a screening of their spontaneous creation. |
|
|
That's the week. Go see something live — your couch will still be there when you get back.
— The NYC Improv & Sketch Digest crew 🎤
Know someone who'd like this? Send them to ourscene.
|
|
Venues we follow
🎞 THE PIT · MAGNET · BCC · UCB · SECOND CITY · CAVEAT · THE RAT 🎞
Got a tip or want to be featured? Reply to this email.
ourscene · NYC
|
|