The BCCF makes an uproarious return with the second edition from July 7 to 17. Featuring 40 shows and 160 performers from 12 countries, this 11-day event delivers big laughs and epic memories!
ALL SHOWS
THURSDAY JULY 7
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This show revolves around guest storyteller Aaf Brandt Corstius to inspire the Boom cast. This becomes a starting point for original, improvised scenes and spontaneous songs based on her stories.Aaf Brandt Corstius is a columnist, writer and podcast maker. She writes regular columns for De Volkskrant and Margriet and Flow. She also has a podcast called ‘Marc-Marie en Aaf vinden iets’. She has written several books including ‘Het jaar dat ik 40 werd’. She is married to journalist Gijs Groenteman.
Special guest: Aaf Brandt Corstius Featuring: Katie Nixon, Simon Lukacs, Terrance Lamonte Jr, Stacey Smith, Simon Feilder and Matt Castellvi
FRIDAY JULY 8
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Four incredible storytellers. Vulnerable, poignant and hilarious. Come see Jack Blankenship (The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon) and Hilliary Begley (Netflix’s Dumplin’)Holly Souchak – a performer slash storyteller slash creator slash good friend based in Queens, NYC. Her vulnerable stories about childhood, marathons, and mean old bosses have just the right amount of “haha”s and “ahh”s. She truly believes storytelling makes us all feel a little less alone.
Suchandrika Chakrabarti – She spent her youth partying in north London, but sadly never got to meet her musical hero: Amy Winehouse. Suchandrika will take you back in time to put that right. Along the way, you’ll get to explore the weirdness of celebrity, the absurdity of grief… and a classic night out at Amy’s local, The Hawley Arms, in 2006. There will be quizzes too!
Jack Blankenship – How would you react if you became famous overnight? In “A Funeral for My Face”, Jack Blankenship (The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, ESPN) discusses his fifteen minutes of fame as “The Alabama Face Guy” meme with stories, songs, and sketches. From holding up a sign of his own face at a college basketball game to meeting Beyonce at Madison Square Garden, Jack takes you through the peaks and pitfalls of instantaneous fame in the digital age.
Hilliary Begley – Hilliary Begley is an actress and comedian known for working as Lucy in 2018 Dumplin’ and as Dixie Flagg in 2019 When We Last Spoke. She gained popularity for Dumplin where she played Aunt Lucy. As a comedian, she has performed in the stage of Jon Reeps’ opener in The Orange Peel. She also shares her videos on her YouTube channel.
Featuring: Holly Souchak, Suchandrika Chakrabarti, Jack Blankenship, and Hilliary Begley
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Stand-up comedy showcase featuring some of the best stand-up comedians in LA.Rohan Dias – After taking his show from India to Los Angeles, Rohan Dias now comes to Amsterdam. A true reflection of the globalisation of our modern age, all while having to confront the absurd narcissism that makes his voice unique.
Maxi Witrak – a rising comic in Hollywood and contributing member of the LA comedy scene with her co-run monthly show, Sweet Comedy, and weekly End of the Road open mic. Her comedy speaks about departing from a privileged upbringing to explore the mindbreaking, seedy, often-unglamorous path of a musician and comedian.
Hannah Rose – a Los Angeles based stand up comic and improviser. She has performed stand up all over the country and was a finalist in the LA’s Top Comic Competition in 2019. She graduated from iO West in 2018 and The Pack Theatre in 2019. Hannah is on the house team Mamabird at the Pack Theatre. She started her own touring show, Rif Raf Comedy, in 2021.
Alex Falcone – probably the only comedian and writer living in Los Angeles. He’s appeared on “Portlandia” and “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” which everybody agrees are the two most important American television shows. He’s also the author of a young adult romance novel that became a best seller after he made a TikTok about it.
Featuring: Rohan Dias, Maxi Witrak, Hannah Rose, Alex Falcone
Time: 20:00 | Language: English
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Boom Chicago cast members and best friends, Matt Castellvi and Stacey Smith share a lost to give you a diverse variety of comedy. Matt Castellvi (recently opened for Iliza Schlesinger at the Royal Carre) will do stand-up and Stacey will close out the night with her solo improvised musical, Stacejam.Featuring: Matt Castellvi and Stacey Smith
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Stand-up comedy showcase featuring some of the best stand-up comedians in LA.Fred Le – a hard-working comedian who always writes from an angle of attempting to invoke empathy with my jokes. My perspective unique, but can appeal to anyone with an open heart.
Katie Novotny – from Naperville, IL and has the self-depreciating humor of a Midwestern tomboy. She doesn’t shy away from her Catholic upbringing, her gyno appointments, her anxiety and depression, and her love of night snacking.
David Sweetman – Even though he’s on the spectrum… the height challenged spectrum, David still pulls big laughs. This native Australian has a natural, quirky, and off-the-wall comedy style. He’s performed all over the world, in renowned locations such as the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Brighton Fringe Festival, and The Ice House in Pasadena.
Elke Thoms – a comedian and writer based in LA. She’s the side-eye next door, with razor sharp wit as she navigates friends, relationships, and coming of age. She performs at venues including The Comedy Store, Flappers, and with Pretty, Funny Women. Her festival appearances include the Laugh Riot Grrrl Festival, Chicago’s World Comedy Expo, and the Burbank Comedy Festival, where she was named a Best of the Fest Comedian.
Featuring: Fred Le, Katie Novotny, David Sweetman and Elke Thoms
SATURDAY JULY 9
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This show revolves around guest storyteller Jörgen Raymann to inspire the Boom cast. This becomes a starting point for original, improvised scenes and spontaneous songs based on his stories.Jörgen Raymann is a well-known radio/tv host and presented Raymann is Laat for years. He now works with entrepreneurs and companies on urgent topics such as happiness at work, finding the right people, inclusion & diversity, collaboration, dealing with adversity, mindset and self-development of employees. In 2021, he appeared in the television show De Verraders.
Special guest: Jörgen Raymann Featuring: Katie Nixon, Simon Lukacs, Terrance Lamonte Jr, Stacey Smith, Simon Feilder and Matt Castellvi
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Four improv teams with big group energy.Mermaids – Hailing from the Second City, this group of eclectic performers will make you cackle. The Mermaids bring joy to every scene they are in. Whether they are improvising high concept premises or slice of life, good vibes will be had!
Minority Report – a longform improv group made up exclusively of PoC. Expect laughs and catharsis!
Coach Rookard – It’s graduation night for the Grapevine High School improv comedy class! There’s just one small problem: the drama teacher fell sick at the last minute. Luckily the high school football coach, Ted Rookard, has volunteered to direct the show. He’s got a sports-minded attitude and a brand-new copy of “Improv for Dummies.” What could go wrong?
Slumber Party – the most fun improv show you’ve ever been to. These Spice Girls of Comedy take gossip from the audience and turn it into side-splitting improv comedy.
Featuring: Mermaids, Minority Report, Coach Rookard and Slumber Party
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The best stand-up and sketch comedy from Canada.Korri Birch – With his Oma still living in Holland, Korri brings shame upon his heritage by being an absolute idiot on stage recounting embarrassing tales of his broken brain and life as a pseudo-Dutchman. He’ll tell tales of visiting the Red Light District with his future wife and the his Oma meeting Bill Cosby.
Simpson Toothbrush – The last day of school, how can we forget it, no other day in the year is as cinematic. Simpson Toothbrush takes you to the small town of Clearwood Falls for the last day of school and a look at the wonderful people that make the town special.
Andrew Cholfe – a brazen stand-up comedian from Toronto, Canada. His observational and somewhat jaded humor brings a unique outlook to untouched subjects.
Zoe Brownstone – More Pasta is a one woman comedy and storytelling show about food, break ups and identity. While the backbone is stand-up, the story is the thread that ties these topics together like a neat ball of cooked spaghetti.
Featuring: Korri Birch, Simpson Toothbrush, Andrew Cholfe and Zoe Brownstone
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Bye Bye Liver is a fast pace, interactive, drinking sketch show that guarantees you’ll have a good time. The interactive portion of the show is comprised of unique drinking games like “Name That Emoji” and “Merlot Roulette”. You’ll even have a good time if you don’t drink, we have one sketch that highlights sobriety. #drinkresponsibly
SUNDAY JULY 10
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Last Minute Stand-Ins is the show where hilarious, quick-witted comedy and serious theatre collide. They’ll be performing scenes from some of the most well respected plays and films. But here’s the catch – the actors know the scene, know the lines, and know their character, but the improvisers… KNOW NOTHING!Featuring: Simon Lukacs, Cene Hale, Simon Feilder, Katie Nixon, Matt Castellvi, Drew DiFonzo Marks, Toni Charline, Bryony Cole, Mike Phillips Gomez, Vera Huibregste, Francis Cox, Clarke Fitzsimmons and more!
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Fuad Hassen Live is een pure stand-up show waarin Fuad volledig in zijn element is. Fuad is een meester in het uitspelen van situaties, imitaties en improvisaties met het publiek. Na twee jaar stil te hebben gezeten kan Fuad niet wachten om zijn hersenspinsels met jullie te delen. Het mag eindelijk weer! Een avond onbekommerd lachen? Dan moet je bij Fuad Hassen Live zijn! -
These graduates of the Boom Chicago Academy were selected by our cast from an intense audition with an eye towards future stars. Come watch two incredible teams of up-and-coming talent officially step onto the Amsterdam improv scene.
MONDAY JULY 11
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Pep Rosenfeld and Greg Shapiro’s newest and funniest political hit comedy show. Political & relevant – but mostly funny.Featuring: Pep Rosenfeld and Greg Shapiro
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They are the COOLEST troublemaker magic duo in the business. It’s a theatrical punk magic show with tricks, music, dance and lots of comedy! A lot of people have said Magic Tom & Yuri are the funniest they’ve ever seen, and for a reason. It all started with their theatrical punk band Orgaanklap, quickly spilling over into the Tom & Yuri Extravaganza sketch show before reaching its climax in their latest success story: Magic Tom & Yuri!
TUESDAY JULY 12
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Lara’s a small Latin American girl (woman?) who won the Funny Women 2021 (right. Woman.) Stage Award and is now doing her first hour-long show about what it’s like to be Latin and deaf and a girl who’s now a woman, all at the same time!! It’s a show about identity, but it’s also a show about what that all means now that the world’s literally burning, and it’s funny??? How. Does. She. Do. IT!! Come watch!She’s recently been allowed to bring her jokes to Comedy Central Live, Dave, and E4.
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Fritz with a Z is one of those rare combinations of comedy, magic, and improvisation. With performances at the invite-only Magic Castle in Hollywood and the Magic Circle in London under his belt, this award-winning conjuror is the only Dutch magician who has performed on six continents. Be prepared to get your magical and funny bone tickled!
WEDNESDAY JULY 13
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Josh Johnson is a stand-up comedian, Emmy-nominated and NAACP award-winning writer and performer from Louisiana by way of Chicago. He is currently a writer on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and is a former writer and performer on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon where he made his late-night debut. -
A jam packed line-up of Amsterdam’s most hilairous female comics.Featuring: Katie-Rose Petley, Eniko Varga, Maeva Dolle, Miky Burch, Carly Blair, Gillian Graven, Kendra Borgen, Mash Muravina, Izzy Goessens, Nira Tal, and Odette Van Der Molen
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Buckle up for a night of laughter, dance, and song to satisfy your musical comedy needs! This show revolves around guest storyteller Josh Johnson to inspire the Boom cast. This becomes a starting point for original, improvised scenes and spontaneous songs based on their stories.Josh Johnson is a stand-up comedian, Emmy-nominated and NAACP award-winning writer and performer from Louisiana by way of Chicago. He is currently a writer on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah and is a former writer and performer on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon where he made his late-night debut.
Special guest: Josh Johnson Featuring: Katie Nixon, Simon Lukacs, Terrance Lamonte Jr, Stacey Smith, Simon Feilder, and Matt Castellvi
THURSDAY JULY 14
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A hit feminist variety show! Come to Boom Chicago for a hilarious night of female-driven comedy. Stand-up, improvisation, musical comedy, characters, and more!
Featuring Lu in Luland: DickPics in my DM’s & Other Stories
Come & Meet Lou. She’s having a Self Love Revolution!Tales of finding confidence in middle age, driving a 35ft Vintage motorhome across the Staes alone, being a MILF on Instagram, life as a Vibrator Advocate & Dickpics in her DM’sLuinluland is a Ray of Fucking Sunshine. A Midlife Mindset Shifter. A Positivity Rebel. A Style Coach & Recovering Shopaholic. A Confidence Queen & Leader of the Self Love Revolution. She’s a Bad Feminist, a Vibrator Advocate & a Middle Age influencer dedicated to Growing Old Disgracefully.
During Lockdown, she consciously uncoupled from her husband of 19 years & after living in Portland Oregon for 8 years, she is currently on a journey across America in aslightly unreliable 35ft Vintage Motorhome called Susie, preaching Self Love, Women Rights, Masterbation & showing women the joys of stepping out of your comfort zone while throwing vibrators from the window as she drives.
Featuring: Lu in Luland, Holly Souchak, Hilliary Begley, Katie Nixon & Stacey Smith
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You know the first rule of PowerPoints: if you don’t like ‘em, just keep drinking. Come to Pints & PowerPoints, where eight presenters have five minutes each to present on any subject they like. Past subjects have included a beginner’s guide to hypnotism, the Boston Molasses Flood, the 2002 Olympic ice-skating scandal, and the dietary requirements of Sonic the Hedgehog. What subjects will this show include? Show up to find out! -
It’s the 2nd Annual Snatch Game edition at Boom Chicago for the festival! We will take the famous Snatch Game from legend Ru Paul & twist it with a bit of cunnilingus. Come watch as drag artists & improvisers take on celebrity personalities in some fun word play.️Hosted by: Miky Burch
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Bear K 47 is the world’s only bear rapper comes out of the woods to showcase his rap skills.Herbert S. Tuttleton is an esteemed playwright and film auteur whose works have been regularly featured and rejected on Adult Swim’s “Development Meeting” and “The Weather.” He has garnered much success in Los Angeles, performing regularly at the Hollywood Improv and isn’t allowed in the Laugh Factory. His stand up will leave you breathless, because of the laughter, but also because of your strong desire to strangle him.
FRIDAY JULY 15
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The best of Chicago stand-up!Prateek Srivastava – absurdist sharp wit and absurdist energy tackles his own life and infuses it in to the day’s current events. It’s a high energy high impact show that has audiences from Indiana VFW Halls all the way to the United States Embassy rolling with laughter.
Josh Lanzet – A charming ball of energy wearing his heart on his sleeve. He’s a witty and relatable open book that you can’t help but want to bring home to meet your family (which he’s open to if there’s dessert involved).
Marsden Kelly – Existential Whimsy is a vibrant, fanciful, and hilarious journey through the unique hell of existing. Join internationally-touring comedian and queer rebel Marsden Kelly for a surreal night of cathartic laughs and metaphysical crises.
Shannon Bacchus – “Shannon’s performance is the perfect mix of physicality and obscurity.” “Her life sounds like living in a pinball machine”
Dan Cass – A charismatic introvert who loves strangers more than his close friends. He is a comedy enigma everyone has a crush on. America’s future sweetheart. Dan’s comedy is vulnerable, controversial and a little pathetic at times.
Featuring: Prateek Srivastava, Josh Lanzet, Marsden Kelly, Shannon Bacchus and Dan Cass
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Sketch (scripted) comedy from the Windy City!Elwood & Jork – Elmwood and Jork are Chicago’s favorite sketch comedy duo (and real life best friends) coming to you straight off their Midwestern automobile tour of the North side of Chicago. Featuring their iconic fast-paced banter, extreme characters, and dangerous physical comedy.
Max & Annie – Max and Annie are IRL co-dependent best friends who explore oddball characters with unexpected dynamics. They attack scenes with high energy, playful curiosity, and love. When the lights come up, you’ll be thinking “what the f*ck did I just watch and can I see more”
Rehner & Nixon – Rehner & Nixon: Married and divorced each other. A dynamic sketch duo creating fresh, fun, and fearless comedy for Chicago and beyond. Wacky characters & countless wigs, Mollie Rehner and Katie Nixon give audiences exciting, interactive, laugh-out-loud shows!
Featuring: Elwood & Jork, Max & Annie and Rehner & Nixon
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North Coast, New York City’s premier hip-hop improv team, has long been known for their seamless melding of freestyle rapping and long form improv comedy. But ever since the smash hit Hamilton brought historical rap to the masses, North Coast has been inspired to throw their hat in the ring!
Join as the team breaks down the life of one of history’s most celebrated people in a fully improvised musical in the style of Hamilton. Along with our resident beatboxer and some of the best accompanists in New York City, Anybody! is sure to satisfy that hunger for historical hip-hop magic.
Nikola Tesla? BARS. Socrates? Flawless. Ruth Bader Ginsburg? Mic drop. Stand on the right side of history and buy your tickets now!
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The most dynamic duos in improv!McGathy & Miller – Improv duo comprised of two comedy veterans, Erin McGathy and Derek Miller.
Drew & Simon – Boom Chicago alum and UCB legend Drew DiFonzo Marks and Boom Chicago’s Simon Lukacs join forces to present 20 minutes of certifiable content. Expect characters, dialogue, scenes, beginnings, endings, and maybe even middles, in the show that is already being described as ‘inevitable’.
Men con Feelings – Men con Feelings is an improvised musical duo based in Oslo, Norway. They are Harald Willie Jordheim and Magnus Lomax Bjerke
Featuring: McGathy & Miller, Drew & Simon and Men con Feelings
SATURDAY JULY 16
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Two student teams perform a format that they just studied for a full day with one of the best comedy instructors in the world. -
Buckle up for a night of laughter, dance, and song to satisfy your musical comedy needs! This show revolves around guest storyteller Brendan Hunt to inspire the Boom cast. This becomes a starting point for original, improvised scenes and spontaneous songs based on their stories.Brendan Hunt is an American actor and writer best known for his role as Coach Beard in the Emmy award winning Apple TV+ show Ted Lass where he is also a co-creator and writer for the show. He is also known for roles in the films We’re the Millers and Horrible Bosses 2 as well as voicing two characters in the video game Fallout 4.
Special guest: Brendan Hunt Featuring: Katie Nixon, Simon Lukacs, Terrance Lamonte Jr, Stacey Smith, Simon Feilder and Matt Castellvi
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A medley of some of the most hilarious and talented improv groups!Cat Booty – Cat Booty is a Chicago based improv team. Cat Booty’s grounded mono scenes bring a sense of realism to their absurd scene work. You can see them perform at various theaters throughout Chicago year round.
Presens Improv – Snus (and other bad habits) is an act of long form improv based on your bad or just stupid habits. When we ask our swedish audience about their bad habits, it’s almost always that they like to keep a little bag of tobacco under their lip at all times, so called “Snus”. So we might as well just call the show “Snus”.
Balboa – A musical improv duo from Amsterdam featuring besties Mimi van Amerongen and Stacey Smith. With mighty vocals and tight harmonies, this powerhouse team shines through improvised song!
Featuring: Cat Booty, Presens Improv, and Balboa
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Enjoy this fast paced funny improv show with special guests Arjen Lubach and Ted Lasso’s Brendan Hunt joining the Boom Chicago cast as they ask the audience for lots of suggestions so you decide how crazy the show gets! Great suggestions get free shots of jager!Featuring: Arjen Lubach, Brendan Hunt, Katie Nixon, Terrance Lamonte Jr, Simon Feilder, Stacey Smith, Simon Lukacs, and Matt Castellvi
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A collection of the best Stand-up comedians from around the world!Nikola Todoroski – If you see the show you can expect comedy. As a bonus you also get tips on how to be a great patriot, loving father/mother, how to make your wife happy for 50 euros, how to survive a bad day, how to talk to a teenager and still not to break something and whole a lot more.
Tera Kilbride – Tera’s an American professional international stand up comedian, host and producer living in Berlin. Her content tackles mental health, sex and dating, current dark times, and being an expat in Germany.
Lupe Estrada – Originally from the San Francisco and Los Angeles comedy scenes, Lupe is known for stringing together silly dark one liners that tell a much sillier darker story, usually with a drink in hand.
Ulug Bek – Ulug Bek is your favourite stand-up comedian… from Uzbekistan. Having studied in the Netherlands and currently living in Denmark, he will tell you all about his culture shocks of living in this paradise called EU.
Jamal Khadar – After a year of sharpening his skills, he’s back with self-deprecating humor and honest observations on everything from why he failed at therapy to life as the token black friend, and yes, another year of dutch fatherhood.
Erin Crouch – There are strange things done in the midnight sun and some of those things were done by US comedian Erin Crouch. She traded the hardship of the Alaskan wilderness for the hardship of the Value Added Tax and now labors to make Germans laugh.
Niamh Moroney – Born in London, grown in Ireland, now based in Brussels, Niamh always wanted to be a Porn Star, but ended up a Primary School Teacher instead. In between drinking delicious Belgian beer, and singing Irish Ballads, Niamh spends her time discussing her need to show her tits to the world, and the never ending confusion of sexuality.
Featuring: Nikola Todoroski, Tera Kilbride, Lupe Estrada, Ulug Bek, Jamal Khadar, Erin Crouch and Niamh Moroney
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North Coast is New York City’s premier hip hop improv comedy team! Boasting nationally recognized beat-boxers on their cast roster, North Coast is a unique collaboration of comedy, hip hop, and music. They’ve been featured in Time Out NY, the Village Voice, and listed as a critics pick in The New York Times. They taught the world how to freestyle rap on Slate’s podcast, The Gist. North Coast has been described as “mind-blowing” and “next level” so, if you don’t know… now you know.Time: 00:00 | Language: English
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SUNDAY JULY 17
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Groups representing Amsterdam’s major improv institutions – Easylaughs, Flock Theatre and Tag Out Theatre – take the stage. They are the foundation of the community and always ready to put on a killer show.Featuring: Easy Laughs, Object of Affection, Land of Giants
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For a quick sampler of all the improv that Amsterdam has to offer, look no further. A series of groups get a short slot to show what they’ve got! Each act gets 10 minutes and not a second more. Expect passion and a dash of chaos.Photo credit: Chee Wai-Chan
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Deze zomer bundelen Arjen Lubach en Op Sterk Water opnieuw hun krachten, speciaal voor het Boom Chicago Comedy Festival. Briljante grappen en muzikale hoogstandjes worden ter plekke bedacht door de Nederlandse eindbazen van de improcomedy. Arjen was jarenlang een gewaardeerde speler bij Op Sterk Water. Zijn snelle intelligente humor gecombineerd met het zang- en acteertalent van de mannen van Op Sterk Water zorgt voor de meest hilarische en indrukwekkende improvisatieshows die er zijn. Wees er bij, dit maak je maar één keer mee!Time: 19:30 | Language: Dutch
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A mixed cast of Amsterdam’s top improvisers will take the ultimate challenge: play a show they know nothing about until they are already on stage! Afterward, everyone is invited to join the open jam, where anyone willing has a chance to play on stage and close out the festival.Photo credit: Chee Wai-Chan