Interview: Caroline Hirsch of CAROLINES on Broadway and New York Comedy Festival

Caroline Hirsch, founder and owner of Carolines on Broadway, the iconic New York comedy venue, is a highly successful entrepreneur, producer, visionary and innovator in the entertainment industry. During an illustrious 35-year career she not only presides over one of the country's most popular destinations for live comedy, but she also founded and produces the annual New York Comedy Festival, which she launched in 2004. This year's festival will be held at various venues throughout the city from November 5 to November 11.

A Brooklyn native, Caroline graduated from St. Brendan's High School and attended the City College of New York and the Fashion Institute of Technology. She started out in fashion with retail giant Gimbels, but soon she followed her passion for comedy and opened a small cabaret club in Manhattan's Chelsea district in 1982 with friends Bob Stickney and Carl Christian. With the popularity of stand-up comedy rapidly on the rise, Caroline began booking comedians, including such then unknown talents as Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Sandra Bernhard, Pee Wee Herman, Billy Crystal, Robin Williams and, later, Chris Rock, among others, to perform at her club. What started out as a small venue soon earned its place as a mandatory New York stop and a rite of passage on the way to making it in the comedy business.

Broadwayworld.com had the pleasure of interviewing Caroline about the upcoming New York Comedy Festival.

What do you want audiences to know about this year's festival?

It's our 15th anniversary so this year will be our biggest yet. We have more than 150 shows with over 200 comedians at NY's largest venues and this is the first year we are a full week long.

Can you share any of your plans for the future of the festival?

We'll continue to grow, and continue to add more shows and rising stars to our lineup.

How was the New York Comedy Festival first conceived?

It was conceived in 2004 for the 20th anniversary of Carolines On Broadway at Carnegie Hall. We decided we wanted to work more with the comedians that had graduated from Carolines so we put the festival together.

What is your earliest memory of a comedy performance that you enjoyed?

George Carlin at the Bitter End.

What changes in stand-up comedy have you recognized since you established Carolines?

A lot more people are doing comedy, that's for sure. Comedy has been recognized in new and different ways through cable channels and with streaming. Many more outlets for comedy are being seen that didn't exist when I first started in 1982.

Tell us about some of the challenges of operating Carolines.

The challenges are always operating something in NYC - NYC is the challenge.

Tell us a little about the team that makes it all happen.

It's Andrew Fox, Louis Faranda, and myself. We are the three that make it happen. Louis is the producer and talent director of the festival and Andrew Fox is also a producer and handles new business opportunities for the festival.

Is there anything else you'd like readers to know about the festival overall?

It's probably the biggest festival in the United States at this point.

For more information on Carolines on Broadway, please visit: http://www.carolines.com/.

For additional information on New York Comedy Festival, visit http://nycomedyfestival.com/.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Caroline Hirsch