On Friday nights, when you need cheering up, go see Opening Night: The Improvised Musical (now in its 12th year) at IOWest. Guaranteed laughs. An upper. For only $10 (and you can use your ticket next time for a $5 admission), the cast improvises an hourlong Broadway-style musical. They’re so adept at this complex form that you’ll swear it’s not improvised. But it is. Come back again and again — you’ll laugh every time. You might see a rock musical, a Sondheim-style show, a historical epic; it all depends on the title the audience suggests and the piano accompanist’s whim. Valet park at the corner of Cosmo and Hollywood (between Cahuenga and Vine). Ten steps to the theater and you’re in. Full bar and free popcorn. Your date, your friends, even your visiting uncle will love it. 6366 Hollywood Blvd., Hlywd. (323) 962-7560, west.ioimprov.com. —Ann Hall

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