Myq Kaplan News

Fans of Halloween have a ton of events to look forward to as Q.E.D. will be celebrating the holiday all throughout October. Comedy shows, classes and watch parties will lead up to a free horror movie marathon and costume contest on Halloween night!

Nat Towsen's Downtown Variety Hour is back at UCB Theatre East Village on Monday, October 2 at 7:30 PM with a special New York Comic Con edition!

Comedian Jeff Simmermon has created an oratory carnival on his upcoming debut album of comedic tales, And I Am Not Lying, due out June 9 via Comedy Dynamics.

Three of Birmingham's best give me their thoughts on the rise of comedy in Birmingham

After a sold out New York City debut at Union Hall, Arguments & Grievances is excited to announce it's comedy debate series and podcast have found a new home at Pine Box Rock Shop (12 Grattan St.) in Bushwick. In addition to a new venue, the show will now be free! Arguments & Grievances has appeared at numerous festivals and was recently added to the Audible.com podcast network. This month's debate topics will include:

Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG) presents a new comedy series: the monthly, Thursday evening $5 Comedy Garage, featuring acclaimed comedians from near and far. BTG is partnering up with Methuselah Bar & Lounge (391 North St, Pittsfield, MA): after the show, present your Comedy Garage ticket stub for a $5 beverage at Methuselah. The current Comedy Garage lineup is as follows: Last Comic Standing and America's Got Talent finalist, Myq Kaplan (February 16); New York Times and Buzzfeed writer, Kyle Ayers (March 16); hailed as one of the '10 Funniest Women in New York" according to Time Out New York, Emma Willmann (April 27); and Comedy Central comedian, Joe Zimmerman (May 25).

Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG) announces additions to their 2017 Spring season, including: the return of the Laugh Lounge Series at the Garage and the On the Stage Series, as well as the fourth annual Encore! An Evening to Celebrate High School Musicals at The Colonial Theatre. New this year, as part of the Encore! Series, BTG will present a High School Student Cabaret at The Unicorn Theatre.

Nat Towsen's Downtown Variety Hour will kick off the new year at UCB Theatre East Village on Monday, January 2, at 8 PM. As usual, host Nat Towsen (VICE, Nickelodeon) combines the disappearing, eclectic lower Manhattan culture in which he grew up (around the corner from the theatre, in fact) with interviews, informative presentations, and the best of the NYC underground comedy scene.

Seeso today announced its "12-Week Stand-Up Streaming Fest" with 12-weeks of exclusive original stand-up comedy specials and series beginning October 20 through January 5. The following comedy specials will debut throughout the festival's run:

Brooklyn Comedy Festival just officially set its 2016 line-up and schedule, featuring names such as Reggie Watts, SNL's Vanessa Bayer and Sasheer Zamata, and more. Click below to watch the full announcement!

On Sunday, May 22nd at 8:15pm, 'The Ensemblist' podcast will be hosting a live show as part of the 2016 NYC Podfest. The only podcast that shows you Broadway from the inside out, will be featuring three Broadway singer-songwriters John Arthur Greene, Janet Krupin, and Douglas Lyons.

NYC PodFest, Co-Produced by ThisMyShow Industries and Prince Street Entertainment, is thrilled to announce its all-star lineup  for its fourth annual festival will include 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' (CBS) & Stay Human band leader, Jon Batiste as a guest on a live taping of Paul Mecurio's '2 Chairs and a Microphone' on Saturday, May 21st at 9:45 pm at Cake Shop in New York City.

Magic and stand-up comedy will be part of the buffet at the sixth annual New York City Vegetarian Food Festival, popping up at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Manhattan on May 7-8. Ivan Stratienco, of Insane Illusions, will give Festival attendees a taste of his sleight of hand skills and magic tricks. The illusionist has more than 10 years experience performing in the tri-state area at both intimate parties and large-scale gatherings. Meanwhile, Myq Kaplan will return for his second Festival appearance. He is a 2010 Last Comic Standing finalist who has also appeared on the Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien, the Late Show with David Letterman, and Comedy Central Presents. His debut CD, Vegan Mind Meld, was one of iTunes' top ten best-selling comedy albums in 2010, followed by Meat Robot in 2013, and his one-hour Netflix special Small Dork and Handsome in 2014. Both of the entertainers happen to be vegan, which will put them right at home at the Festival. Over a hundred vegan vendors will be on hand, as well as plant-based chefs, physicians, professional athletes, and inspiring speakers. The Festival is founded and presented by U.S. Veg Corp. The event-planning company has also branched out to Scottsdale, Arizona with the AZ Vegetarian Food Festival, and it plans to launch the CA Vegetarian Food Festival later this year in the Los Angeles area. U.S. Veg Corp co-founder Sarah Gross said the purpose for staging all of these events is to inject a maximum of fun into living a humane lifestyle. 'We vegans used to have such a serious and militant stereotype,' she said. 'And non-vegans thought we had to be masochistic to deny ourselves all those animal-based foods that are so much a part of the American diet. Our aim is to show that exactly the opposite is true.' New York's Festival will run from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on both days. Attendees can expect to snag free food samples from such exhibitors as Rescue Chocolate, Pure Genius Provisions, Beyond Sushi, Pilot Kombucha, and many others. They can also watch cooking demonstrations from celebrity chefs including Jenne Claiborne, Isabelle Steichen, Jay Astafa, Rich Landau and Kate Jacoby. Among the high-powered physicians scheduled to speak about their research into the health benefits of a vegan diet are Garth Davis, Thomas Campbell, Robert Ostfeld, and Michael Greger. Festival-goers with young children should also plan to check out the Kumquat Kids Area where there will be story-telling, arts and crafts, and family entertainment. 'Kids should also have fun learning about the importance of sustainable living so those ages 10 and under are always free,' says U.S. Veg Corp co-founder Nira Paliwoda. For more information about the Festival or to purchase tickets, go to http://nycvegfoodfest.com/.

Taking a page from the NCAA College Basketball Tournament's 'March Madness,' famed comedy venue Carolines on Broadway will present its tenth annual 'Carolines Comedy Madness,' a five-round comedy competition in which 64 comedians will go head to head with audience members deciding who advances to the next rounds and who will be crowned the tournament champion.

Taking a page from the NCAA College Basketball Tournament's 'March Madness,' famed comedy venue Carolines on Broadway will present its tenth annual 'Carolines Comedy Madness,' a five-round comedy competition in which 64 comedians will go head to head with audience members deciding who advances to the next rounds and who will be crowned the tournament champion.

One Sunday a month in NYC (and occasionally on the road), comedian Chris Duffy hosts a night of his favorite performers sharing their work and the things they love. Each artist performs a set. Then they enthusiastically endorse a prize that they love and give it away to audience members. It's an Oprah-style audience giveaway! Previous audience members have taken home candy bars, books, magazine subscriptions, kitchen appliances, CDs, and gaff tape. Every show, one lucky audience member receives a Tovolo mixing spoon (the greatest spoon in the universe). Guaranteed to be the most positive way to spend an evening. You Get A Spoon was called a 'Pick of the Week' by the LA Weekly and it's been featured in Seattle's The Stranger. 

On January 26, 2016, Comedy Dynamics will premiere Keith Malley's latest stand-up special: God Made Me - The Very Worst of Keith Malley - Vol. 2.

On Thursday, January 21 at 730pm, Astoria comedy hub Q.E.D. presents Shabbat Dinner, a monthly comedy variety and storytelling show where comedians tell jokes and stories about their religious upbringings. .

Next week, the Brooklyn Comedy Festival begins its third year of showcasing the best comedic talent New York has to offer.

America, get ready to vote! NBC's top-rated summer series “America's Got Talent” has selected the Top 36 acts to vie for the coveted $1 million grand prize beginning Tuesday, Aug. 11