Back in 2018 two intrepid adventurers decided to brave the Icelandic winter to get a view of the northern lights. It was cold and snowy in Reykjavík and the two ended up at a comedy show. Inspired by the jokes a Canadian man made in Iceland, they decided to return to Lisbon and try their hand at comedy.
Thus, the English comedy scene in Lisbon and eventually Lisbon Comedy was born. This story has been told and retold over the years.
The first English comedy night took place on May 9th 2018. It was hosted and promoted through the Lisbon Digital Nomads meetup group. Eventually as the frequency of comedy nights grew we had to spin off the comedy nights into a separate brand which we creatively named Lisbon Comedy.
Lisbon Comedy runs open mics on Tuesdays at Selva. However, we're also happy to shout out every other show in Lisbon because we believe that the comedy scene should be a collaborative effort and it belongs to all of us.
What started as a once a month English comedy night has now blossomed into a scene with an English comedy show every night of the week. There are many nights with two or more shows! We'll try to maintain an updated list of what's happening on a recurring basis here. For more current updates please follow @lisboncomedy. A lot of these shows and many one-off shows are also listed on the Passport Comedy meetup group.
On smaller screens, please scroll right on the following table to see all details of producers and locations.
| Day | Show Name | Frequency | Description | Location | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | The Republic's Open Mic | Every Week | A new Monday open-mic succeeding the previous shows that used to take place at La Sharada. This is where you look for new material being developed week on week. | Xafarix, Santos | @francescok |
| Tuesday | Lisbon Open Mic | Every Week | The longest running English comedy show in Lisbon. Often billed as the highest quality open mic in the galaxy. A comedy night where each performer usually gets 7-10 minutes. This takes place in a cosy cafe in Alcantara. | Selva, Alcantara | @lisboncomedy |
| Wednesday | Schrödinger's Openmic | Every Week | An open mic that pairs perfectly with the Friday show case. More raw, more unfiltered, more up and coming comics. Check it out, centrally located. | Xafarix, Santos | @username_xinyi |
| Comedy Brew | Every Week | This show takes place at DeBru and starts with an Improv Workshop, followed by an Improv Show, followed by some open mic comedy. So get there from 18h onwards to see what's going on and get involved! | DeBru, Santo Antonio | @guisanchocomedy | |
| Thursday | Bad Tongue Comedy | Every Week | This show happens in Graça, one of the only shows that side of town. | Ma Lingua, Graça | @zynatalks |
| Bad Advice |
Every Week | This show was started by Eric Barry and Passport Comedy. It's now produced by Francesco Kirchhoff. The format of the show is that in the first half comedians do a 10 minute set. In the second half the audience asks a comedian a question and the comedian must improvise some bad advice on the spot. | Xafarix, Santos | @francescok | |
| Friday | The Villan Comedy | Every Week | Produced by Xinyi Li, this show runs every week on Friday at a very central location near Cais do Sodre. | Xafarix, Santos | @username_xinyi |
| Saturday | Comedy Speakeasy @ Xafarix | Every Week | A Saturday comedy showcase that happens at a very central bar in Santos, Lisbon. Xafarix has been a staple of the Portuguese comedy scene for years and now hosts comedy shows in English as well. Produced by Francesco Kirchoff, comics do longer 20-30 minute sets for an evening full of delightful entertainment. | Xafarix, Santos | @francescok |
| Kinky Comedy / Addiction | Every other week (mostly) | Saturday evenings are for themes or showcases with Idan Ariel's versatile shows taking the city by storm. Rotating between Kinky Comedy, themes like struggling with addiction aka SMASHED, and regular showcases. The shows happen at Ocio. | Ocio, Anjos | @dustystarjam | |
| Female Comedy Lab | Last Saturday of the month | The Female Comedy Lab is a show with an all female lineup that happens once a month. A super nice way to gain another perspective through a comedic lens. Check it out! | Selva, Alcantara | @zynatalks | |
| Sunday | Lisboa Comedy Club Open Mic | Every Week | An english comedy night that happens at the Lisboa Comedy Club, a staple of the Portuguese comedy scene. The night however is an open mic and comedians are encouraged to try new material in 5-7 minutes. | Lisboa Comedy Club, Saldanha | @lisboacomedyclub |
Lisbon Comedy shows are run at Selva Lisboa. A specialty coffee shop in Alcantara. Apart from the Tuesday Open Mic, you can also promote and host your solo or comedy special there. Right now, Selva is offering free usage of the premises as long as you can have over 25 attendees. If you are unable to have 25 attendees then a small fee is levied to cover running costs. We believe this is the best way to support the growing comedy scene in Lisbon. Selva is available for shows on most nights of the week except Tuesday. You can read all the terms for renting Selva here.
The room has a capacity of 40 people. It works well as a comedy venue due to its natural amphitheater layout. To date we've hosted sold out shows with Dragos Cristian, Matthew Murtha, Andre de Freitas and George Zacharopoulos, Magda Mihaila, Francesco Kirchhoff, Ori Halevy, and many more!
If you're interested in getting a spot on our Tuesday open mic, or in producing a show at Selva, please get in touch with us: @lisboncomedy.
