Under St Marks Theater — Attraction in New York

The Open Mic Under St. Marks is an authentic New York City art scene that happens Tuesday nights in a gritty (in the best sense of the word) basement theater, with a killer sound system and lighting design. It is the most unique, eclectic, raw, entertaining, balls-to-the-wall open mic I’ve ever played (which says a lot), hosted by an incredible group of passionate, talented, dedicated artists through Frigid New York Theater Group. A safe and supportive space where I was so inspired and comfortable, my usual stage fright was non-existent by the time I got up to perform at 2:30am. Anything goes at this place. After “witnessing” thirty-four, bold yet vulnerable, (7-minute) acts before me (musicians, comedians, poets, storytellers, performance artists), I felt refreshingly free and fearless on stage. It was such a cool artistic experience. I recommend it to anyone looking for an open mic in NYC. Be forewarned, sign-ups are drawn from a hat. Even if you show up early, before 9PM like I did, time-slots are luck of the draw, so it may be a long night. Settle in for some one-of-a-kind entertainment. As the masters of ceremony claimed they would, the performances got more hardcore as the night evolved, and the beer flowed. "The diehards are all that are left in the end." This open mic is the real deal. When I woke up the morning after, I was still buzzing and grateful I made the decision to hang tough and perform. The feeling stayed with me throughout the day. Thanks for having me! ...

The theater itself is a great small intimate space with good acoustics. I've been going to the Tuesday open mic for years, and I've been to many open mics across the country, and it's by far my favorite open mic.

The hosts (Dan, Mike, and Izzy) always bring energy and enthusiasm and the crowd is always supportive and really to listen. It's helped me improve as a musician and allowed me to experience other amazing people's art and experimentation I may never have.

I've brought friends, dates, etc to it and every single one loved the experience, even if they're just...

Great intimate place, lots of energy. What I don’t like is the raffle that they do, which means it’s unpredictable when your turn is next. You could be waiting a few minutes or a few hours to do your set and I don’t have the time for that. What I also don’t like is you can’t heckle, which takes away from the experience, atleast for me. I recommend trying this place out atleast once to judge for yourself. The open mic is on Tuesdays around 9:30pm and the price is now 7$, but double check on that info. Also, you need to show proof of vaccination...