Condensation forms on tables in the Iowa City Yacht Club’s basement as the heavy late-summer air clashes with the building’s rapidly aging air conditioner. The machine kicks on periodically, requiring the volume of conversation to increase by at least a quarter of a shout. It’s three minutes till 9 on a Monday night, and a […]
Comedy
Comedian Aparna Nancherla mines for laughs in everything from depression to fruit puns

Stand-up comedian, actress and Witching Hour performer Aparna Nancherla has been named one of the “50 Funniest People Right Now” by Rolling Stone. In the last year, she has opened for Tig Notaro, appeared on the Netflix series Master of None, released her debut album and filmed a Comedy Central special. She will perform at the Witching Hour festival in Iowa City on Oct. 21.
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Interview: Kyle Kinane on punk nostalgia and self-deprecating humor, ahead of Turnbuckle

Kyle Kinane, a prolific stand up who has made his mark in comedy weaving together hilariously absurd stories of everyday life with a whiskey-soaked sense of wisdom and wonder, or as he once self-deprecatingly summed up his act, “Uncle Barbeque and his dum-dum stories,” headlines the Turnbuckle Comedy and Music Festival at the Codfish Hollow in Maquoketa May 26 and 27. […]
Comedian Eric André brings his wild irreverence to the Englert on Oct. 8

Eric André Englert Theatre — Saturday, Oct. 8 at 8 p.m. Comedian Eric André, host of the Adult Swim hit The Eric Andre Show — which just entered its fourth season — comes to the Englert Theatre on Saturday, Oct. 8. His irreverence is infectious. He’s bounced around some of the best comedy television in […]
Amy Schumer comes to Iowa City

Amy Schumer Carver-Hawkeye Arena — Apr. 22 at 8 p.m. Comedian and actress Amy Schumer will come to the Carver-Hawkeye Arena this April, courtesy of UI’s Campus Activities Board. Schumer is best known for sketches from her Comedy Central show, Inside Amy Schumer: Schumer also starred in last year’s movie Trainwreck and sold a memoir […]
Just announced: Matt Bellassai at the Iowa Memorial Union

Matt Bellassai Iowa Memorial Union — Wednesday, Apr. 6 at 10 p.m. The University of Iowa Campus Activities Board announced on Tuesday that BuzzFeed writer and comedian Matt Bellassai will be on the schedule this spring, with a late night event at the IMU in April. Bellassai is most known for his wildly popular video […]
Listen: Little Village Comedy Podcast featuring Tim Barnes

Comedian Tim Barnes discusses his stand-up comedy career, the right to be an absurd person of color, how Woody Allen’s delivery and his anxiety over ethnicity influenced his comedy, Ira Glass’s confounding fondness for ellipsis in evasive emails, the art of crafting an N-word joke for a white audience and much more. Barnes will […]
Witching Hour Festival announces Doomtree, PHOX, Su Friedrich and more
Interview: For Jen Kirkman, the stigma of child-free singledom is a hell of a joke
Comedian Ron Babcock rolls into the Mill with his ‘Benz it like Babcock’ tour
Comedian Nick Thune performs at The Mill tonight

Although it’s true Comedian Nick Thune performs with a guitar and stars in a Netflix comedy special called Folk Hero, it’s not some Dylan-esque Weird Al who will be taking the stage at the Mill tonight.
Instead, audience members can expect Thune to dole out brilliant one-liners and droll observations in his trademark deadpan delivery, all of it “scored” to contemplative guitar-playing to make his absurd statements seem that much more absurd. […]