Upright Citizens Brigade To Move To Hell's Kitchen Theater

CHELSEA, NY — The storied stand-up comedy company Upright Citizens Brigade is moving its longtime Chelsea headquarters to a new space in Hell's Kitchen.

The company said on Tuesday it would move to Midtown Manhattan later this year, after a longtime search for a theater compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Wall Street Journal was first to report.

The comedy theater has signed a lease to take over the 160-seat theater at 555 W. 42 St., which was previously occupied by the Pearl Theatre Company, the Journal reported. The 33-year-old Pearl Theatre closed this summer after filing for bankruptcy. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

"The move is the culmination of a long search for an ADA compliant performance space that will better serve the diverse group of performers, students and patrons that make up the UCB community," UCB said in a statement. "The Upright Citizens Brigade looks forward to welcoming audiences their new venue, and will be celebrating the move with special shows saying farewell to Chelsea and hello to Hell's Kitchen."

The Upright Citizens Brigade is now a well-known name in the comedy world, and has served as a launchpad for many of today's most prominent comedians. The group was co-founded by the "Parks and Recreation" star Amy Poehler, along with Matt Besser, Ian Roberts and Matt Walsh. The four started Upright Citizens Brigade as a Comedy Central sketch show before eventually opening a theater on West 22nd Street in 1999. In 2003, they moved to their new home: the basement space at 307 W. 26th Street, located beneath a Gristedes grocery story.

Since then, UCB has added another theater in the East Village and two more in Los Angeles, plus training centers and a touring group.

Image credit: Ciara McCarthy / Patch