When Old Town institution the Boiler Room closed, it seemed at first that it’d taken one of the city’s longest-running comedy open mics with it. But good news! The open mic has changed venue—but not personnel—and lives on at the Mercury staff’s home away from home Valentine’s.
Here’s what we wrote about the Boiler Room’s comedy open mic on the occasion of its 10th anniversary:
The first show was on March 4, 2002—not coincidentally, Moore’s birthday. “The Boiler Room had just opened, and the city was just beginning the slow recovery process after 9/11,” he says. “The bar was located in the less shiny, pre-Pearl Old Town.”
The first few years were a struggle as both the venue and the event worked to get established. “For years,” Moore says, “I’m sure that the only reason the show kept on is that those 10-15 people who came on Mondays kept the bar open on Mondays.”
It grew to be a comedy staple graced by the likes of Ian Karmel, Shane Torres, Kristine Levine, Phil Schallberger, and countless other local (and then-local 😭) stand-ups. Cavalcade of Comedy, hosted by Kevin Michael Moore, takes place Monday evenings at Valentine’s at 8 pm, and will carry on that proud tradition. At last, some good news as we wait for this horrendous election to be over. If you’ve spent any time looking at Twitter over the past couple weeks, I’d say you’ve earned it!