BOSTON — A Boston comedy club is reopening in a familiar setting, but with new laughs.

“Made for Comedy”

Lil Chuck, located in the basement of the Charles Theater in Boston, is now open. Shear Madness called space home for 40 years, but the improv comedy show folded shortly before the pandemic. Now the renovated club is reviving Boston’s long history of comedy.

Veteran comedian Tony V called the club a sacred place. “We’re in a place that was the epicenter of stand-up. At one point in the late 80s, early 90s, there were five comedy clubs in a block radius.”

“It’s designed for comedy,” said co-owner and co-founder John Tobin. “Low ceilings, lowered stage, very intimate, the way comedy should be. It’s like you’re part of the action.”

Tobin said having a permanent club in Boston’s theater district is beyond his wildest dreams.

“It’s a great privilege to have a space like this, but it’s also an even greater responsibility,” Tobin said.

Highlighting Local Comics

Comedy Connection’s first filming took place in this building in the late 1970s.

“For it to come back, you must become a phoenix that rises again. I give these guys nothing but credit for that,” said Tony W.

Tobin believes the audience plays a crucial role. “It was an old church, so it’s only fitting that we offer community events every night of the week here at Lil Chuck.”

Right now, the club has events planned through the end of the year, including “Sh*t-Faced Shakespeare,” “Dirty Disney” and “Townies,” a weekly show highlighting Boston’s best comics.