Funny business is back: Here’s who’s playing where on Connecticut’s revived comedy scene

To paraphrase Steve Martin, comedy’s not always pretty. It’s been a tough couple of years for stand-up comedy: Several stand-up legends who came up during one of the most fertile periods for comedy clubs, in the ‘80s and ‘90s, have passed away, including Gilbert Gottfried, Bob Saget, Louie Anderson and Norm MacDonald. A much younger comic, Jak Knight, died recently. Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais, known for pushing envelopes, have been getting unprecedented pushback for their transphobic routines. This year’s Just for Laughs Festival in Canada, one of the biggest comedy festivals in the world, offered grief support meetings set up by the organization Comedy Gives Back.

Happily, people continue to need to laugh, and Connecticut’s a fine place to find what’s funny.

Comedy was one of the first public art forms to rebound from the COVID lockdown of 2020-21, having eased back into clubs and theaters after months of virtual shows and invitational backyard performances. Chappelle, e, who had been performing distanced shows in a field near his home in the Midwest, was one of the first major comics to get back on the road, insisting on strict COVID testing requirements at shows. Clubs reopened, whole new opportunities appeared, and the comedy scene in Connecticut is as robust as ever.

Comedy arenas

Some of the biggest comedy acts in the country have ventured out this summer. Jeff Dunham, who holds the record for most tickets sold on a comedy tour, is bringing his “suitcase posse” of puppet pals — Peanut, Walter, José Jalapeño, Bubba J. and Achmed the Dead Terrorist — to Mohegan Sun Arena Aug. 5 on his “Seriously?” tour. Other heavy-hitters coming to Mohegan Sun Arena include Tom Segura Sept. 3 and Daniel Tosh with his “Leaves and Lobster Tour” Sept. 16.

Foxwoods Resort Casino has two large performance venues. Its Premier Theater welcomes Amy Schumer Aug. 19, Wanda Sykes Aug. 26 and Gabriel Iglesias for two shows on Sept. 4. Former talk show host Craig Ferguson is at Foxwoods’ Great Cedar Showroom Sept. 2.

One of the unlikelier large-scale comedy venues in the state is the Simsbury Meadows Performing Arts Center (simsburymeadowsmusic.com). It’s an outdoor concert stage with a large lawn area, adjacent to fields where youth play soccer. On Aug. 18, Simsbury Meadows has national touring “Love’s a Joke” comedy show featuring “America’s top comedy couples” making fun of marriage, divorce, parenting, weddings and, you know, sex. The comics include Max Cohen, Vicky Kuperman, Jamie Roberts, Nicky Sunshine, Abbi Crutchfield and Luke Thayer.

Comedy theaters

Very few cities have anything like Sea Tea Comedy Theater (seateaimprov.com), a state-of-the-art small theater venue dedicated to improv comedy-sketch shows. The theater is run by Sea Tea Improv, the improv troupe that also teaches numerous comedy classes at its studio space above the theater and hosts the Hartford Improv Festival (which has not been held since 2019 due to COVID). Among the upcoming all-original Sea Tea Comedy Theater attractions are “A Fully Improvised Summer Blockbuster” Aug. 26 and 27. The troupe also offers family-friendly shows on weekends.

The Ridgefield Playhouse (ridgefieldplayhouse.org) has less comedy this summer than it tends to offer in the fall and spring, but as the season ends the playhouse has three hot shows: unparalleled one-liner proliferator Steven Wright Sept. 17; NPR darling Paula Poundstone Sept. 22; and Demetri Martin on his “I Feel Funny” tour Sept. 25.

Since a lot of younger comedians prefer to tour in the fall when college students are around, some big names don’t appear until the end of summer and beginning of fall. New Haven’s College Street Music Hall (collegestreetmusichall.com) delivers the summer-friendly obnoxious-on-purpose “Miranda Sings” on Aug. 19 and “Morning Toast” host and @GirlWithNoJob viral sensation Claudia Oshry on Aug. 26. Things get a touch more cerebral Sept. 22 with the frequently funny longform storytelling showcase The Moth Mainstage on Sept. 22, then has fast-rising stand-up Daniel Howell coming Oct. 13.

Bridgeport’s historic Bijou Theatre (bijoutheatrect.spacecrafted.com) holds one of the largest single gatherings of Connecticut comedians and humorists on Sept. 18, with Norman Allen, Joan Barere, Scott Brill, Lynne Colatrella, Carin Freidag, Geoff Gilbert, Randye Kaye, Rob Pawlikowski, Kitty Robertson, Jack Rushen, Tom Rushen, David Victor and Rob Watts all performing.

Seven Angels Theatre in Waterbury (sevenangelstheatre.org) has occasional stand-up showcases but also traffics in comedy acts like the sibling celebrity impersonators The Edwards Twins (Sept. 10 and 11) and one-person longform character-based comedy routines such as “Italian Mom Loves You” (Aug. 12-21), with the venerable “My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish and I’m in Therapy” returning Nov. 3-6 during the regular theater season.

West Hartford’s Playhouse on Park (playhouseonpark.org) has been hosting stand-up comedy nights on its intimate floor-level stage area for over a decade. The next one is Sept. 17. Also keep an eye out for the playhouse’s homegrown outrageous “Mama D’s” burlesque revues.

Comedy clubs

There are several steady dedicated comedy clubs in the state, offering a mix of national, regional and local talents. The Funny Bone in the Shoppes at Buckland Hill complex in Manchester (hartford.funnybone.com) has a six-comic “Hilarious Colombian Americans” show on Aug. 3, top women comics Daphnique Springs Aug. 19 and 20 and Chaunte Wayans Sept. 9, as well as such esteemed stand-up veterans as Doug Stanhope Sept. 3, Tony Rock Sept. 16-18 and Christopher Titus Sept. 22.

The Fairfield Comedy Club (fairfieldcomedyclub.com) has weekly shows on Saturday nights at 8 p.m. at the Circle Hotel, 417 Post Road in Fairfield. Upcoming events include Meghan Hanley Aug. 6, Nick Griffin Aug. 13, Liz Barrett Aug. 20, Irish comedian Katie Boyle Sept. 3, and Carly Aquilino and Jessimae Peluso for two shows on Sept. 10.

Vinnie Brand’s Stress Factory Club in Bridgeport (bridgeport.stressfactory.com) brings in a steady schedule of top New York and New England stand-ups, usually for two or three nights each. August brings Vic DiBitetto (of the viral “bread and milk” panic video) Aug. 5 and 6; Zarna Garg Aug. 11-13; Aries Spears Aug. 18-20; and Samuel J. Comroe for five sets Aug. 25-27. One of the more intriguing Stress Factory bookings this summer is the Aug. 30 appearance of “General Hospital” soap opera stars Laura Wright (who plays Carly Corinthos) and Cameron Mathison (Drew Cain), who are on a national tour of comedy clubs together.

Mohegan Sun’s Comix Roadhouse (mohegansun.com) continues to have a different stand-up headliner each weekend (for four sets: Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m. and Saturday at both 6 and 8 p.m.), plus the regular weekly Jim Spinnato magic shows and Lipstick, Lashes & Lies drag parties.

Foxwoods has a cozy comedy room, too, the Comedic Corner at Centrale Fox Tower (foxwoods.com). Shows are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. There are a few local comics, such as Kareem Green, that you can find at both the Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun clubs.

There’s been a comedy club at 942 Main St. in Hartford for 35 years, and for 25 of those years it’s been the Brew Ha Ha section of City Steam Brewery (citysteambrewery.com). A different stand-up arrives each weekend, doing shows on Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. Upcoming talents are Gianmarco Soresi Aug. 5 and 6, Ashton Womack Aug. 12 and 13 and Mike Finoia Aug. 19 and 20.

Cafe Nine in New Haven (cafenine.com), known as “the musician’s living room,” also has regular comedy nights, titled “Guy Walks into a Bar,” hosted by Dan Rice. The next one is Aug. 10 at 8 p.m.

The Elbow Room restaurant in West Hartford (elbowroomct.com) continues to hold raucous open mic comedy nights in its downstairs bar/lounge area Thursday nights starting at 7:30 p.m.

Drag brunches

Some of the cooliest, most chaotic comedy shows in the state are the drag brunches held at restaurants and clubs. Drag brunches have been around for decades but have experienced a major surge in recent years. Check out the calendars on these sites for starters: Hartford’s Chez Est (chezest.com), local promoter Sky Casper Presents (skycasper.com), “Lipstick, Lashes & Lies” at Mohegan Sun ( mohegansun.com) and the invaluable Facebook page CT Drag Fans.

Christopher Arnott can be reached at carnott@courant.com.