Review: Denver Comedy Underground is Affordable and Hilarious

Upon entering the Denver Comedy Underground, one’s eyes are immediately met by rows of seats. The 140-person room is intimate but distinctly Denver—the industrial feel of the space, combined with small touches, like the extravagant chandelier that hangs above the front entrance, gives it an edge. 

In this cozy environment, comedian Ben Bryant slowly walks onstage to deliver a killer joke. 

“I’m not a Republican, but I’ve been gaining weight,” Bryant said. “My neck is starting to look Republican.” Bryant gestures to a lack of a defined neckline. The crowd bursts out laughing as Bryant mumbles about fake news, letting us all know we are in for a good set. 

As a first-timer at the Denver Comedy Underground, its Secret Comedy Shows, which take place most Friday and Saturday nights, are a great place to start. With no pressure to know who’s performing, one can show up with confidence that it will be a whole night of laughter. 

For a 7:30 p.m. event this past Saturday, July 12, there was a ton of free street parking in the area. The Denver Comedy Underground team makes it easy to enter the venue. An attendant shows you to your table, which has a QR code that you can scan for drinks and snacks to be sent to your table. 

One thing that sets this apart from other comedy clubs in town is that there is free pizza out for those who arrive early. To the left of the entrance is a long table with sliced cheese and pepperoni pizzas alongside trays for one to serve themselves. They’re definitely small pizzas, but enough for you not to go hungry during the show. 

The five-minute warning before the start hits at about 7:35 p.m., and the host for the evening, Hannah Jones, comes to the stage. Jones first talking about the features of the venue, such as how to order drinks, and then went into a 15-minute set. 

Jones was probably my favorite of the four comedians who performed. Retelling her jokes in the written format doesn’t do her cadence and expressions justice, but she felt the youngest and most relatable of the comedians.

She spoke of men with mustaches, who would win between 100 men versus a gorilla, and feminine energy, all with a hilariously diabolical tone. Jones had one joke about how people don’t like all the homeless people around Denver, but she’s more scared of all the Justins in bars that she meets. She said she sometimes asks homeless people to walk her to her car and protect her from all of the Justins. 

“What are homeless people going to do, kidnap me?” Jones said. “Where would they put me? A Justin could kidnap me!” 

Jones ended her set with a bit about how she gets out of dates by pretending to be suicidal. Jones said that she texts guys that she has suicidal tendencies. After talking to them for a bit, if she’s not into them, she’ll just stop responding to them and let her date think she killed herself. 

Although her material might sound extremely dark and not funny, Jones’ upbeat telling left the audience in stitches. Jones introduced the next comic, Bryant, by explaining that he’s achieved comedy feats such as being on Adult Swim. 

Bryant began with the aforementioned Republican joke, which really eased the audience into his style. Bryant then talked about Oklahoma’s new law requiring Trump Bibles in schools. Bryant had a whole tangent about what the foreword of the Bible would be and did so in Trump’s voice. 

“My Bibles are the best Bibles,” Bryant riffed. “They’re so much better than all the other Bibles.”

He then talked about his pet pug and did several impressions, including of pop culture icons like Fred Flintstone and Oprah Winfrey. Bryant’s set went by quickly. He was obviously comfortable on stage, and that made even silences feel purposeful. He could have talked less about pugs, but you win some, you lose some.  

Ed Bell followed and was the most forgettable of the night’s performers. In fact, he was so unmemorable that he almost didn’t make it into this article. Bell talked about growing up hillbilly, above-ground pools and how women live longer than men. Bell appeared to be the most nervous of the performers, and his fast tempo caused some of his jokes to fall flat. 

Stuart Laws was the final opener before the main act. Overall, Laws was fun and told a wide variety of jokes, including about the feeling of missing the last step on a staircase, entering non-moving escalators and sneezing while driving. 

He began by talking about his love for his wife. Laws explained that he struggles talking with some of his guy friends because they complain about women, and he can’t relate. The crowd liked and connected with his sentiment. Although after a while, he revealed he didn’t actually have a wife. This twist was met flatly, and the audience immediately distrusted him. 

Still, it wasn’t all bad, as Laws also talked about being British and how he likes to come to British pubs in the U.S. He explained that they take over the properties near them and exploit those companies, similar to how the British have historically taken over land. 

The headliner for the night was Chloe Radcliffe, whose set was around an hour. Radcliffe was a writer on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” as well as a Comedy Central star and host of the YouTube series “In Tandem,” where she interviews comedians while riding a bicycle. 

While Radcliffe had a lot of funny concepts and bits, she spent too much time on each topic, which made her act drag at times. 

Radcliffe’s set started with a story from a college party she attended way back when. She remembers a girl walking down into the basement of a party and a guy immediately yelling, “DIBS.” She explains how the girl died, and they never hooked up. Radcliffe lets that sit for a moment and then says, “No, they probably hooked up,” before explaining how she wants to be so hot that someone claims her as she enters the room. 

Much of Radcliffe’s set talks about her experiences having a birthmark on her face and how people treat her differently for this. She also had many stories about dating and her habit of “falling in love with the potential of people.” Her set was overall strong, but despite such a high energy level, her set lacked range. 

Radcliffe ended at about 9:25 p.m., and Jones thanked everyone for coming. The club also had a 9:30 p.m. show right after, so as the crowd was leaving, we walked past a long line outside the door of people waiting to enter. 

The crowd at the early show was mostly millennials, as were the comedians. As a Gen Z, some of the humor, such as jokes about being embarrassed about your boobs and wanting men for validation, didn’t strike my fancy. It definitely felt geared towards a 30-something audience.  

The night flew by, and the relaxed environment of the Denver Comedy Underground made it easy to want to come back. I would love to return for one of their later night shows and see how the atmosphere changes. As someone who is new to the world of live comedy, the $20 ticket felt worth the money and a great way to mix up a Saturday night.