Mr. Sidtis said the group spent about three years searching for the new space, aiming for a location on the West Side or below 14th Street. (Though there are many comedians who live and work in Brooklyn and Queens, Mr. Sidtis said it was “too soon” to contemplate the troupe’s theaters in either of those boroughs. “The nature of the theater is pretty industry competitive,” he said. “What industry remains in the city is strongly based in Manhattan.”)

The Avenue A setting — the former home of the independent Two Boots Pioneer Theater — was identified in 2009, at which point, Mr. Sidtis said, “we thought we would be in and out and open in a few months.”

He added, “Obviously, that sort of optimism was met with challenges.”

What followed was two years of due diligence, negotiations, paperwork and construction approvals. A rear wall in the theater had to be moved back to accommodate a digital video projector, and the lobby needed additional soundproofing; the bar was constructed upstairs, and bathrooms were built downstairs.

Meanwhile the troupe got a crash course in East Village civics when a “Hot Chicks Room” sign, advertising the club’s bar and referring to a skit from the group’s Comedy Central series, drew complaints from neighbors. The sign was taken down and given to an environmental group, which posted it over the greenhouse where it keeps its chickens.