Funny. Influential. Iconic. The Second City celebrates 65 years of laughs
Fostering the next generation of superstars within the hilarious, challenging and spontaneous realm of improvisational comedy has been the lifeblood of The Second City since it opened in Chicago in December 1959. Members of the iconic troupe are heading to the Playhouse for a celebratory, 65th anniversary presentation of all-time favorite songs, sketches and characters written by some of The Second City’s famous alumni. The illustrious roster includes Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, John Candy, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey, Keegan-Michael Key, Eugene Levy, Colin Mochrie, Bill Murray, Catherine O’Hara, Jordan Peele, Amy Poehler, Gilda Radner and Cecily Strong among numerous others.
“The Second City is known for great satire, exceptional improv comedy and, of course, great talent,” said Rob Wilson, Associate Artistic Director of The Second City. “The show at the [Playhouse] is going to deliver all three things. The folks who know us well know there is always fresh new talent [allowing] you the ability to say you saw them first and also reminisce about some of the things that may have made you laugh through the years. And for those who are new to The Second City, we literally have something for everybody due to the improvisational nature of what we do.”
Rob Wilson
The Second City’s impressive track record as a launch pad for success is not lost on Wilson. “The thing that is difficult to pinpoint specifically is who will be the next person [to reach superstardom],” Wilson said. “Anybody on our mainstages right now can very well be The Next. But I think we do ourselves a little bit of a disservice if that’s what we aim at because across the board we believe in training. The things that make these improvisors, these performers, so great is that they are great listeners, and therefore, great observers. Once they can observe the world and accurately take it all in, they give it to us in a way in which we can all recognize, which is what really makes us laugh. It’s the recognition of truth.”
The Second City Training Center was founded in the mid-1980s to accommodate the demand for workshops and instruction by troupe members. Training Centers are located in Chicago and Toronto with former locations in Detroit, Las Vegas, Cleveland and New York City. The improvisation and comedy classes include courses in comedy writing, acting and scene study, clowning, and music improvisation. Former students of the Training Center include Halle Berry, Sean Hayes, Bonnie Hunt, Jack McBrayer and Tim Meadows to name a few. With a firm grasp on the basics of improvisation and the physicality that goes along with it, members of The Second City are able to quickly adapt and serve the essence of any song or sketch, which contributes to the troupe’s appealing aesthetic.
“I’ve worked in a lot of theatres and have made things a lot of different ways but no one makes its content the way The Second City does,” Wilson said. “Some people improvise, but we specialize in improvising to sketch. It’s a collaborative nature.” He went on to explain the troupe’s collaborative instincts showcased in its most recent mainstage show. “There was a really silly scene that closed the show that was about a Duke and a Duchess sitting at a table being served by their servants. Hilarity ensued because every single person added something to it to make it absolutely ridiculous. If any one person would’ve written it, we couldn’t have had [the same result]. But because they collaborated, because they put the ‘Yes, and…’ to it, we came up with fantastic material that highlighted everybody.”
As for the Playhouse experience, the program will not list the creators of sketches, but Wilson says the audience will enjoy figuring out who might be behind the writing based on the material’s tone. Above all he anticipates the troupe providing a joyful, reflective trip down memory lane.
“We are very much celebrating 65 years of The Second City, so you’ll see some sketches from the likes of Stephen Colbert, Bill Murray, Amber Ruffin and Keegan-Michael Key,” Wilson said. “We’ll also have improv and definitely song and dance throughout the show. We’ll also take a look at some sketches that still make sense for the good or bad such as a scene that has the punch line: ‘It’s Nixon’s fault.’ And because of the world we live in, this joke still works. We are celebrating all of the sketches that got us to this point.