New York’s Creek and the Cave Reopening in Austin!
Earlier this year we were devastated to hear the news that New York City comedy institution The Creek and the Cave was closing, for good. The hardships of the pandemic and quarantine were too overwhelming, and the Creek’s owner, Rebecca Trent made the difficult decision to stop the bleeding and close the club after 14 years of love and laughs.
But then this week came the exciting news: although the NYC club will not reopen, comedy is not losing The Creek or Rebecca Trent, because she is reopening the club in the fastest growing comedy scene in the country- Austin Texas.
The new Creek & The Cave will open April 1st 2021 in its new location at 611 E 7th Street in Downtown Austin. Anyone familiar with Austins downtown may remember it as the former site of Barracuda. The club has entrances on 7th street and in the back, and has both an indoor and outdoor stage. And the club will feature the Creek’s famous Marquis, which is being dismantled in New York for shipment to Texas.
“The Austin comedy scene has always been a wonderful and magical place to hone the craft and, as the scene grows and becomes more robust, we want to build a true clubhouse to serve as a place all comics can call home.” Trent said adding, that she plans to continue being a space that supports local developing comedians. “We will be providing a platform for the up and coming local comedians, as well as exposing them to big name headliners. Part Master Class, part Dojo, part club, and all funny.”
Shows will be every day of the week, most days running between 6pm and 12am. Weekday shows feature local Austin comedians, themed shows, regional acts and drop-ins, and interactive shows. Big-name headliners will be held on Weekends Thursday to Saturday. Open Mics will be held every night of the week as well.
Tickets will be available for purchase on CreekAndCaveATX.com. Follow @CreekAndCaveATX for more information.
New York’s loss will be Austin’s game, and it’s a win for comedy all around. Rebecca and the NYC club helped start and advance the careers of so many great comedians, and artists (Donald Glover, Tim Dillon, Kevin Barnett, Sara Benincasa to name just a few). The Creek also was a safe space for young unknown comics to experiment with their art, and get stage time, as well as a place that already established comedians could come to work out the shows that would later be seen by comedy fans all over the world.
It was a sad day when she turned in the keys, and soon after, friends and supporters created a gofundme for Rebecca to help cover the bills that had accumulated. Three days later, comedian and Producer Marty Clarke got in touch with Rebecca and suggested that they work together to open a club in Austin. “With our shows going so well, and there being no comedy clubs in town, I reached out to Rebecca and we found an amazing spot that we can turn into something really special for the Austin comedy scene” says Clarke. “The stars aligned for us to build something cool and supportive that the whole community can feel a part of, continuing the legacy of The Creek & The Cave.”
We gave Rebecca our Moneyball Billy Beane Sabermetrics award in 2017 for her remarkable contributions to the art form. Rebecca has always put the artist first, donating space that so people can workshop, offering free shows without minimums, and giving young and established comics room to test waters. New York will miss its comedy godmother, but it’s great to know she’ll not only be continuing to help nurture comedy, but also a burgeoning comedy scene.
