I had the pleasure of catching my first show, a graduation show, at The Magnet Theater on 29th Street in the city. As a huge fan of UCB and knowing of The People's Improv, I was interested to catch the vibe from this place as I had not heard about it previously. They have 3 dollar Red Stripe, so it's gotta be good right?
Turns out, it's very unassuming. In fact, I'm kinda charmed by it. There's just an air about it that says they are under the radar, and not even in a hip way. There's a weird empathy that I have for it, as well as sympathy for some reason. Just as makeshift as most small theaters, with a table for a bar and a podium for a box office, a small lobby for people to hang, and one, ungodly one, unisex bathroom, the stadium seating is really nice and comfortable. The instructor for the class, Mr. Armando Diaz, is somewhat older and more experienced than many of the improv performers I've seen, and as well, seems really encouraging. Like taking a class is actually tempting for someone like me with limited ability. The stage is a box in front with two doors to the back, and there's a good view from any seat as members of the class sat by the bathroom to the side.
Even their website, which can be found here, is quite low-key comparatively, there's no padded patting-themselves-on-the-back or hard sell sort of thing like some of the other sites do. Doesn't seem to carry as many variety of classes as The People's, but hey, that's just fine.
With shows nearly every night, including mixers (chance for people to get, you know, really improv-y and drunk) and Thursday Night Out special (one 5 dollar ticket gets you in for the night, dollar beers), you can't get much cheaper than Magnet Theater for stripped down fun entertainment.
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