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A few words on the comedy community.

Since we opened just shy of one year ago, one of our main visions was to create a community of comedy-lovers who share in our mission of spreading laughter. By offering classes through Hive Improv and providing an open stage for them to perform in front of an audience, we’ve seen the devoted community grow like rapid fire and it’s incredibly heartwarming.

This Fall we have over 60 students taking improv, stand-up and sketch courses. This Fall we’ve been able to offer workshops by professionals from arguably the most renowned comedy institutions. And this Fall we have expanded opportunities for everyone:
For improvisers to get on stage by making the CCB Improv Jam a weekly event! For the first sketch group, The Weird Show, formed from a Hive class, who will debut their monthly show this October! And for budding stand-ups this November when we unveil the biggest stand-up open mic night in Berlin!

But it doesn’t end there! We have big plans!

We are throwing a big one year anniversary party October 28th and you are invited!
To celebrate we’re kicking off a second round of crowdfunding at the party!

What are we crowdfunding for?
To expand operations and increase comfort.

More soundproofing: the theater is solidly built. In fact, it’s so solid that we almost qualify for after 10pm shows. All we have to do is improve the floor, get it tested and we’re golden. This means we can do multiple shows in an evening allowing for us to get even more creative and bring in even more acts!

Ventilation: we’ve got a beautiful space that we’re super proud of and when so many people come to enjoy that space with applause and laughter the windows get foggy and the air gets hot. It’s time to fix that! We aim to install a ventilation system that can keep the air in the bar and theater fresh.

Watch this space.

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Full Steam Ahead!

It’s been almost one year since we opened and just over a year since we first announced to the public and launched our Kickstarter campaign, letting everyone know we was a’comin’.

It’s been a year. Holy shit, it’s been a year!

If you’ve been following us you know what’s up. If this is the first you’re hearing about us, WTF?! Catch up!

Like any 1 year anniversary we’re looking back and reflecting on all the things we’ve gone through – remembering the lessons learned, the battles won and lost and HOPEFULLY making the right decisions to keep us going forward and growing. Those decisions, we realize, often mean (to borrow from the startup world) pivoting and boy we’ve done that! Remember pretzels?

So in the spirit of improvement and looking forward, here’s what’s in store:
 

  1. CHAIRS – You won’t believe it but we’re ditching the theater stools (well most of them) and getting foldable chairs that you can all lean back on. They’re ordered and on the way.

  2. BARROOM – We’ve rethought the layout with space and comfort in mind. This means the big square tables are gone! So kick off your shoes and relax your socks. This is still a work in progress and you’re likely to see things continue to change here.

  3. DRINKS – We’re adding some new items to the menu including another tasty keg of Vagabund beer. A DOUBLE IPA KICK IN THE GODDAMN FACE. Get ready.

  4. FOOD – Here’s a doozy buried in the 4th bullet point: We’re closing The CCB Kitchen starting this week. Casper and Rich have decided to move on to other adventures and it’s a good opportunity for us to explore more exciting food options. We thank them for all the efforts they put into their tasty sandwiches! For now CCB is focusing on the drinks, the comfort and as always, the laughs.

  5. THE LAUGHS – Shows continue to kick ass and we will continue to bring in outside acts (see La Carpe Haute this Friday!) as well as cultivate local talent. We’ve already unveiled most of the Fall program which includes solo shows by Paul Salamone (Robot Suit), Chris Davis (The Wandering Barman, this Saturday!) and Josh Telson (Happy F*cking Birthday). And we fully intend to make an improv tournament (like the August Offensive) a regular event. Tickets are already, as always, available online.

  6. CROWDFUNDING – That’s right! One year down the road and we’ll be once again appealing to you lovely supporters to help us finance some of the projects we don’t have the cash flow for just yet i.e. ventilation (y’all know what I’m talking about), further soundproofing (for the theater floor so we can do midnight showssss!) A second round Kickstarter will naturally tie into…

  7. A ONE YEAR BIRTHDAY PARTY – October 28th – Mark your calendars. Details to come soon!

And there you have it! A lot to do!

Thank you all for your continued support and we hope to see you around soon!

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Wall of Fame!

Lovely people! Especially those of you who contributed to the Kickstarter campaign: BEHOLD! the Wall of Fame!

Our hallway is adorned with your names and we couldn’t be happier. If you contributed at the “Wall of Fame” tier, please make sure you swing by and snap a shot of your name!

Likewise, if you contributed at the “Reserved Seating” or “Name of Thrones” tier, your plaques have been up and are waiting for you to gawk at them!

While we’re at it…

We’ve got some new photos from the CCB Kitchen for you to drool over.

Feast your eyes on this:

Photos of food by Kalle Kuikkaniemi


The week’s roundup

Donnerstag
Comedy Reise präsentiert: Labor der spontanen Testreihen – RELOADED!
Impro mit Die Improbanden – Auf Deutsch
5€/3€

Friday
Friday Night Improv with CCB at the MOVIES
Improv with Good Luck, Barbara! – In English
8€/6€

Saturday
Stand-Up Saturdays! with Andrew O’Neill
Stand-up comedy – In English
8€/6€

Sunday
Radio Spätkauf – The Berlin Podcast
Podcast recording – In English
Free
&
The Campfire – Comedy Story-Telling
Stand-up comedy – In English
8€/6€

Secure tickets online or get them at the door. 
And make sure to come early and get food a the CCB Kitchen!

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We hit €10,000!!!

Amazing! With 10 days still left, we hit our goal of €10,000!

What now? Well, we announced stretch goals (listed below) last week which allow us some more flexibility in making the space even more super than it already is!  So, if you haven’t contributed and you wanted to, you still can. We even added more rewards (also listed below) so you have more options now.

We even have a surprise reward being announced tomorrow. Stay tuned!

 Trying out signage!
Trying out signage!

New rewards!

€30

Casual drinker. One seasonal cocktail and your name on the ‘Wall of Fame’. 

€1,000

Party on! One private ComedySportz show at CCB for you and your friends and your name on the ‘Wall of Fame’.

Stretch goals!

We’re fairly confident that we’ll reach our initial goal of €10,000 before the end of our campaign, but that doesn’t mean we can’t use some extra cash. Stretch goals will help us cover additional, unforeseen costs (these things happen!) as well as improving and expanding some of our equipment.

Stretch goal #1 – €15,000
We’ll be able to include a projector in the theater and upgrade the sound system.

Stretch goal #2 – €20,000
We’ll extend the kitchen, allowing us to be more versatile as to what we can offer.

SO! Please consider contributing if you haven’t already and at the very least share the campaign with your friends and family.
#KrautfundComedy

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/noahtelson/berlins-first-alternative-comedy-stage

Remember, you can always share it again! 🙂

Neue Belohnungen!

€30

Für Gelegenheits-Trinker. Du bekommst einen Cocktail der Saison und natürlich kommt dein Name auf die ‘Wall of Fame’.

€1,000

Paaarty! Wir spielen eine private ComedySportz Show bei CCB nur für dich und deine Freunde und natürlich kommt dein Name auf die ‘Wall of Fame’.

Erweiterte Ziele!

Wir sind sehr zuversichtlich, dass wir unser ursprüngliches Ziel in Höhe von €10,000 noch vor Ablauf der Kampagne erreichen werden. Das bedeutet aber nicht, dass wir die extra Kohle, die darüber hinaus geht, nicht sehr gut gebrauchen können. Mit den weiteren Finanzierungszielen wollen wir zusätzliche, unerwartete Kosten (ohja, die gibt es!) decken, sowie in eine bessere und umfangreichere Ausstattung investieren.

Ziel #1 – €15,000
Wir können einen Beamer im Theater installieren und das Sound System aufrüsten.

Ziel #2 – €20,000
Hiermit wollen wir die Küche erweitern und besser ausstatten um in Zukunft ein breiteres und vielseitigeres kulinarisches Programm bieten zu können.  

ALSO! Bitte denk’ darüber nach uns zu unterstützen falls du das nicht sowieso schon getan hast und teile unsere Kampagne mit Freunden und Familie.
#KrautfundComedy

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/noahtelson/berlins-first-alternative-comedy-stage

Und denk’ dran, doppelt geteilt hält besser!

Von Herzen,
Nina, Dino and Noah

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And we’re live! Krautfunding on Kickstarter!

We’re crowdfunding this month! Get involved and get some great rewards in return (like a toilet named after you)!

#KrautfundComedy

Please share!
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/noahtelson/berlins-first-alternative-comedy-stage