Colin Dabkowski on Electric Improv in today's Gusto

Eclectic Improv teams up with The Albrights for new music and comedy show in the Buffalo News. Read more at www.BuffaloNews.com

In a new experiment designed to merge the talents – and audiences – of two popular Buffalo troupes, Eclectic Improv and the Buffalo band the Albrights are putting their acts together for two performances this weekend.

Eclectic, the improvisational comedy quartet, has been delivering its squeaky-clean brand of comedy and earning consistent guffaws from its devoted audience since 1998. The Albrights are a relatively new arrival, dispensing their Buffalo-branded pop rock to enthusiastic crowds at traditional club shows and on local theater stages. The band will at least temporarily fill in an important space of former Eclectic member and pianist Michael Hake, who left the group earlier this year.

The groups’ first joint show, “The Fantastic Comedy Machine,” is at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the Burchfield Penney Art Center (1300 Elmwood Ave.). A press release promises “a night of clean, clever comedy that is not to be missed.”

Tickets are $20, available at the door, at www.eclecticimprov.com, or call 901-6086.