A New York City Landmark: The Comedy Cellar
On a trip into NYC a couple of nights ago, a bunch of friends and I stumbled into the Comedy Cellar. Actually, my friend’s mom (it was his birthday) had made reservations for us, as they’re required to get in. But a few of us still stumbled in due to… other factors. I could see why reservations are needed; once you walk down the stairs into a narrow hallway, one side of it is filled with dozens of photos signed by famous comics such as Jerry Seinfeld, Dave Chappelle, Darrell Hammond – the list goes on for a while. Apparently, it’s THE comedy club of NYC – right in the heart of Greenwich Village.
It’s a small, intimate club situated in the basement of a city building. Case in point: we were sitting in the back corner of the club, and we were still only like 30 feet from the tiny stage. It was the first time I had stepped foot in such a place, and it was just awesome. There was a $10 cover charge and a 2-item minimum. So for about $20 bucks (depending on what drinks you order), you get a good two hours of comedy in the best setting possible. Stuff that one of kids in our group constantly yelled out was always heard by the comics, and how each responded to the outbursts separated the men from the boys. There was one that stood out – the guy pictured above – Sherrod Small. Don’t know who he is? Apparently, he’s on VH1′s Best Week Ever. He sure as hell deserves it, as he delivered probably the best standup comedy I’ve ever seen. Maybe that doesn’t mean much because the amount of comedians I’ve seen live can be counted on my two hands, but he provided non-stop laughter. I don’t know how you could get much better than that. Just the way he handled the crowd and was able to improvise brillantly made him stand out above the rest. His material is definitely strong enough to stand on its own, but the intimate crowd setting just made his performance that much better I feel.
Unfortunately, we left early for reasons I don’t really feel like indulging in. In the process, we left before Dave Attell – the star of that set – ever came on stage. Maybe he would have been even better than Small, but I don’t know. All I do know is that it would have better than what we did afterwards. So I’m left wanting more. I definitely want to go back to that place sometime soon. If you’re ever planning a trip to NYC, I highly recommend making reservations there and experiencing a great night of comedy.
Related posts:
Loading ...