‘The 25 Most Important Years in Dutch History’ by Saskia Maas, Andrew Moskos and Pep Rosenfeld. Featuring Jordan Peele, Ike Barinholtz, Seth Meyers, Amber Ruffin, Greg Shapiro, Ruben van der Meer, Jason Sudeikis and many more.
‘If a tree falls in the forest, but no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?’ Similarly, if no cynical outsiders have moved to a country to make fun of it, can you truly say it exists? No way. William of Orange? The German Occupation? Thorbecke’s constitution? All that was BBC, Before Boom Chicago – before our first show in the spring of 1993 and the earth shattering events that have influenced the Netherlands ever since.
From the first edition of Lowlands to the fifteenth (and last?) Elfstedentocht; from the opening of Villa Volta at the Efteling to the opening of the Polderbaan runway at Schiphol; and from the first year of Big Brother to the year Facebook defeated onze eigen Hyves – these moments have defined the Netherlands.
These past 25 years were not only important to Holland, but also to comedy. In 1993, Boom Chicago introduced improvisation comedy to a mainstream Dutch audience. Since then, the ensemble has become an Amsterdam institution, and a launchpad for many American comedians. Over the past 25 years, we were part of a comedy revolution and this book is full of stories from Boom Chicago’s funniest alumni. Join us on a journey for our first quarter century: The 25 Most Important Years in Dutch history!
‘Best book I’ve ever co-written!’
– Andrew Moskos
‘So much more respectable than a self-published book’
– Nijgh & Van Ditmar, publishers
Get your autographed copy of The 25 Most Important Years in Dutch History when you buy your tickets on our website. Your book will be waiting at the ticket desk when you arrive at the Rozentheater (Rozengracht 117, Amsterdam). Regular copies are available at your bookstore. Email [email protected] with any questions.
Boom Chicago author-founders present Prime Minister Mark Rutte the first copy of The 25 Most Important Years in Dutch History
Following the Dutch tradition of giving the first copy of a book to someone meaningful, Saskia Maas, Andrew Moskos and Pep Rosenfeld presented Prime Minister Mark Rutte with The 25 Most Important Years in Dutch History. It was not their first visit to het Torrentje (the Prime Minister’s office) as Moskos had worked with Rutte on his successful Correspondents Dinner speech. It was logical to present the Prime Minister the first edition as the Correspondents Dinner was chosen as the most important event of 2016.
During the visit, Rutte wondered if the chosen 25 years had anything to do with the fact that those were the 25 years Boom Chicago has been in the Netherlands. The authors assured the history scholar and teacher that it was pure coincidence.
Written by Pep Rosenfeld, Andrew Moskos and Saskia Maas
Pep Rosenfeld is co-founder of Boom Chicago, an event host, writer, stand-up comedian, public speaker, coach, and developer of corporate programs. He was nominated for an Emmy for his writing on Saturday Night Live.
Andrew Moskos is Boom’s co-founder, artistic director and director of the political shows. He creates business programs and is the creative force behind Boom Chicago’s escape rooms and other interactive productions.
Saskia Maas is CEO of Boom Chicago. She is also a founder of InterActing, which helps autistic teenagers embrace the unexpected through improvisation.
RIP Burt Reynolds, A Great Story — with Video — from Our New Book!
In 2001, you were a guest in our audience and we approached you during intermission to ask if you would be in a scene with us on stage. You immediately agreed and we brought you onstage ten minutes later. During the interview you were heckled about your toupee and you handled it the best and most uniquely that I have ever seen in my entire life.
Read about this and other great stories from the first quarter century of Boom Chicago’s history in our very funny book: The 25 Most Important Years in Dutch History! Watch the video of the night Burt Reynolds stopped by Boom Chicago and took part in our improv show. (Video files were smaller then. The quality gets better. The heckler bit starts at 1:50.)
From Deliverance, to Smokey and the Bandit to Boogie Nights, you were better than we realized on screen. In real life, your large personality also shined through.