Results tagged “chicagosketchfest”

25th Century Heroes

See enough sketch comedy and you’re bound to experience a head shaking, teeth gritting night when you’re questioning why you abandoned the warm, comforting glow of your Magnavox. At last weekend’s Chicago Sketchfest, we eavesdropped on a few patrons in that predicament, discussing what they’d like to see abolished in sketch comedy: "Casting a woman in your group for the sole purpose of being 'the girlfriend', 'the spouse', or the object of lust." "Mistaking 'zany'...

Sure, a comedy festival provides exposure and an excuse to get out of town for a weekend. But as the Sixth Annual Chicago Sketchfest gets underway, we’ve learned that comedy troupes also come here to nourish their inner fanboy (or girl) and to network. We contacted three veteran troupes to see how they make the most of these weekends.

We can’t turn our backs for a minute without those creatives making all sorts of trouble. Good for them. Let’s catch up and find more excuses to get out of the house this winter: Comedy/Theater Schadenfreude holds their December Rent Party tonight, where Chicagoist editor Scott Smith will read his correspondence with Richard Marx. Will the mulleted 80s rocker show up? No, but he’ll be played by a special guest. The monthly showcase of local...

It's easy to watch a lot of crappy comedy on TV. "The Daily Show" is always reliable for some laughs, and "30 Rock" and SNL have their moments. But by and large contemporary TV comedy is a wasteland of retreads, anemia and laughless vulgarity. We're becoming increasingly convinced that the future of television isn't television at all. It's the internet. Because there's plenty of really funny stuff online, and most of it is even free.

Note: Part 1 of this series is here. The Chicago Sketchfest brings some of the country’s finest comic troupes to town this weekend and next. Fitting really, since a mid-January Chicago vacation requires a hearty sense of humor. Yesterday, Chicagoist profiled a few up-and-comers but we didn’t want to leave out the veteran performers, the very backbone of the festival itself, and the uniquely wacky groups, the pickled liver of the festival itself. Many of...

Railing against winter depression, working hard for the belly laughs, imbibing enough to make their Second City forbearers proud, legions of talented performers and commendable administrators take over Theatre Building Chicago tonight through January 15 for the 5th Annual Chicago Sketchfest. Squeezing ninety troupes over eight nights, the festival boasts one of the most impressive lineups outside Aspen. They’re savvy enough to host tonight’s League of Chicago Theaters’ Theater Thursday event, featuring pre-show beer and appetizers at an area restaurant and mingling with the performers. Click here for tonight’s ticket info (just promise you’ll come back, ok?).

The fourth annual Chicago Sketchfest is happening now – and by that we mean tonight through Sunday – at the Theatre Building Chicago on West Belmont. The “largest sketch comedy festival in the country” promises “83 groups, over 100 shows and 600 funny people,” most of which & whom you’ve probably already missed, since the festival kicked off over a week ago.