The Truth About Love is a brand new raunchy rom com musical that follows the unique stories of 8 different people living in Fair Haven Vermont. This Musical explores all the Greek words for love

A night for Annoyance students to JAM!

Hosted by members of Tuesday Musical Improv, this free weekly jam allows anyone to try out musical improv on the Annoyance Mainstage. Sign-ups begin at 6:45--no experience necessary!

The Annoyance's very own musical ensembles. Every Tuesday at 8pm, two groups improvise brand new musicals based on audience suggestions. Featuring Musical Director Lisa McQueen and starring the Annoyance Musical Ensembles. Follow us on instagram: @tuesdaymusicalimprov

Are you and your improv team looking for another place to get on stage? We've got a warm and supportive room ready to give you laughs and claps! Bring your own team to Annoyance on Tuesday nights to get a rep in and giggle. If you don't have a team to bring, no worries! There's a mashup team and we're happy to throw you on it! Signups are at 8:30PM and we'll hit the stage at 9:00PM. See you every Tuesday!

Open Stage is an opportunity for anyone to get on stage and try out whatever they're currently working on - standup, sketch, songs - you name it. At Open Stage anything can happen and it usually does!

A staged reading of a new musical in development - the byproduct of when two writing partners break-up during the most pivotal moment of their career. But can they still make it work? Determined to not lose career momentum and equally determined to not be in the same room together... and with all eyes on what they'll write next... they choose to divide and conquer their next big musical by splitting the work perfectly in half. This is that premiere. Now presenting a musical about Napoleon Dynamite... wait, no... Napoleon Bonaparte? Uh oh.

Two teams will go head to head to win your hearts and laughs in the hopes to be the triumphant winner of Family Fight Night.

Come join us for a fun evening of comedic kinship! Two families will take on guessing answers through improv in the hopes to win your hearts and laughs. Watch these families test their relationship, cleverness, and improv skills in this new comedic gameshow!

Gay for Pay is celebrating what makes Pride special—corporate sponsorships! Join hosts Mary Fiala and Dan Hickey for an hour of all-LGBTQ+ comedy brought to you by the most reputable and totally real brands that support the community year-round and not just when there’s a big gay profit to be had. Featuring standup, improv, and burlesque performances from Hannah Belmont, Colette Gregory, Slip Dress, KP, Hannah Magy & Willy LaQueue.

Improv from the cast of Shake the Baby.

Taking her life experience of attending an Indiana Catholic School for 12 years. Syd King looks at why she took purity culture terribly seriously; shamed friends for OWNING yoga pants, SLAPPED PEOPLE WHEN THEY CURSED, and did almost anything but love thy neighbour. Syd is now publicly atoning for her sins and hopefully making anyone else that still feels a tinge of guilt with a sip of red wine, a little better. Directed by Vannessa Jackson (SNL, Colbert, A Black Lady Sketch Show)

October Brian Sketch Comedy invites you to finally meet Brian. In this 50-minute sketch comedy bonanza, you’ll see some of October Brian’s favorite sketches from the past four years, as well as brand new sketches every week from the group’s forthcoming sketch comedy-horror show set in 1600s Puritan New England (to be performed in May at the Annoyance Theater).

October Brian has been performing sketch comedy together for over ten years, and has been seen on The BBC, at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and in theaters across Chicago. Join us in celebrating all things Brian and enjoy your chance to meet him…finally!

Bigfoot? Pyramids? Crop circles? All this and more will be explored in Cryptic: An improv show. Together, 11 of Chicago’s best and weirdest performers will explore how one unexplained phenomenon (as determined by the audience) affects the lives of unique and interesting characters. What did happen that night at the lake? Who saw the UFO? What’s that smell? Find out all this and more at Cryptic: An Improv Show!

This hour long, fully improvised show, features the cast of 12 Angry Improvisers acting as a jury. Peek into the deliberation room as they use improv to recreate the facts of a case (as determined by the audience). They'll reexamine the moment the defendant was caught with their hand in the cookie jar -in reverse! -with French accents! -with every line of dialogue being a question!

Veteran improviser Susan Messing improvises with John Lehr in this unbridled romp through hell.

This Juneteenth, That Vibey Show is turning all the way up with a one-night-only Lip-Sync Battle you do not want to miss. At 8 p.m. on June 19th at the Annoyance Theatre (851 W. Belmont), our lineup of hilarious guest comedians will perform bold, ridiculous, and iconic lip-syncs to songs by legendary Black artists—all in hopes of earning a coveted spot on our collective Vibey playlist. It’s a mix of high-stakes musical improv, comedy chaos, and celebration of Black joy and artistry. But remember: the audience decides who makes the cut. Get your crew together, bring your loudest laugh, and click the link in my bio for tickets. 🎤✨ #It’sNotJustAComedyShowItsAVibe

As a Christian kid, maybe you grew up with Veggie Tales, Psalty the Singing Songbook, or The Donut Man. But what wholesome content do the kids of today have? Why, Benny Bingo and the Evangelikids of course! Become an Evangelikid and meet us at the Flamingo Club House! We'll learn all about Jesus and the Gospel through songs, stories, prescriptive gender roles, and patriarchy! But when the cameras cut, it seems like some of the kids, and perhaps even Benny Bingo himself, are starting to have questions....maybe even doubts? Watch this heartwarming and hilarious original musical that explores themes of deconstruction, queerness, and individuality within the confines of an oppressive belief system — all while unapologetically leaning into joy.

QUEERBAIT is a show where the cast is queer and you’re the bait. Follow these 6 comedians as they/she/he/it explore a multitude of queer identities via an absurdist sketch comedy lense. This show will prove once and for all that queer people are funnier. And if you disagree? You’re probably homophobic!

Follow Doctor Rorscach as he takes you into the depths of your own subconscious through improv, sketch, and special guest stars.
Rorschach Baby is an improv team formed through the Annoyance Program, and coached by Jake Prizant (Hulu’s Deli Boys, Missed Call). Instagram: RorscachBabyImprov

Team Members include: Tessa Abedon, Travis Bergman, Jason Clark, Melissa Harrison, Katie Rae Horn, Carolyn Hu Bradbury, Andrew Kerr, Nick Martini, Jace Mertes, Daniella Pereira, Jazmin Robinson, Stephen Shoemaker, and Justin Vidovic

Swiped Improvised Thievery is a longform-improvised comedy show where the audience experiences the thrilling highs and lows of the heist genre alongside a colorful band of thieves. Join us each week as we assemble our crew and perform a thrilling heist to steal a valuable item suggested by the audience. And if something goes awry... well - It's all part of the plan.

¡Latinos bienvenidos a la fiesta! English speakers, do your best.

Yas, And! elevates LGBT voices and posits that change on a large scale begins with engaging your local community. The show incorporates a fundraising component for The Trevor Project, the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people. Come out of the closet and enjoy the show as a dynamic ensemble of LGBTQ+ actors deliver a dazzling array of sketches that capture the joys, challenges, and triumphs of queer life.

The aroma of Bollywood Masala fills the air with big emotions, dance sequences, soapy dialogues, drama, comedy, tragedy, and romance. A proud yet struggling director has one last chance to redeem his career by creating the ultimate masala-packed blockbuster before he goes out of business. His accomplice? A masala movie aficionado and self-proclaimed genius. As they clash over creative control, the director must navigate the chaos of filmmaking while discovering the true magic of connecting with an audience.
With a star-studded cast, three non-negotiable conditions set by the producer, and a story entirely improvised on the spot based on audience suggestions, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Will the director rise to the occasion and create a Bollywood Masala masterpiece worthy of its heritage? Join us and find out!

Al's a new gay in Chicago looking for love in the big city when he bumps into the most beautiful man he's ever seen on the streets of Northalsted one night. Desperate to make his acquaintance, Al follows him into the legendary bathhouse Steamworks. As he makes his way through the maze of jacuzzis, slings, gloryholes, and fuck benches, Al makes a wild group of friends who help him discover what love might really mean when everyone's covered in cum.

Welcome to a fully improvised dimension beyond that which is known to man. Join us in a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity, the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition. In our show we will dive into the pit of your fears and the summit of your knowledge. This is the dimension of imagination.

Missed Call is a premiere Chicago comedy group that writes and performs an entirely new sketch show every Friday.

Celebrate Father's Day Weekend right: getting drunk, seeing a show, and not interacting even once with your dad! An all new duo-sketch show featuring Rockie Wenrich and Kath Courtney, your Father Figures.

BABY WINE is one of Chicago's longest running LGBTQ+ comedy variety shows. Hosted by Baby Wine's core ensemble, each week a rotating lineup of queer performers open the show with a variety of acts ranging from standup to sketch to music to improv to drag. Baby Wine closes out the show with a no holds barred, long-form improv set. Come lol with us babe!

A Chicago based improv comedy show and drinking game based on the works of Alfred Hitchcock. Based on an audience suggestion, the cast weave together an intricate Hitchcock-like drama, while holding true to the amount of drinking shown in his movies. You'll barely be able to stand the suspense, and the cast will barely be able to stand.

See a collage of character studies, scenes, songs and maybe even some audience interaction, all written in a week by some of Chicago’s most accomplished comedians. The “Holy Fuck Comedy Hour” is a curated hour of eclectic, comedic material written in a week with no rehearsals. Featuring a powerful collective representing a wide cross-section of the Chicago comedy community, the material varies every week.

​

Each week a rotating cast of all-star musical improvisers will create a blend of comedy and song that will make the audience think the material was written. Drawing upon talent that has performed with Second City, Baby Wants Candy, Tuesday Musical Improv, Blank! The Musical, Voila! and more, this group emphasizes movement and music in a new way for the Annoyance stage. Musical direction by Lisa McQueen, Sam Scheidler, Karen Sandvoss and Brian Cooper.

Annoyance founder Mick Napier created the Trigger Happy form out of a desire to make improv look as slick and beautifully put together as a scripted show. Through a language invisible to the audience, the fully improvised show magically comes to life. There is truly nothing else like it. An Annoyance Signature Improv show.

Review: https://www.newcitystage.com/2015/01/31/review-trigger-happythe-annoyance-theatre/

Shake the Baby is a 90-minute original sketch revue directed by Mick Napier.

The show’s cast and writers consist of Chicago’s up-and-coming comedians - Hope Brannon, Francesca Bucci, Luke Herman, Sage Huston, Max Kantor, Edgar Nevarez, Liam Reed, Mario Turner, and Rockie Wenrich. Music Direction by Justin Jacobs

Following sold-out shows & multiple rave reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe and London's Off-West End Soho Theatre, comedian Ricky Sim (@rickeerick) brings ‘Coming Out To Dead People’ to Annoyance - a chaotic stand-up about growing up as a gaysian immigrant in NY, to coming out to his conservative Chinese-Malaysian mom… just as she’s diagnosed with cancer. Talk about good timing. Combining stand-up and storytelling, an autobiographical hour explores grief, cleft-palates, secrets to the grave, and why you should not be thinking about your ancestor when having gay sex. Runtime: 60mins

Cold Pizza returns to The Annoyance with a brand-new sketch revue! With narrative threads of love, loss & crazy workplaces, Looking For Love In All The Wrong Workplaces checks all the right boxes. Bring your Hinge dates, your work wives, and your best Frienemies! This show features brand new sketches, improvised moments, audience participation, music, and more!

Kath Courtney and Rockie Wenrich are: Father Figures! Two dudes with the ability to fix your car, be fuckable, and die before you really get the chance to understand them. Directed by Chelsea Matkins. Made for fathers and DILF-enjoyers everywhere.

WOAH! NEW EVERY MONTH. A raucous. raunchy, sometimes juvenile but always funny sketch show that will make your daddy give your mommy a pearl necklace... to clutch. Get tickets now, they're selling faster than a Stewie doll at Spencer's. DM: @Antivirginclub proof you bought tickets and we will draw you boobs.

An hour long comedy show featuring some of Annoyance Theatre’s best and funniest. Show Runner: Hails Reeves

Al's a new gay in Chicago looking for love in the big city when he bumps into the most beautiful man he's ever seen on the streets of Northalsted one night. Desperate to make his acquaintance, Al follows him into the legendary bathhouse Steamworks. As he makes his way through the maze of jacuzzis, slings, gloryholes, and fuck benches, Al makes a wild group of friends who help him discover what love might really mean when everyone's covered in cum.

Introducing the Annoyance Variety Hour! Featuring performances from Chicago's best comedians, musicians, magicians, circus performers, puppeteers, and everything in between! A true everything goes show reminiscent of classic programs like the Ed Sullivan Show and the Gong Show, its sure to surprise and amaze even the most seasoned of theater goers. Hosted by one of Chicago's best alternative comedians, Michael Serio, an international headliner and regular at major comedy venues all across the city, and live music played every night by the soulful stylings of the musical comedy duo sensation So Far So Good, the only thing you'll be disappointed by is that you didn't go see it sooner.

This week on "David & David", David Byrne (David Byrne) is torn between his girlfriend, Suzy the Lamp (Suzy the Lamp), and his roommate David Lynch (David Lynch) when the latter, heartbroken by his ex, Bjork (Björk), dreams up a prophesied dinner party for their friends Neighbor Nic (Nicolas Cage), Lorde Lande (Werner Herzog), and Georgie (Georgia O’Keeffe) on the same night as Suzy and Byrne’s anniversary.

After a successful staging in November, "David & David" returns. This remastered run promises to excite returning viewers and delight new ones!

CW: Fake gun (and accompanying single gunshot sound effect), mentions of self-harm, and dramatized violence

They take edibles. Then they improvise. There's a 'too-high' button, for when it gets too crazy.

A Great White shark with baby teeth is overshadowed by a bigger, badder, killer shark until she's tempted to join the murderous shark's rampage. Cocaine, the Bee gees, fish from Minnesota. Who will survive and who will be the sharks' next victim?

Derry Queen is back for the 4th annual Annoyance Pride Party! Get your tickets for the hottest party on the day of Pride in Chicago. With programming all day starting at 3:30, your ticket gets you into all shows including the 21 & Under Pageant, Strapped featuring Dragula Season 666 Winner Asia Consent, the Lip Sync Assassin Tournament and Gag! featuring drag icon Tammie Brown. VIP tickets available for meet and greets with Asia and Tammie and gets you to cut the entrance line! Blast off to space with us, its MOTHEREDSHIP!

Join international pop sensations, The Romanticks, for a variety hour filled with laughter, music, and sexy, sexy bugs. Oh, what’s that? Not sure if you’re into sexy, sexy bugs? Sexy, Latine bugs? Grow up.

CRASS2 is our capstone class, taking students through the process of using improv as a tool to create original scripted narrative plays. This term, the class has created an adventure that asks the questions, what if The Titanic but everyone's horned up (or in the walrus' case, tusked up)? What if manhunters were on the loose? And what if Werner Herzog worked in a fire room as a stoker? Don't miss this silly tale of naughty nautical nonsense! "DOCKED AND LOADED" is written and performed by Michael Austin, Vildana Celik, Amanda MacAllister, Mark McGraw, Zak Schwartz, Zach Steffen, Cooper Towns, Amber Von Ruden. Directed by Lauren Rivas. The Annoyance Theatre, Sundays 6/1 - 6/22, 7pm, free.

Do you want to have a boring night or do you want to get into some SHAANANIGANS? Bollywood stars, spelling bee champions, R&B singers, and so much more - this is a solo character show featuring the weirdos who show up on TV late at night when no one is watching. Representation matters for freaks too. Written and performed by Shaan Baig. Directed by Arik Cohen.

See Chicago's longest-running improv team bring their unique blend of big characters and absurd situations to the stage with infectious energy. Formed in 1996, Deep Schwa has performed over a thousand shows in theaters all over Chicago and beyond. Made up of an evolving cast of ten of the city's best veteran players. Each show singular, each show electric.