Second City improv

When I announced my decision to move to Chicago, people mentioned the city's comedy scene was top-notch. Then, I got here and started spending all my money on restaurants and bars, figuring that watching my friends was comedic enough. Last night though, we took a trip to Second City to see their latest revue, "Between Barack and a Hard Place."

Second City is an improvisational comedy troupe that has been based in Chicago since the '60s, and as it turns out, they are the training ground for many prominent comedians. Scanning the walls with photos from old performances, I caught lots of familiar names and faces: Steve Carrell, Nia Vardalos, Rachel Dratch, Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Chris Farley...basically, this is the feeder school for Saturday Night Live. It's neat to think that perhaps I saw the next big comedian before they made it big.

The show itself didn't disappoint, though I had expected more Obama references or political material. (He was mentioned in a few sketches, but wasn't the core of the show by any means.) There were a few opportunities for the audience to yell suggestions for improv bits. ("Love is like a...what, guys?" "Mistress!" "Oookay man, that's pretty screwed up. Love is like a mistress...hm, what rhymes with mistress??") I was blown away by the speed at which the performers think on their feet, coming up with songs on the spot and creating routines in a matter of seconds. Also, this was the second performance of the night (there's one at 8 and 11 pm), which makes for a pretty long night of performing. The icing on the cake was the music. I couldn't crane my head around the corner to verify, but I am positive the piano was live and improvised to match what happening on stage. Whistles*

Here's a snippet from an old show. I've heard their "Greatest Hits" show is also quite good, so if anyone else is game...