Visitors in town: Matt Ruby, Atheer Yacoub, Girls Gotta Eat (Rayna Greenberg and Ashley Hesseltine), Rick Goldschmidt, Michael Carbonaro, Claudia Oshry, Matt Rogers. CJ Sullivan returns to his hometown.
At Zanies: Kelsie Huff (Chicago), Tony Woods (Chicago), Larry Reeb (Chicago), Tuesday Ten Showcase (Rosemont), Michael Palascak (Rosemont).
At The Improv: Steve Byrne.
At Riddles: TBA.
Ticket alerts:
December 28: Dewayne Perkins at North Bar. (Early show sold out. Late show just added.)
January 3-5: Rodman at The Improv.
February 22: Todd Barry at Thalia Hall.
Following is this week’s Spotlight. Please confirm all details before leaving home!
MONDAY, DECEMBER 16
Matt Ruby at Newport Theater, 8:00 p.m. The Lincoln Lodge presents a surprise pop-up show by Matt Ruby (Comedy Central, MTV, FOX, Vooza.com, etc.). He is in Chicago for a headlining sneak-peek of his new special to be taped in January. He is an international headliner and has been featured on CNN.com, The New York Times, The Huffington Post, New York magazine, and Splitsider. “Matt loves to call out the BS in our society and will be poking holes in how we talk about politics, technology, and love.”
Cartography at iO, 8:00 p.m. “A queer comedian, musician, and performance artist, Cartographer is Laurel Zoff Pelton’s highly anticipated sophomore solo show.” Directed by Andel Sudik.
The Second City’s Best of the Holidays, 8:00 p.m. A showcase of the best of Second City’s holiday sketches and music featuring its up-and-coming stars.
Best Night Ever at North Bar, 9:00 p.m. Free stand-up showcase. Tonight: Deanna Ortiz, Whitney Chitwood, Jim Flannigan, Atheer Yacoub.
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 17
Feed Wolf Ice Cream: A Comedy Show in the Afterlife at Nox Arca Theater, 8:00 p.m. Dave Maher is one of Chicago’s great comedians and he’s now earning international acclaim. His experiences have given him unique insight into comedy, life and the afterlife.
Girls Gotta Eat at Thalia Hall, 8:00 p.m. One of iTunes top-rated comedy podcasts. “Ashley, Rayna, and special guests will answer all those burning questions about sex, dating, and relationships in a one-of-a-kind, interactive experience. No one leaves without a fresh outlook on dating and at least one new ab from laughing.” Tonight and tomorrow night.
FUDGE 5-Year Anniversary Show at iO, 8:00 p.m. What accounts for FUDGE’s ongoing success? Zach Freeman writes about it in The Chicago Tribune here.
Comedians You Should Know at The Pony Inn, 8:00 p.m. Day 1 of a special event. Tonight and tomorrow night. “After giving nearly 200 comedians a chance to perform for us at an open mic, we present to you, the best of the best! This is their audition to perform at our weekly, Wednesday showcase at Timothy O’Toole’s Pub! It’s an event not to be missed!”
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18
Girls Gotta Eat at Thalia Hall, 8:00 p.m.
Comedians You Should Know at The Pony Inn, 8:00 p.m. Day 2 of a special event. “After giving nearly 200 comedians a chance to perform for us at an open mic, we present to you, the best of the best! This is their audition to perform at our weekly, Wednesday showcase at Timothy O’Toole’s Pub! It’s an event not to be missed!”
So Tacky: Tack the Halls at Tack Room, 8:00 p.m. Featuring Kal Jazeera, Yaz Bat, Sharup Karim, BAPS Comedy, Devin Middleton, Kayla Pulley, Angel Garcia.
2POC, The Harold Team Stunt Double at iO, 10:00 p.m. “POC (sounds like 2PAC, stands for 2 performers of color) boasts a new, diverse lineup every show.”
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19
The Nice Jewish Girls Comedy Show at The Skokie Theatre, Skokie, 7:30 p.m. Starring Eunji Kim, Jan Slavin, Jessica Besser-Rosenberg, Kat Herskovic, Lia Berman, Aimee Kleiman and Rebecca Fass. I’m 100000% positive this will be an outstanding show and tickets will sell out way in advance!
Messing with Mason at The Annoyance Theatre, 9:30 p.m. Don’t miss a chance to see Susan Messing and Rachael Mason – two of the top names in improv!
Rick Goldschmidt at The Comedy Shrine, Aurora, 7:00 p.m. “Rick is the expert on the television classics Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman (the subject of his new 6th book on Rankin/Bass), the Heat Miser and Snow miser from Rankin/Bass’ The Year Without A Santa Claus, Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town, The Little Drummer Boy and more.”
What’s It Like to be You? at 1100 Florence Gallery, Evanston, 7:00 p.m. “Best and worst gifts … An evening of spontaneous comedy.” Ben Hollis has a knack for connecting with people as he demonstrated in his hit multi-Emmy Award-winning television series Wild Chicago. “What’s It Like To Be You” is an opportunity to meet him up close and personal. I’ve been to this show several times and we even had it at our house this fall. “What’s It Like to Be You” is an unforgettable must-have experience.
Bangers & Laughs at Chief O’Neill’s Pub & Restaurant, 8:00 p.m. A stand-up comedy show. Christina Lundin hosts Abe Rabinowitz, Jackie Cooper, Bruce Kesselring, Mary Kate Beck, Jeff Brumfield, Marissa Driscoll.
Michael Carbonaro at The Genesee Theatre, Waukegan, 7:00 p.m. His “Magic Clerk” segments on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno led to his own show The Carbonaro Effect. Meet & greet package available.
Claudia Oshry at The Vic, 8:00 p.m. The comedian and social media star @girlwithnojob is here on the Dirty Jeans Tour through December 21. Shows are selling out.
We See You at North Bar, 8:00 p.m. Comedy showcase hosted by Ben Noble.
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 20
The ‘Let me in! I’m with ComEd(y)’ Show at Rewired Café, 7:30 p.m. Tonight: Kenyon Adamcik, Suze Ballout, Yaz Bat, Larry Bloom, John McCombs, Sam Monk and two mystery comics.
Sully Claus is Coming to Town at North Bar, 8:00 p.m. CJ Sullivan returns to Chicago! He was kind enough to speak with me in 2012 and gave me one of my favorite answers ever. It had to do with fans.
Funny Ha Ha at The Hideout, 6:30 p.m. With “Creative writer and weirdo HASSAN S. ALI, Standup comic and She’s Crafter member AMY SUMPTER, Curator of Outspoken!: LGBTQ storytelling at Sidetrack ARCHY JAMJUN, Writer and storyteller JITESH JAGGI, Children’s Book Editor, Grown-Up Book Author WENDY MCCLURE, “How to be a Stalker” writer and Comedy Central writer ERICA NICOLE CLARK, Man with a camera STELE DELAHOYDE.”Hosted by Claire Zulkey.
Murder by Matzo Ball at the Skokie Theatre, Skokie, 8:00 p.m. The audience will get to ask questions and solve the mystery.
Claudia Oshry at The Vic, 8:00 p.m. The comedian and social media star @girlwithnojob is here on the Dirty Jeans Tour through December 21. Shows are selling out.
Have You Heard of Christmas at The Hideout, 9:00 p.m. Matt Rogers “welcomes you to join him for a drink or two and confront yourself with the question…Have You Heard of Christmas?”
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21
Dope Comedy Show at North Bar, 9:00 p.m. Dave Helem hosts an outstanding lineup: Kevin Bozeman, Marilee, Harold Pierce, Marty DeRosa, Leon Rogers.
Claudia Oshry at The Vic, 8:00 p.m. The comedian and social media star @girlwithnojob is here on the Dirty Jeans Tour. Last night!
Check out sixteen shows at Second City tonight! If you’re in the mood for a holiday show, they’ve got those, too!
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22
How the Grinch Stole a Talk Show at iO, 7:30 p.m. Hosted by The Grinch and Cindy Lou Who.
The Spotless Show at The Comedy Shrine, 4:00 p.m. Ronnie Ray hosts Marcos Lara, Brandon M. Prosek, Michelle Krajecki. Awesome and clean stand-up comedy.
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