The Flip Side Brings Live Unscripted Comedy to Madison

The Flip Side, a completely improvised theatrical comedy experience, brings sharp, unscripted humor to the Madison Community Arts Center every other month — and it's anything but predictable. The Flip Side is the house team of Vivid Stage, a professional theatre company based in Summit, NJ.

Each 90-minute show is built from scratch in real time, blending the spontaneous gameplay of Whose Line Is It Anyway? with the performance savvy of SNL. Directed by Dave Maulbeck (Law & Order, Complete Unknown), The Flip Side features a powerhouse cast of Vivid Stage company members, Broadway veterans, film actors, and top NYC/NJ improvisers delivering lightning-fast laughs and totally original scenes every time. Every show also includes a special guest — a top-flight improviser hand-picked by Maulbeck.

This month's special guest: Mike Sause (Drunk Shakespeare, UCB, Gotham City Improv).

“I make this show like a good Jersey pizza — I build every show fresh and to order,” says Maulbeck, Vivid Stage's Director of Improv and the creative mind behind The Flip Side. “No script, just suggestions from the crowd — and then the wild, joyful ride begins. It's a comedy night where the stupidest thing is probably gonna happen… and usually does. We all laugh.”

The Flip Side performs every other month at the Madison Community Arts Center. Shows are 90 minutes long with no intermission — just full-throttle comedy from start to finish. Leave the kids, pets, and small woodland animals at home — this one's for the grown-ups.