HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! to Celebrate 7th Anniversary This Week

Long-running Chicago and Off-Broadway hit HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! will celebrate its 7th Anniversary on Thursday, April 27.

It originally opened in Chicago in 2010 and has played numerous engagements including an Off-Broadway run at The Davenport Theatre and a stint at 54 Below. HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME is currently playing a four-month run in the East Village at Under St. Mark's.

In this original and fresh take on musical improvisation, HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! combines improv and karaoke to create the opening (and closing) night of a brand new one-act musical. The show explodes into a world of original scenes and popular songs - all titled and inspired by YOU, the audience! Audiences will recognize the tunes, but not the lyrics as the cast re-invents songs we all know and love.

"Audience members enjoy the 'aha!' moment of recognizing a popular Broadway song, which the cast then re-imagines to fit the scene," says Philip Markle, HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! creator and performer. "From classic hits like 'Don't Stop Believin' to Disney to Sia's "Cheap Thrills," audience members are drawn in by familiar karaoke tracks and then delighted with our new lyrics." One of the few successful musical improv shows to break into the Off-Broadway circuit, HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! showcases some of the best improv talent in New York though its high-energy format.

HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! is created and performed by Philip Markle (The Annoyance, Baby Wants Candy, Sparkle Hour at FringeNYC), Douglas Widick (BLANK! The Musical, UCB, North Coast, Baby Wants Candy), Kathleen Armenti (Magnet, PIT), Chris Evan Simpson (Story Pirates), Ali Reed (Once Upon A Mattress with Jackie Hoffman and John "Lypsinka" Epperson), Nikita Burdein (Magnet, PIT), Kiki Mikkelsen (Magnet, PIT), Rory Scholl (PIT, The Moth), Austin Sanders (PIT/Story Pirates), Annie Moor (Magnet, PIT) and Lane Kwederis (PIT).

HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! premiered in 2007 in Chicago. Since then, it has been seen at numerous theaters in New York, Chicago and San Francisco including an 18-month run at Chicago's Annoyance Theatre and an Off-Broadway run at The Davenport Theater.

HAPPY KARAOKE FUN TIME! runs now through June 29, Thursdays at 10:30pm. Under St. Mark's is located at 84 St. Mark's Place, between 1st Avenue and Avenue A -- accessible from the L at 14th Street, F at 2nd Avenue, #6 at Astor Place or N,R at 8th Street. Tickets are $18 / $10 for students & seniors, available at www.happykaraokefuntime.com.

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