#11 Every English language comedy show in and around Amsterdam this week (Jun 10 - Jun 16)
A big week, especially at Boom Chicago, where Saturday night belongs to the Attic Collective.
Welcome to issue #11 of The Live List - your weekly round-up of every English-language comedy show happening in and near Amsterdam.
After a short holiday, exploring the Barcelona stand-up scene, I’m back! This week, Sindhu Vee sells out Boom Chicago twice, Halil Caliskan brings Homesick back to Amsterdam, and DEI Hard returns to the Attic Collective on Saturday. Elsewhere, Patrick Spicer working on his next special at Clink, easylaughs close out their season in style on Friday, and the usual excellent chaos across the rest of the week.
And if you find this newsletter useful, I'd really appreciate you sharing it with one other person who might like it too.
DEI Hard: An Ethnically Hilarious Improv Show Boom Chicago (Attic Collective) | Saturday 13 June | 19:30
DEI Hard’s last showcase sold out. That’s the thing about a night that combines stand-up, musical improv and a cast that brings more cultural texture to one stage than many shows manage in a month: word gets around. This is the Attic Collective at its most chaotic, most joyful, and most genuinely its own thing. Not a mainstage Boom show with a polished finish, a scrappier and better kind of night. The kind that sends you home having seen something that couldn’t have happened anywhere else. Book before it sells out again.
Wednesday 10 June
That Silly Place: A Silly Comedy Night @ Subcult, 20:00 (doors 19:30) Amsterdam Noord’s cosiest room, back for another session, featuring Adi Parmar, Carlos Montoya, Diego Loiacono, Emily Higgson, Kristina Jak, Rein Mulder, Valerie Tan, and Vasilis Kotsaris, hosted by Rutger Lemm.
Diederik Zuurmond & Rogier Bak: New and Improvd @ Comedy Café Amsterdam, 20:00 All-new jokes based on this week’s news, pitched between Diederik and Rogier live onstage. Part stand-up, part live podcast, entirely unrepeatable. 100% English.
The Comedy Underground Night Time Show @ Theater de Richel (basement), Wednesday 21:00 Weekly English open mic in the basement of Theater de Richel, near Dam Square. Stand-up, clown, improv, sketch, music — anything goes. The only night in Amsterdam where Comedians have to perform their set with a challenge, whether it is to write their jokes based on audience suggestions or stand on one leg the entire time.
Improv Spectacular @ Boom Chicago, 20:00 World-class improvisers build a show from scratch, every time, using your suggestions. The one that launched a thousand alumni.
Thursday 11 June
Patrick Spicer: Work in Progress @ ClinkNOORD, 20:00 Fresh off a sold-out European tour across 13 countries, Patrick Spicer returns to Amsterdam to start building his next special. BBC One and Channel 4 credits, “comedy masterclass” (Mumble Comedy). Expect half-formed ideas and the first shimmering sparks of what’s next. Galaxy Room. [check price].
Halil Caliskan: Homesick @ Le Flaneur (Patron Stage) Amsterdam date of Halil’s Edinburgh Fringe debut show, about all the things that word means. 75 minutes, English stand-up. Pop-up cocktail bar from 7pm.
Sweet Home Amsterdama @ Boom Chicago, 20:00 The new Boom Chicago mainstage show about Amsterdam’s housing crisis. Half-sketch, half-improvised, your suggestions drive it. Still the funniest thing about not being able to afford a flat.
Shot of Improv @ Boom Chicago, 22:15 Late-night audience-driven improv with free shots for great suggestions. Happy Hour from 21:00 (half-price drinks).
Comedy Night in English @ Comedy Café Amsterdam, 20:30 The weekly English stand-up showcase at Comedy Café. Strong rotating cast. €18.50.
Flock Theatre @ Flock Theatre Studio (T.T. Neveritaweg 55-57), 19:30 Regular Thursday improv show at one of Amsterdam’s most intimate venues.
Oh My Word Comedy @ Bij Barba, 20:00 The weekly English stand-up night in Amsterdam West, hosted by Carly Blair. Local and NL-based acts on a Thursday.
That Comedy Thing @ OOSTerBAR (Amsterdam Oost), 20:00 That Comedy Thing's weekly Thursday showcase in Amsterdam Oost. Pay what you can: free community tickets available for those on a tight budget, donations go directly to the performers. A reliable room for discovering names before they get big.
Friday 12 June
Sindhu Vee: Swanky @ Boom Chicago, 20:30 SOLD OUT. Edinburgh Comedy Award-nominated stand-up, star of Netflix’s Sex Education and Would I Lie To You, on her first tour in five years. Waiting list available.
Patrick Spicer: Work in Progress @ ClinkNOORD, 18:00 Second Amsterdam date for the WIP run. Same sharp instincts, different crowd energy. Galaxy Room.
easylaughs: Final Encore! Musical and Improv Level 2 Grad @ CREA Muziekzaal, 20:00 One spot left in the time capsule, one night to decide who gets remembered. Plus Level 2 improv students take the stage for the first time. Classic easylaughs Friday night format.
The Comedy Embassy @ Boom Chicago (Upstairs Theater), 22:15 Amsterdam’s highest-rated stand-up showcase. Four comedians, full bar, every Friday.
Saturday 13 June
Split Bill: Emily Panic and Rosalind Anketell @ Boom Chicago (Attic Collective), 21:30 First-ever snippets of their work in progress shows. Stand-up comedy and earnest music, two rising acts sharing a stage for the first time.
Sindhu Vee: Swanky @ Boom Chicago, 20:30 SOLD OUT. Second Amsterdam night of the Swanky tour. Waiting list available.
Sweet Home Amsterdama @ Boom Chicago, 20:00
DEI Hard: An Ethnically Hilarious Improv Show @ Boom Chicago (Attic Collective), 19:30 This week’s Pick of the Week. Stand-up, musical improv, and more. Sold out last time.
The Comedy Embassy @ Boom Chicago (Upstairs Theater), 22:15
Cocktails and Comedy in English @ Comedy Café Amsterdam, 18:00 The weekly early Saturday English showcase at Comedy Café.
Sunday 14 June
Deshawn Mason Presents: The Seance @ Boom Chicago (Community Night), 20:30 Characters, magic, songs, passion, sound, jokes, and movement. Deshawn’s take on the Comedy Lab community night format.
Sunday Night Live @ Boom Chicago, 19:00 The weekly long-form improv institution. Best cast in years, a live musician, an improvising technician, and a story built entirely in the room.
Cocktails and Comedy in English @ Comedy Café Amsterdam, 20:30 Sunday edition of the English showcase at Comedy Café.
Monday 15 June
Monday Night Laughs @ Brouwerij De Prael (Oudezijds Armsteeg 26), 20:00 The weekly English stand-up show in the Red Light District brewery. Rotating cast of scene regulars and international headliners, hosted by Kendra Borgen.
English Comedy Talent Award @ Kargadoor, Utrecht, Oudegracht 36, 20:30. Heat 7 bringing the hottest new talent from across the Netherlands & Belgium.
Tuesday 16 June
Tuna: Newbie of the Week @ Cafe de Knoop, 20:00 That Comedy Thing's weekly new comedian showcase. First timers and fresh faces doing their thing, every Tuesday.
Hump Day Comedy Open Mic Night @ Cafe De Knoop, Wednesday 20:00. Weekly curated English open mic in the Jordaan. A step above the average open mic: sign-up in advance. Free.
That Comedy Thing: Open Mic @ Cafe de Buurvrouw, Wednesday 20:00 English open mic in a cosy bar setting.
Vice Comedy: A Good Hang Power Hour @ Vice Versa (Ceintuurbaan 206), Thursday, 20:00 Presented by resident comedian Lupe Estrada. Bi-weekly Thursday open mic: seasoned performers and fresh faces testing new material in a relaxed room. Come early for seats and drinks. This week, featuring Me! Come say Hi!
Dishoom! @ Café de Plakhoek, Thursday, 19:00 Weekly English open mic in De Pijp. Raw, unfiltered, expat trauma as material. Free entry.
O'Casey's Comedy Open Mic @ O'Casey's Irish Pub, Noordeinde, Den Haag, Monday 19:00 Quips and Bits Comedy bring their showcase to Den Haag, MC'd by Cid Clementine. Matt James, Andrei Turc, Olav Bus, Carly Blair, Mario Coppola, Jim Warren, Goda Mo, and Jacob Stewart on the bill. Den Haag is 50 minutes from Amsterdam Centraal.
The Comedy Womb (Comedy Room Open Mic) @ Huis van Iemand Anders (De Pijp), Tuesday 20:00, Weekly English open mic from The Comedy Room Amsterdam. New comedians taking their first steps, experienced comics testing new material. Doors 19:30. Show-up-to-go-up spots available on the night.
Comedyhuis: Open Mic @ Kargadoor, Utrecht (Oudegracht 36), Tuesday 20:30 Weekly open mic. The newest jokes in Utrecht, quality variable, entertainment guaranteed.
Boom Chicago Academy Term 4 Level 1 classes now on sale. The full Term 4 schedule drops this Wednesday. Musical Improv 5-Day Intensive (week of 20 July) still has spots. One-day workshop: Say Something, a Freestyle Rap Workshop led by David “BS” Bradshaw on 21 June (already half sold). Happy Hour Jam on 20 June, 18:00, student-run, €5. boomchicago.nl/academy
easylaughs: Improv and stand-up courses for beginners and improvers. New term starting soon. easylaughs.nl
That Comedy Thing Stand-up courses and MC workshop. Affordable, practical, taught by working comics.
Amsterdam Comedy Studio Improv, musical improv, comedy writing and drop-in workshops.
This section updates monthly. Know of a course? Hit reply and tell me.
Boom Chicago Comedy Festival. The beating heart of the Amsterdam comedy scene is hosting its annual comedy festival in July, with headline acts including Epic Rap Battles of History (3 July), Nadine Froughi (3 July), Mike Wozniak: The Bench (4 July), Louis Hanson: Good Boy! (4 July), and Reggie Watts (8 July). Tickets are on sale now and some shows will sell fast.
18 June: Sjoerd Scott: Long Story Sjoerd @ ClinkNOORD, 20:00 An hour of stand-up from one of Amsterdam’s most exciting local voices, blending his Caribbean roots with Dutch life, culture shock, and sharp social observation.
19 June: SERVE: Queer Comedy Chaos @ ClinkNOORD, 20:00 The alternative queer comedy night closes out its season with a special edition: bigger lineup, bigger room, stand-up, games, and blissful chaos. Doors 19:30.
18-20 June, Two by Jim Cartwright @ Mike’s Badhuistheater, 20:00, a sharp, darkly comic and unexpectedly heartwarming portrait of a Northern pub and the larger-than-life characters who pass through its doors.
20 June: Mezrab Alt Comedy Night @ Mezrab The alternative comedy night returns: top acts from around the world with local support in one of Amsterdam’s most distinctive rooms.
21 June: Say Something: Freestyle Rap Workshop @ Boom Chicago Academy One-day workshop led by David “BS” Bradshaw, US State Department Cultural Ambassador and Freestyle Love Supreme collaborator. Half sold already.
24 June: Musical Comedy Night: Balboa and The Sound of Maybe @ De Dijktheater (Da Costakade 160), 19:30 Amsterdam Comedy Studio presents a full evening of completely improvised musical comedy. The Sound of Maybe open, Balboa headline.
27 June: Club Balkissoon. A new comedy venue opens its doors for the first time.
27 June: Amuse @ Cinetol, 19:00 and 21:00 New show from The Cauldron. A legendary courtesan steps out of the frame to confront the myths men made of her, through burlesque, striptease, and speculative imagination. Two shows.
14 October: Hasan Minhaj and Ronny Chieng: Hasan Hates Ronny | Ronny Hates Hasan @ Theater Amsterdam Two of the biggest names in international comedy, both Netflix and Daily Show alumni, on one stage for a night of sharp jokes and mutual loathing. Tickets on sale this Friday 12 June at 10:00.
The Live List comes out every Wednesday. If you enjoyed this, please forward it to one person who’d find it useful.
Know about a show I’ve missed? Just hit reply, or email livelistnl@gmail.com