BIT Improv Comedy Network | MAIN STAGE · Billy Merritt

Professor Michael Delaney | Guest Monologist

March 13, 2026·38 min·1 clip

You remember 90 percent of what you teach versus 20 percent of what you learn.

Billy Merritt starts the hour loud and eager, and the guest intro immediately turns into a bit. Gail tries to keep things moving, but Billy keeps pushing to get Michael Delaney on mic and keep the room in motion. Michael says he is retired from acting and directing, though he is still teaching at a university and being called professor there. Billy will not use the formal title and calls him Dutch instead. The two settle into an easy rapport built on more than 30 years of shared New York improv work. They name old groups and shows, which gives the conversation a lived in backstage feel. The interview setup stays loose and conversational. Then the episode slides into the kind of scene hopping the show runs on. A science character shows up with impossible explanations about aqueducts, snow, and electrical pipes. The bit keeps climbing as Dr. Science tries to pitch a new invention called tissue. Someone in the room keeps jumping in with questions that have nothing to do with the lecture. The whole thing gets pulled toward a caller who cares much more about firefighters than science. That shift sends the sketch into commercial parody mode. Ruby's Rubbing appears with a tour pitch that treats outrageous behavior like normal tourism. Another fake sponsor, Maps Are Us, offers road trip and Broadway advice like the city is just a practical escape route. The pace stays quick and loose. The next cut lands at a firehouse with two Dalmatians talking like old friends. One dog reports going home for steak and belly rubs. The other gets jealous and wants in on the deal. The show treats the dogs' domestic lives with complete sincerity, which makes the absurdity hit harder. Billy keeps the momentum up by cutting between voices and premises before anything can settle. The episode keeps coming back to the pleasure of performance itself. Michael fits right into that rhythm, which matters because the material depends on the players committing fast. The ending carries the usual Bit Comedy Network outro energy, with the hosts thanking listeners and pushing the show out the door at a run. The whole episode feels built from shared history, quick reflexes, and a willingness to let one joke crash into the next.

As heard by us

A loose, fast-moving improv set that keeps drifting into stranger territory.

Billy Merritt and Michael Delaney give the set a loose, easy center. Delaney comes in as a retired actor and director who now teaches at a university, and Merritt notes that they have known each other for more than 30 years.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

For when you want an improv set that starts as an interview and quickly detours into full-bore nonsense.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from BIT Improv Comedy Network | MAIN STAGE