Book corporate clean yet inexpensive stand-up comedians for your New Jersey industry event or conference, charity fund-raising event, country club, awards dinner or private party. Add fun to your organization and have everyone craving to come back next year. Hire us for live or virtual stand-up comedy.
You’ve seen us on TV! Here are just some of the many great clean corporate comedians available to hire for New Jersey’s best clean stand-up comedy shows. A more comprehensive list of comedians is here. Also great for Theatres and Performing Arts Centers, Team-building Exercises & Off-sites, Government & Military Groups, Fraternal & Service Organizations, Alumni Groups, Law Firms, Awards Dinners, Golf and Country Clubs and even Private Parties. Surprisingly affordable to book and advice is free.
Ivy League of Comedy founder Shaun Eli has a joke praising New Jersey as the smartest state in the union. Want to hear the joke? Book us for a stand-up comedy show!
Andy Pitz
Comedian Andy Pitz performs clean comedy but not that boring kind. It’s fresh, relatable and very funny. Andy talks about his twenty years in standup, a long marriage to a neurotic woman, and small everyday things like how the world is perceived by our weird human mind. Andy can do this in a funny way even though he is not famous. Look at his picture. “I think I saw this guy at a comedy club one time…” Yes, you probably have. Andy’s been based in New York City since 1997 and has been performing professionally since 1991.
In 2003 Andy made his television debut on The Late Show with David Letterman, and a month later he was on CBS’s Star Search, where he was eliminated from the semi-finals in a total ripoff. Andy also did standup in 2007 on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson where he was asked to sign the guest book backstage. Sweet.
Having clean material allows Andy to work for a wide range of audiences. Standup comedy venues enjoy his energy and uniqueness. The corporate show crowd and even houses of worship appreciate cleaner subject matter and shows where anyone could be there and have fun.
Andy’s second live comedy recording, “More Mr. Nice Guy”, was released in November 2010 and is played in heavy rotation on Sirius Satellite Radio’s clean comedy station “Laugh USA”.
In and around New York City, Andy performs at the most well-known clubs and also the more obscure rooms, with the goal of working at least four nights a week. He could be at Comic Strip Live, Gotham Comedy Club, Caroline’s, Dangerfield’s, or the Underground Lounge, Zinc Bar, or a youth hostel on any given weekday evening.
When road trips happen they are headlining engagements across the U.S. and Canada. Andy has toured China, performed in Woodstock New York and it’s very likely he’s appeared in the Netherlands.
Click to book Andy Pitz or call or text (914) It’s Funny (914 487-3866).
Joe Matarese
Joe Matarese grew up in Cherry Hill, NJ and now lives with his wife and 2 kids just minutes outside of NYC in the burbs. His completely autobiographical act pokes fun at his subtly dysfunctional Italian family, his own neuroses, life with young kids, and his marriage to a psychologist (his perfect match). Joe’s talent for turning real life struggles into comedic gems has landed him appearances on the most sought after TV, radio shows, and podcasts including The Late Show with David Letterman, America’s Got Talent (where he received a standing ovation from all 4 celebrity judges and the 2000 person crowd), Chelsea Lately, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Comedy Central Presents (his very own ½ hour special), The Howard Stern Show, and more. You may also recognize him from Bravo’s reality series Better Half where he taught his wife to perform standup and she brought home the $20,000 prize. Joe has hit the stage four times at the prestigious Montreal Comedy Festival, leading to two development deals with major television networks. Joe is a regular on Artie Lange’s and Nick DiPaolo’s hit podcasts, and has his own weekly hit podcast called Fixing Joe where he, his celebrity guests, and his fans help fix each other’s issues. This hit podcast was recently turned into a 13 episode web series called Fixing Joe funded by Official Comedy. Check him out live – within minutes you will feel like your life is perfect!
Click to book Joe Matarese or call or text (914) It’s Funny (914 487-3866).
Ross Bennett
“I dropped out of West Point to Become a Comedian… probably the greatest service I will ever do for my country.”
MacArthur attended West Point and became a national hero. Eisenhower attended West Point and became the President of the United States. Ross Bennett attended West Point, dropped out and became a comedian.
The mid-70’s were a different era, and West Point was admitting a different kind of cadet when Ross Bennett was sworn in on July 8, 1975. But by 1977 Ross had decided that he wanted to take aim and fire jokes at nightclub audiences. So he undertook a giant career change, he dropped out of West Point, and landed right square in the middle of the comedy explosion that was taking America by storm.
For 30 years Ross has led a comedy attack. Armed with an expressive delivery and real life topics. Growing up with a father who was a Marine Colonel (a nice mellow guy!), grade school snow days, disastrous golf games, catastrophic water skiing outings and middle age medical procedures. Ross Bennett is a high-powered performer who takes his act to the audience and comes back with a victory every time! Seen on dozens of television shows, including The Late Show with David Letterman, 5 appearances on Comedy Central’s Tough Crowd with Colin Quinn and 4 appearances on An Evening at the Improv.
Click to book Ross Bennett or call or text (914) It’s Funny (914 487-3866).
Liz Miele
Liz Miele, originally from New Jersey, started doing stand-up at 16 in New York City. At 18 she was profiled in The New Yorker Magazine, at 22 she appeared on Comedy Central’s “Live at Gotham.” She recently appeared on Comedy Central’s “This Week at the Comedy Cellar,” NPR’s “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me,” Hulu’s “Coming To The Stage,” AXS TV’s “Gotham Comedy Live,” and was profiled in the March 2015 issue of Runner’s World. She’s completed several tours with Armed Forces Entertainment and performed on a book tour for Chris McDougall, author of “Born to Run.” Her joke “Feminist Sex Positions” went viral both on YouTube and Upworthy.com. She wrote and produced season one of her animated web series “Damaged,” voiced by great comics including, Maz Jobrani, Hari Kondabolu, Ted Alexandro, Dean Edwards, DC Benny, Joe Machi and so many more. She also co-produced and co-starred in 40 episodes of a web series called “Apt C3” with fellow comic, Carmen Lynch and fashion photographer, Chris Vongsawat. Liz recently released her debut comedy album, “Emotionally Exhausting” on iTunes and Amazon.
Click to Book Liz Miele or call or text (914) It’s Funny (914 487-3866).
Myq Kaplan
Myq Kaplan is a comedian named Myq Kaplan (pronounced “Mike Kaplan”). He grew up in Livingston, NJ. Myq made his network television debut on The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien and has since gone on to appear on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson and in his own half-hour Comedy Central Presents: Myq Kaplan special.
Click to Book Myq Kaplan or call or text (914) It’s Funny (914 487-3866).
Shaun Eli
Very affordable stand-up comedian Shaun Eli has rightfully been called one of America’s smartest comics. Whether it’s a story about dining with a vegetarian or successfully fighting a parking ticket, master storyteller Shaun Eli shows you that there’s hilarity in the ordinary if you approach life with a comedic warp. Job interviews? Serving on a NYC criminal jury? How about the Ten Commandments? For just about anything he’s experienced Shaun has a hilarious story at the ready.
Shaun performs regularly at theatres in NY.
Shaun has jokes praising New Jersey, which he unsarcastically calls the smartest state in the union. Want to know why? Hire him for your event!
Click to Book Shaun Eli or call or text (914) It’s Funny (914 487-3866).
Some FAQ
How much do your shows or comedians cost? +
It depends on location. Almost all of us from The Ivy League of Comedy are in the New York City or Los Angeles area. If we can drive there and not stay overnight, it’s less expensive. If we have to fly and stay overnight, we have to build that into the cost.
For a theatre show, it depends on how many seats.
For a corporate event, it also depends on when, where, how many attendees, and which comedian. We’re not all the same price. We are quite good at meeting a variety of budgets.
Our fee for non-profits is much, much lower than for-profit organizations and industry groups.
And most importantly, I’m not greedy. There are agencies that take most of the money for themselves and pay the comics very little. So the $5000 (as an example) that you’re paying? They’re offering the comic $750. I’m a comic and I’ve seen that happen frequently. I don’t ever want to be one of those selfish greedy awful guys. I’m not secretive- I’ll tell the comic what the gig pays. There’s nothing in my agreement that prohibits a comedian from discussing pay with the client.
Recently I had a comic tell me that for all the work I was doing on a particular gig I should take 15% instead of 10%. I appreciated the offer, but I refused. I got into this business by accident- basically to provide clean comedy shows and to get myself and my friends more work. Not to get rich. I make most of my money when I’m on stage.
So to not really answer your question, the best and easiest way to find out the cost is to call or write and ask. I’ll ask you where, when, for whom and how many and give you a quote.
Are travel and lodging expenses included in your fees, or are they billed separately? +
We at The Ivy League of Comedy generally like to quote a flat fee because that makes it easier for you, even though it adds risk for us as airfares and hotel costs change. But it also avoids any sort of figuring out what the costs actually are, if a comedian is coming from, or going to, somewhere other than home. And sometimes comics want to stay with a friend even though we tell them we’ll pay for a hotel.
Oh, here’s another example of my lack of greed. I booked a comic for a charity gig. I paid for the airline tickets. Then she booked a comedy club gig for the next night and said she’d split the airfare with me. I said no, you got another gig, that’s great, let me just change the return date. I did have her cover the slightly higher cost for changing the ticket, but it was way less than half. She did the work to get more work and both of us were happy with that. Though I did appreciate her offer to split the airfare.
Do corporate comedians charge differently based on whether the event is in-person or virtual? +
Oh, absolutely. The Ivy League of Comedy‘s virtual comedy is way less expensive than even if we’re performing just across town.
How can I guarantee the comedian’s material will be clean and safe for a corporate/religious/health care/seniors/family audience? +
That’s often a main concern. And it’s why I got into this business- people were saying “You’re clean but the other comics at the club weren’t. Where are the all-clean shows?” There weren’t any, so I started putting them together and founded The Ivy League of Comedy.
We do shows in churches and synagogues, including for some very devout audiences. We’ve been doing this a long time. We’re all very experienced clean comedians.
Can the comedian customize their jokes or roast company executives/specific people at the event? +
The Ivy League of Comedy can. I (Shaun Eli, the owner) really don’t like making fun of anybody in the audience unless the person being made fun of specifically asks for it in a private conversation. Most people really don’t like being picked on, and you never know until you do it. Often you never have any idea, but they’re unhappy.
Do clean comedians still perform well without relying on profanity or edgy topics? +
Yeah, that’s kind of the point! There’s nothing inherently funnier about dirty or edgy comedy. Sometimes a curse word helps a joke, but if the joke can’t survive without it, it’s probably not a very good joke.
Sometimes the laughter comes from the shock value of a dirty word or phrase rather than from something funny or clever. That’s not what we at The Ivy League of Comedy do.
Can a comedian also act as the event emcee, auctioneer, or award ceremony host? +
Most of us in The Ivy League of Comedy can. Please ask this before we hire someone. I once showed up at a charity gig and most of the way through the show they asked me to auction off a couple of items. I’d never done it before and frankly I was a bit nervous. But I came up with some jokes that worked well for the items being auctioned.
They had me auctioning off the items that nobody bid on in the silent auction, and they were quite happy with how it worked out. I think we sold all but one, and remember that these were items that nobody had bid on.
What kind of material do you perform? +
The Ivy League of Comedy performs clean, smart comedy for corporate events, financial institutions, industry events, charity fundraisers, houses of worship, theatres and private parties. It’s just what you’re looking for!
How far in advance should we book? +
Typically we at The Ivy League of Comedy recommend three months in advance, but it depends on your event. If you have a last-minute need, call (don’t email or text) and we’ll see what we can do. In general we suggest that it’s not so much about us as about giving you enough time to market your event to your audience/subscribers/congregation/donors. And three months is good for that.
If I’m booking a package show (like a multi-comic corporate showcase or theater event), do you handle all the booking coordination for every comedian, or do I negotiate separately? +
Yes, The Ivy League of Comedy gives you a complete, turn-key event. We handle it all and make it as easy for you as possible.
Can you avoid certain topics? +
Sure, but tell us in advance! No comedian wants to be about to go on stage and be handed a list of topics to avoid, and have remember this when they’re performing. The comedians from The Ivy League of Comedy have decades of experience and a lot of material on a lot of different topics.
What ages are your shows for? +
They’re not for little kids, because they won’t understand the show and they’ll get bored. Our best estimate is 14 and up, with the proviso that a 14 year old probably won’t appreciate the show as much as the adults will. But in general we at The Ivy League of Comedy try to avoid cultural references that only certain groups or ages will understand.
What if the comic gets sick? +
So far in more than two decades running The Ivy League of Comedy it’s happened only a few times (we’re healthy people- we get a lot of sleep). We have a roster of good, responsive comedians so when it has happened we got someone else very quickly. If a comedian cancels, I never want to be accused of bait-and-switch so I will try to get someone at least a little more famous, even if I lose money on it.