If you're reading this, I already know one thing about you: you are a sophisticated gentleman. You love complex drinks, the coolest bars and the hottest music. You know how to dress the part for wherever you go, and you go many, many places.

So why would you be interested in comedy? Because sometimes you just want to sit back and be entertained. You want nimble, able practitioners of the art of funny to ply their wares for you. You want to come home feeling like a million bucks while spending only $5—and without the cast of Stomp playing a matinee in your brain the next morning.

Well, high roller, let me tell you a secret: It's never been a better time to see comedy on the cheap in New York City. Some of the best bars in the city feature regular comedy nights, and sometimes comedy acts share the stage with some of your favorite musicians (likes Tapes 'N Tapes did at Sound Fix recently). And improv comedy factories-the topic of this post, in case you missed it-have become one of the hottest things in town.

If you've watched "Whose Line Is It Anyway?", you're familiar with improv comedy. The idea is simple: a group of talented performers take a suggestion from the audience and proceed to weave hilarious stories out of that suggestion. A good improv troupe can take a word like "watermelon" and mine an hour's worth of material from it.

Just like Caroline's and The Comedy Cellar have traditionally been factories for stand-up comics, improv comedy aficionados (and wannabe performers) now have their own havens. The vast majority of them take their inspiration from Del Close, the legendary teacher at Chicago's Second City who created the Harold, the form of improv comedy you'll most often see at a show.

All of the theatres boast cheap beer (with no two-drink minimum) and shows seven night a week, with no show over $10 and some shows free. And, all of them have training facilities, allowing anyone—and we mean anyone—to take a class and learn the basics of improv as Del Close himself taught it.

The most well-known improv theatre, without a doubt, is The Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (307 W 26th St), and its biggest attraction—probably the biggest comedy attraction in the city—is ASSSSSCAT, the star-studded improv show. ASSSSSCAT performs two shows, both on Sunday. One's free and the other is $10. As you might expect, its somewhat of an endeavor to catch the show; either you camp out in front of the theatre for the free show or order your tickets way in advance. But the UCB Theatre's other shows give you plenty of bang for your buck. One of the better shows the UCB offers is Gravid Water, where improv comics share the stage with Broadway actors. The actors memorize scenes from famous plays; the improvisers have no prior knowledge of the play to be performed and have to improvise around the actor. The Aug. 25 show features "SNL'' actor Jason Sudeikis.

Rapidly gaining notoriety is The People's Improv Theatre (154 W 29th St). While lacking the pedigree of the UCB, the venue (commonly known as The PIT) does boast a nicer theatre and many more opportunities for audience interaction, if you're drunk brave enough to get up on stage. One of The PIT's most revered house teams, Elephant Larry, is performing on Sept. 7, and the PIT's house sketch teams take the floor every Wednesday for a free comedy marathon. That's right: from 7 to 11 p.m., you can just lie back and enjoy the funny for five hours straight, while opening your wallet only at the bar.

Less well-known are The Magnet Theatre (254 West 29th St.) and Gotham City Improv (48 W. 21st St., eighth floor). The Magnet was co-founded by Armando Diaz, a close confidant who also helped get The PIT off the ground. The Magnet's productions are said to have more of a theatrical feel. Gotham City Improv, meanwhile, is the New York sister company of The Groundlings, the West Coast-based comedy factory known for the amount of alumni who have ended up at "SNL."

I'd be remiss if I failed to mention Ochi's Lounge (353 W 14th St.), the downstairs venue of Comix Comedy Club. Unlike its big brother, Ochi's has no cover charge but a one-drink minimum. Having been closed for summer renovations, it reopens the day after Labor Day. The website promises "a liquor license, clean spacious bathrooms and no rodents dropping by for unexpected guest spots," and, really, how bad can that be?