Inside Scoop: Carolines on Broadway

Located in the heart of Times Square, Carolines on Broadway presents up and coming comedic talent and national acts seven nights a week. First opened as a small cabaret club in Chelsea in 1982, owner Caroline Hirsch, a lifelong comedy fan, soon began booking comedians in her room. The comedy acts—which included now legendary performers like Jerry Seinfeld, Tim Allen, Billy Crystal, Rosie O’Donnell, and Jay Leno—were a big hit, and it wasn’t long before Carolines became a full-fledged comedy club. As the popularity of stand-up surged throughout the 1980s, so did the popularity of Carolines, becoming THE place to see live comedy in New York City.

The great demand for comedy brought standing-room-only crowds to Carolines, which moved to a larger space downtown, and then in 1992 to its current grand setting on Broadway in Times Square. In addition to presenting top headlining comedians, the club also features emerging talent, live podcasts, and improv and sketch comedy, as well as playing host to countless large-scale fund-raising events and  benefits. Carolines also produces the highly successful New York Comedy Festival.

Forty years after it first opened as a cabaret, Carolines on Broadway has grown into one of the country’s top comedy brands, affirming its position as “The First Name in Comedy.”