See D'Lai, Joanne McNeely, And More At The Den In February

The Den Theatre today announced upcoming appearances by D’Lai, Joanne McNally, and Off Book: The Improvised Musical, coming to The Heath Mainstage throughout February 2024, at 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. Tickets at www.thedentheatre.com or by calling (773) 697-3830.

D’LAI

Saturday, February 10, 2024 at 7:15 and 9:30 p.m.

Tickets: $22 - $40

D’Lai is one of the nation’s most sought-after comics. He has appeared on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, Showtime, BET’s ComicView, and Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Network. On top of touring colleges and universities, he’s also embarked on military tours in Ir aq, Afghanistan, Korea, Japan, and Bahrain. Consistently headlining sold-out shows around the country, D’Lai’s material and sets extend from his destitute beginnings to the experiences that have made him the man he is today. Transparent, raw, and uncut, D’Lai leaves it all on the stage. No questions, no secrets, no lies, this man is a master of his craft bringing his audiences to their feet after every show. 

A comedian and entrepreneur, D’Lai has solidified his hashtags that lead his brand; “Take it in,” “Make America Green Again,” “I’m Glad You Asked,” into a merchandise bonanza, all of which are available on his website. Thousands of devoted fans listen for the “D’Lai Show” every week, as well as Instagram segments of “D’Lai After Dark” and “I’m Glad You Asked.” 

JOANNE MCNALLY 

Sunday, February 24, 2023 at 7:15 p.m.

One of Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch in 2023, Joanne McNally’s podcast, “My Therapist Ghosted Me,” has over 55 million downloads.

Described by The Sunday Times as a 'truly gifted stand-up', Joanne has been taking Ireland's comedy scene by storm with sell out tours, hilarious chat show appearances, newspaper articles, and a hit documentary all under her belt. Now firmly on the UK comedy circuit, she's enjoyed sell out Edinburgh runs with her stand up shows Wine Tamer and The Prosecco Express. She toured Ireland with both shows, and sold out her Soho Theatre run. 

Joanne created, wrote, and presented the funny and insightful documentary Baby Hater, which was broadcast in Ireland for TV3, and has been sold to 12 countries. Her first one woman show, Bite Me - a show about eating disorders - was nominated for multiple awards including Best Performer, Best Production, and a First Fortnight award at the Dublin Fringe in 2016. Joanne performed Bite Me at the Vault Festival in 2019 where Lyn Gardner described her as “hilarious and brutal.”



Joanne has numerous TV credits include co-hosting RTÉ 2's flagship comedy show Republic of Telly, and appearing on The Blame Game (BBC NI), Women on The Verge (UKTV), The Late Late Show (RTÉ One), and The Tommy Tiernan Chat Show (RTÉ One). Her radio credits include BBC Radio 4's A Good Read, BBC Radio 5 Live's Sarah Brett Show, and a regular slot on 2FM's Mack the Week. You can also catch her on the hit BBC podcast hosted by Russell Kane, Evil Genius, and the online series Comedians Solve World Problems (Comedy Central).

OFF BOOK: THE IMPROVISED MUSICAL

Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 7:15 p.m. 9:30 p.m.

Jessica McKenna and Zach Reino create a completely improvised musical in an attempt to combat the notion that musicals should be “carefully crafted” or “thought out at all.”

Zach Reino and Jessica McKenna are a versatile musical comedy duo. They wrote and composed music for the WGA award-winning Peacock Series Baking It starring Maya Rudolph and Andy Samberg. The duo has also written songs and musical sketches for the hit animation show Rick and Morty, Party Over Here (a Fox sketch show produced by The Lonely Island), the Peacock series Pitch Perfect: Bumper In Berlin, Buzzfeed, FunnyOrDie and Nickelodeon. Zach and Jess are currently developing TV and Film projects with Amy Poehler’s Paper Kite Productions, David Wain (The State, Role Models, Wanderlust) and Elizabeth Banks’ Brownstone Productions. They also created and starred in Serious Music, a digital series for ABC.

Their weekly improvised musical podcast Off Book has been praised by various online publications including Indie Wire, USA Today, Parade, AV Club and Splitsider and been featured at Comedy Central’s Clusterfest Festival, Moontower, the world renowned Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal, and the Netflix Is A Joke Festival in LA. Zach and Jess were listed as one of Vulture’s “Comedians You Should and Will Know” and in early 2019 they released their first full-length musical comedy album The Calendar Album with Comedy Dynamics.

About The Den Theatre

The Den Theatre opened in 2010 in the Wicker Park neighborhood with just a single theatre space. Now celebrating its thirteenth year, Co-owners Ryan Martin and Carol Cohen, along with their talented and dynamic staff, have developed The Den into a multi-level, live entertainment venue that boasts five intimate and unique theaters ranging from 50 – 300 seats. In addition, the first floor houses The Den Bar & Lounge – a full-service bar where audiences gather before and after performances to share a drink and commune with like-minded culture-hounds.

Today, The Den is focused on providing world-class stand-up comedy and cultivating its first love – the theatre. The Den is home to four resident theatre companies including About Face Theatre, The Artistic Home, First Floor Theater and Haven. Hundreds of other companies, artists and comedians from Chicago and beyond have called The Den home – from national names to local stars, and The Den consistently plays host to a lineup of exciting and diverse talent. As a building created for interdisciplinary arts, The Den has accommodated a wide variety of programming, including plays, musicals, stand-up comedy, improv, dance, film screenings, seminars and speaking engagements. For additional information, visit www.thedentheatre.com.

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