A man walks into a bar in Richmond…

After 7 p.m. on a Monday night, 10 people, none of them quite over 30, are in a room on the second floor of a Carytown building. Standing in a circle, they shout at each other. "Zip!" says one guy, pointing at another, who replies "Zap!" who points at a young lady who says "Zop!" and the last person starts the cycle anew.

It's one of many games of concentration, presence of mind and fast-thinking the group will play tonight, all exercises vital to succeeding in improvisational comedy, the subject of the class in which they've enrolled.

"The appeal of improv," explains instructor David Pijor, "is being in the moment, creating something on the spot. It's one of the more creative forms of comedy, because nothing is more creative than making something in the moment."

Pijor is an ensemble member of Richmond Comedy Coalition, a group that performs regularly at Gallery5, as well as other venues. Yet, as offbeat and nuts as the performances can get, RCC is not novel in town. As it happens, as many as five improv comedy groups are working in Richmond now, some of which formed during the hiatus taken by ComedySportz Improv, which recently re-opened in a new West End location.

Today ComedySportz, which has outposts across the country, is back in business here, and on one recent evening, about 15 people, including kids, watched as performers acted out something like human Mad Libs. West End Comedy is another name in the local improv movement.

In a wider sense, Richmond's comedy scene is experiencing a small boom of sorts. More than ever in anyone's recent memory, it's suddenly full of places to see live comedy or even become part of it.

Although the Funny Bone remains the most glossy spot, comedy nights are springing up in bars, restaurants and re-claimed spaces, providing, for what many say is the first time, aspiring comedians a place to prep for the big time, and city dwellers something fun to do on just about any night of the week.

"It's starting to change in Richmond," says Alex Scott, a stand-up comedian who hosts a night at the Funny Bone in Short Pump every week. Scott is one of few comedians in town with a professional reel: He's performed on BET's "Comic View" and HBO's "Def Comedy Jam" and has written material for top-billing performers including Steve Harvey. "In 1997, there were only about three or four people working clubs in town. There was no Funny Bone. Now, you could probably do comedy every night of the week."

One such place is McCormicks, a Shockoe Bottom bar that hosts a comedy night on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month. "Last week we had 27 comics do three-minute sets," says Austin Fitch, a bartender there. That's how thirsty the audience is now: 27 comics in one night. "It packs the house."

Getting the word out with fliers and social media including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, performers at McCormicks run the gamut from amateur to semi-pro to seasoned. Jokes range from political to racial to sexual (this does take place in a bar after 10 p.m., after all). One particularly popular act is ManlyMan, a female duo that sings filthy songs to sweet, innocent melodies backed by a ukulele.

"In the past five years," Fitch says, "the comedy scene in Richmond has quadrupled. I'm glad comics are finding a home. It's like bands trying to get gigs: They've made their own venue and crowd out of thin air."

Though Richmond is generally more appreciative of indie movements over corporate chains — a sentiment validated in the "Don't Big Box Carytown" movement – no one can deny the popularity of the Funny Bone, even though it's in a mall in the suburbs.

Although a venue such as the Landmark Theater will host top comedians such as Jeff Dunham (the ventriloquist taped his fourth Comedy Central special there in June), the Funny Bone brings to town funny-but-not-household-name jokesters such as Sheryl Underwood or Matt McCarthy.

Amateur nights there give locals something to work toward and, as Scott says: "Before, young comedians would have never had a chance to meet big comedians. You'd have to go all the way to D.C. to audition. Now, you can practice and audition on your home turf. We have a venue where you can showcase your skills in front of Sheryl Underwood, and she might like you and take you on the road."

Though Scott acknowledges that the local comedy scene — if not comedy in general — can be a little segregated by class and color lines (he says people assume he's simply an "urban" or dirty comic because he's appeared on BET and "Def Jam"), he says that Richmond's new class of comics are nonetheless supportive of each other.

Pijor agrees. Even with some groups having shows on the same nights, "it turns out lots of people are in Richmond seeing comedy in one night. We all get along well. It's definitely getting bigger; everyone's working hard to get butts in the seats."

So with options for seeing improv, stand-up in a bar and pros at a somewhat swanky restaurant, Richmond has the beginnings of all its bases covered for a comedy scene to flourish. With more time, more funny people willing to test just how funny they are and a public willing to give them a chance, the stage is set for a movement.

"The comedy scene has grown exponentially," says Fitch. Still, "people have to pay their dues with blood, sweat and tears."