I swear on everything that matters to me in life, there’s no truth to it. Well, I haven’t spoken to him because I didn’t feel he could say anything other than “OK.” I don’t consider it a decision. Have you talked to the emcee about that decision? It’s not an open mic, but it’s Louis C.K., somebody famous like that. He just went and told the emcee that he wanted to go on, and it’s pretty much autopilot at that point - the emcee let him go on. And it was a very, very light crowd and he apparently wasn’t happy with it and he decided on a spur of the moment to come to the Comedy Cellar.ĭid a staffer let him onstage at the Comedy Cellar, or was this an open-mic situation? He did a spot at Governor’s, which is a comedy club in Long Island, apparently before he came here. Well, actually, there is something I just learned. In the wake of the performance, THR spoke to Dworman about C.K.’s set, his interest in booking disgraced comedians and what he’s heard from female comics since the performance. would most likely attempt a “comeback” by way of performing stand-up at clubs. Industry observers have predicted that C.K. And though the comic made an appearance at the Olive Tree Cafe restaurant above the Comedy Cellar in February, comedy clubs largely dropped C.K. was accused by five women of masturbating in front of them in a New York Times story written by one of the journalists who wrote the first exposé on sexual misconduct allegations against Harvey Weinstein in November. This is the second time that one of the men accused at the height of the #MeToo movement has performed a set at the Comedy Cellar: Aziz Ansari, who was the subject of a controversial story in January, has performed on at least five occasions at the Manhattan club since accusations that he took a sexual encounter too far.Ĭ.K. “Now that I’m finally proud of the room, I can think about where I want to take it in the future.According to Dworman, he has so far received only one complaint from a patron about C.K.’s appearance. “It was very important that be as good as or better than the Cellar,” Dworman says. While Dworman is still formulating long-term goals for the Underground, comedian Tom Papa has begun using the space to tape his SiriusXM program, Come to Papa, every other Tuesday Nick DiPaolo will headline Wednesdays in August and the number of shows will soon double to include a late option every Friday and Saturday. But our rooms actually look like comedy clubs.” When later clubs turned upscale and these forerunners closed their local posts, NYC was left with rooms that came across as “somewhere between suburban strip-mall clubs or Vegas showroom-type clubs. Dworman points to the Improv, opened in 1963, and Catch a Rising Star, 1972, as establishing the intimate feel widely associated with comedy. The result is a more physically relaxed experience that emphasizes the brand’s dedication to professionalism while promising an air of unpredictability. The Underground’s decor-brick wall, stained-glass signage, floral vase, piano-is visually identical to its precursor, but features upgrades such as video screens, tiered seating platforms that improve sight lines, a lower and smaller stage, and added speakers. The new iteration offers wider aisles and more personal space. “I actually think the claustrophobic, cramped thing is very good for comedy,” he shrugs. Any negative feedback from patrons, says Dworman, involves “the uncomfortableness” of the original room-the low ceilings, the small tables and abutting chairs that make it hard to avoid stepping on neighboring toes when venturing to the restroom. Though officially still named the Village Underground and still hosting music shows during much of the week, this 200-seat spin-off formally opened for Friday and Saturday evening comedy shows in April.īetween consistently top-notch lineups celebrity pop-ins by the likes of Chris Rock and even Dave Chappelle and a prominent presence in Louis C.K.’s FX show, Louie, the original Cellar’s ticket sales have been booming, so much so that the majority of shows sell out the day before and standbys are turned away in unprecedented numbers. That is the new Comedy Cellar at the Village Underground, a basement venue just around the corner on West 3rd Street that Dworman purchased in 2000. This refers to the club’s initial, 150-person-capacity location, opened by his late father and situated below its affiliated enterprise, the Olive Tree Cafe and Bar. “As a matter of fact, a lot of people already prefer that room to this room,” says Noam Dworman, owner of MacDougal Street’s Comedy Cellar.
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