The weather’s heating up – and so is the stage at Parker’s Comedy & Jive! Now hosting 5 nights a week of local and international stand-up comedy, the club is putting comedy on the map.

September sees 19 different local comics sharing the stage with three international comics. Joey Rasdien, Darren Maule, Joe Parker, Mark Banks, Dave Levinsohn, Al Prodgers and a host of other talented acts will line up alongside Americans Pat Brown (2-5 September) & Cory “Zooman” Miller (23-26 September) and England’s Gordon Southern (9-12 and 16-19 September).

There’s also an Open-Mic Night on Wednesdays (from 2 September), featuring SA’s best new comedic talent, an international headliner and the improvisational skills of the “Starship Improvise” team. “Starship Improvise” have wowed audiences across the country with their quick-witted improvisations and are sure to be a hit in their new home at Parker’s.

“Starship Improvise” is a collective of South Africa’s freshest, funniest and most talented improvisers, doing “whose line is it anyway”-style short form improv. It’s all made up on the spot using suggestions from the audience and is always hilariously funny.

Tickets for the Open Mic Night, featuring that week’s international headliner and Starship Improvise cost R60 and are available from Computicket and www.parkerscomedy.com.

Thursdays-Saturdays feature three local comics and one international act per night. Nothing is sacred – which means that everything is guaranteed to be funny! Tickets for the regular Thursday-Saturday gigs (which kick off at 20:45) are priced between R80 and R100 are available from Computicket and www.parkerscomedy.com.

America’s Pat Brown’s (2-5 September) motto is to put the fun back in funny. Pat's style is smart silliness, wrapped in good-natured fun. And it's this style, in conjunction with her bouncy energy and engaging smile which has helped establish her universal appeal with black, white, corporate and even religious based crowds.

Her comedic success can also be contributed to her clean content, unique delivery, quick wit and perfect pace which draw audiences in like sweet gossip. It’s no wonder that Pat’s talents are sought after as both comic and writer. In fact, she’s written for Black Entertainment Television, Comedian Rickey Smiley, Sommore, one of the Queens of Comedy and countless others.

She’s worked with a diverse mix of top comedians including Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer, Ron White and Jeff Dunham. Pat’s also a veteran improvisational actor with Laughing Matters Improv Troupe, as well as the Blacktop Circus — one of only two African-American improv troupes in America. Pat is by far one of the most original and refreshing comics in the business today.

It’s guaranteed that you’ll want to see her perform her brand of silliness over and over again.

Gordon Southern (9-12 and 16-19 September) is one of the most sought-after headline acts on the UK and international circuit. Gordon regularly plays to sell out audiences at the most prestigious clubs in the UK, including Comedy Store and Jongleurs. His upbeat and energetic delivery combined with his fantastically funny observational comedy has secured his place as a comedy audience favourite.

An award-winning writer with critical acclaim for a number of his projects, Southern has written for some of the most memorable British comedy shows of the last decade.

Not content with mastering stand-up and writing, Gordon is also a brilliant actor. He has performed on the Edinburgh Fringe and comedy festivals in Dubai, Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and London.

If entertainment was a buffet, then Cory "Zooman" Miller (23-26 September) would offer just about every dish you could want. Aside from being a headlining comedian, Miller can sing, rap, dance, act and produce. With more talent than he knows what to do with, Miller has managed to incorporate all of his abilities into one entertaining act, regardless of how it's classified.

New Jersey-born Miller has worked as a choreographer for Dallas Austin's group, the Highland Place Mobsters and written for multi-platinum rap artist Lil' Zane. He made his comedic TV debut on HBO’s Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam, hosted NBC’s late-night talk show Later and appeared on Jamie Foxx’s Laffapalooza, P. Diddy’s Bad Boys of Comedy and appeared on sitcoms like Warner’s Parenthood and Fox’s Getting Personal. He has also headlined Russell Simmons’ Def Jam Comedy Tour in the US and the Sprite Soul Comedy Tour in South Africa.

Parker’s Comedy & Jive and 1 Exit Entertainment will host their second TEENBeats party on 5 September. The exclusive teens-only parties are daytime social events aimed strictly at 13-18 year-olds, allowing them to enjoy an afternoon of meeting new friends and getting to know familiar classmates – all in a safe, alcohol-free environment. The TEENBeats team has partnered with selected high schools in the Johannesburg area to help spread the word.

The parties, which run from 11:30-17:30 on the first Saturday of every month, feature resident DJ’s playing the hottest new tracks and a variety of platters, snacks and non-alcoholic drinks will be available.

Joe Parker believes that TEENbeat allows teenagers to socialise in a safe, controlled environment during the day and gives parents the security of knowing their teenagers are having fun in a safe atmosphere.

Tickets for the TEENbeats party are priced at R80 and are available via www.parkerscomedy.com and from Computicket. For more information visit www.studio05.co.za or call 083 9550 256 or 083 4040 171.

Sundays also see the popular duo Abbott & Crabb taking to the stage from 18:00. The ‘Pom and the Oke from Springs’ have been entertaining audiences from Cape Town to Lusaka for over 30 years with their unique blend of comedy and music. A chance meeting at a caravan park gig in Springs in 1977 saw Dave Abbott and Henry Crabb team up to play their first gig at the Rebel Inn in Benoni – and Abbott & Crabb was born!

Tickets for Abbott & Crabb are priced at R60 and are available from Computicket and www.parkerscomedy.com.

The September 2009 Lineup at Parker’s is:

2 September (20:30)
Open Mic
Pat Brown (USA)
Starship Improvise

3 September (20:45)
Joe Parker
Alain D Woolf
Etienne Shardlow Pat Brown (USA)

4 & 5 September (20:45)
Darren Maule
Alain D Woolf
Dale Amler
Pat Brown (USA)

5 September (11:30)
TEENBeats Party

6 September (18:00)
Abott & Crabb

9 September (20:30)
Open Mic
Gordon Southern (UK)
Starship Improvise

10 September (20:45)
Joe Parker
Al Prodgers
Tumi Morake
Gordon Southern (UK)

11 & 12 September (20:45)
Tony King
Al Prodgers
Tumi Morake
Gordon Southern (UK)

13 September (18:00)
Abbott & Crabb

16 September (20:30)
Open Mic
Gordon Southern (UK)
Starship Improvise

17 September (20:45)
Joe Parker
Dave Levinsohn
Denton Douglas
Gordon Southern (UK)

18 & 19 September (20:45)
Mark Banks
Dave Levinsohn
Trevor Gumbi
Gordon Southern (UK)

20 September (18:00)
Abbott & Crabb

23 September (20:30)
Open Mic
Cory “Zooman” Miller (USA)
Starship Improvise

24 September (20:45)
Joe Parker
Eugene Khoza
Tom Cronje
Cory “Zooman” Miller (USA)

25 & 26 September (20:45)
Joe Parker
Eugene Khoza
Vittorio
Cory “Zooman” Miller (USA)

27 September (18:00)
Abbott & Crabb

30 September (20:30)
Open Mic
Cory “Zooman” Miller (USA)
Starship Improvise

Parker’s Comedy & Jive is situated near the cinemas at Montecasino at Shop 24, next to the Boogaloos Skate Park. Bookings are now open via Computicket (www.computicket.com) and admission fees vary between R60 (Open Mic and Abbott & Crabb) and R80 - R100 (Thursday – Saturday). For more information, visit www.parkerscomedy.com or call (011) 511 0081 or 0861 GIGGLE. Lineups subject to change at short notice.