More than just a funny comedian, Elon James White (myspace) is becoming a notable force for his efforts to introduce new audiences to the sometimes overlooked diversity of talent within the world of black comedians. In other words, there’s more to black comedy than you might think by watching Def Comedy Jam. By creating The Black Comedy Project with comedian Baron Vaughn, White has helped cultivate an expanding community of artists who might be classified......

LISTEN UP: Last month we set up shop at White Rabbit, which was transformed into Gothamist House, with WOXY for 4 days of shows. Now WOXY has put together "Best of" podcasts from each of those days, and the first one is up -- so give a listen! Gothamist House Day 1.mp3 ART: First Friday's are so over, tonight come to Williamsburg for Every 2nd Friday. Pick up a copy of "the only comprehensive guide......

Margaret Cho returns to the stage in a whole new way with her stage show The Sensuous Woman. The production is at the Zipper Theater starting tomorrow (more details here) and is bringing burlesque back. The variety show will feature some famed burlesque performers, along with stand-up and sketch comedy acts. And of course, Margaret -- who we had a few questions for recently. Tell us about your new burlesque-style variety show The Sensuous Woman.......

I Dig Doug, a new production in this year’s Fringe Festival, concerns a status-obsessed uptown debutante who decides she should so get involved in presidential politics. When the farcical story begins, the unnamed teen (Karen DiConcetto, called Girl in the program) and her equally self-absorbed friend Nicole (Rochelle Zimmerman) are coasting along on their parents’ money, only mildly concerned about their imminent college application essays – Girl is smart enough to know that if they......

News Radio: Season Five: It really is wonderful that this trend of releasing every last television series EVER to DVD has caught on. Some of the more obscure show available for purchase may seem a bit ridiculous but for serious TV junkies, the spotty consistency of syndication isn't enough for revisiting your favorite programs. News Radio, which ran from '95 to '99, is one of those shows that's well worth a repeat viewing, and their......

Anya Garrett may describe herself as “a 23-year-old girl who doesn’t know what she’s doing with her life yet,” but that hasn’t stopped her from making her living taking photos, doing web design, and generally immersing herself in the local comedy scene. After getting her B.F.A in Film/Television/Radio from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, she struck out on her own, with a little help from people like David Wain, who she befriended snapping photos......

Texas is thawing, the Northeast is freezing, and a sort of natural order seems almost restored to the Ist-A-Verse. Almost. Londonist HQ—that is to say, the city of London—was battered by heavy winds, making it a bad time to be a twelve-meter (nearly forty-foot) tall snowman. Still, not everyone decided to keep warmly covered. Meanwhile, back indoors, the Big Brother racism is now causing all kinds of headaches for international diplomats, and Londonist got into......

Looks like Aziz Ansari has transitioned from blogs to television, and we couldn't be more psyched for him! Along with Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer, Ansari is one third of the Human Giant team. The series will air on MTV in early 2007. Jason Woliner will direct and produce. We can't wait! From Reuters: "MTV said Wednesday it has given the green light to "Human Giant," a sketch comedy series described as a collection......

Hmm, if there was a smackdown between Aaron Sorkin and Tina Fey, who would win? We're partial to saying Tina, because she's been writing and acting in Saturday Night Live - after having a baby! - AND working on her untitled NBC comedy pilot about a sketch comedy show, while Aaron Sorkin has been laying low, only working on his NBC drama pilot about a sketch comedy show. The New Yorker wonders if there's enough......

EVENT: It's the first Friday in April, which means one thing (to us at least): the Guggenheim! The Flavorpill curated event has Rjd2 and MC Beans bringing their style to the turntables tonight. Drink and dance the night away, but don't touch the art please. Friday // 9pm to 1am // Guggenheim Museum [1071 5th Ave] // $20 ART: This city is full of poster art and tonight at The Brooklyn Poster Show there will......

Bob Castrone and Brian Levin, Creators, The Post Show...

Playbill reported yesterday that South Pacific, the only Rodgers & Hammerstein musical not yet revived, will be back next year. No surprise there – every other hit show from the 20th century has had a second stint now, so it’s more a wonder that this one has taken so long. A Chorus Line just closed in 1990 and is already scheduled to reappear this fall; there are even rumors of Cats embarking on a second......

PARTY: First Fridays at the Guggenheim is ending it's run tonight. The Fridays have been curated by Flavorpill and tonight's bash will be set to the tune of a deejay set by Diplo. Music, cocktails and art on a Friday night - life could be worse. You can also explore RUSSIA!, not the country, the exhibition of over 275 masterpieces. Friday // 9pm to 1am // Guggenheim [1071 5th Ave at 89th St] // $15......

Christian Finnegan, Comedian...

Every Sunday Gothamist publishes theater reviews by our contributor Mallory Jensen. The opinions below belong entirely to the author. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this new play by Roger Rosenblatt, since all the press releases and listings about it seemed so determinedly vague. Now that I’ve seen it, I realize that this is because the play itself is not really a play as much as it is a variety of skits run......

Dan Gregor, Comedian, Wicked Wicked Hammerkatz...

Writing sketch comedy is not an easy skill. Appealing to a wide audience, writing a good ending for each sketch, and rehearsing your material are not always taken into consideration. Which is why Gothamist loved the new sketch show The Incorrigible Mr. J, now up at the PIT [154 w. 29th Street]. Matt Donnelly, Rebekka Johnson and Jim Festante of the improv group Possible Side Effects, have created a world where reclusive hermits, “dynamic choreography”,......

With the New York Musical Theatre Festival in its final week, we’ll say no more other than to encourage you to try to get to one of the shows if you haven’t already (or if you have!). Gothamist caught Karen Mason bringing Dorothy Parker back from the dead in You Might As Well Live, a solo performance comprised almost entirely of Parker’s words set to music (Norman Mathews did the music and adaptation). Mason......

Michael Ian Black,
Actor, Writer, Comedian...

Gothamist has had its ups and downs with champagne. That sweet Valentine's Day when we had a romantic candle lit dinner followed by strawberries and bubbly...our sister’s wedding where we had too much and now are taunted by the chants of “do your monkey dance again!” at family gatherings...But this isn’t about that. This is about Champagne, as in Seattle’s sketch comedy duo who will be at the PIT [154 W. 29th Street] on Friday.......

MUSIC: Tonight at Crash Mansion there's a free show and a free open bar...and for a good cause. Morning Theft, The Cloud Room, My Victoria, and The Rats will all perform for a second part of a benefit for Kia Nowotne. As an added bonus we hear our favorite artist, Michelle McShane, will be joining the Cloud Room for a few songs, playing autoharp. Open bar for 1 hour between 9-10pm. Stoli is sponsoring the......

Gothamist went to poetry slams in high school to feel artistic and deep. But then we realized we didn’t have what it takes to be a poet, all we wanted was to laugh at how serious some people took themselves. Granted that’s our own shortcoming and perhaps we need to work on getting in touch with our emotions, but tonight it is ok to laugh at the poets at Galapagos. At the Poetry Vs. Comedy......

Gothamist has talked up the virtues of PSNBC before for it's quality shows and ability to scout out great talent. Tonight, PSNBC Presents Andy Borowitz at the Marquee Theatre (356 Bowery between E. 3rd and E. 4th streets) at 8pm. While Borowitz has been around for a while, his political satire has been prominent in the media recently and he has gotten wide attention from his website, The Borowitz Report, but we still remember him......

EVENT: The Tank is the latest in New York club casualties. This weekend they're trying to raise money for a new venue, so head over to one of these events or donate online here. Tonight at 7pm / $10 Air America's The Majority Report with Janeane Garofalo and Sam Seder will broadcast live from The Tank, which it also did during the Republican National Convention. This time the broadcast includes a live studio audience and......

Gothamist is in Austin at the moment, but we've still got our finger on the pulse of the city we love most (that's you New York). This weekend while we rock, roll and get tans you are welcome to do one of the following (and we'll promise not to show off our sun kissed skin when we get back). Styleaholics Productions Presents possibly the best/worst idea ever. The Closet: "Overdosed on Style" provides a dual......

Claudia Cogan, Comedian...

Lauren Antler, Comedian...

Nichelle Newsletter...