Chicago Live! This Thursday @ 7:00pm!

"The best happy hour in town" is back! This week's Chicago Live! features Chicago's newsmakers as we gear up the NATO Summit this weekend. Guests include:

NATO protest organizer Andy Thayer
Stylist and owner of Ikram fashion boutique Ikram Goldman
Chicago-based photographer Dawoud Bey
Performer and creator of the one-woman show "Jamaica Farewell" Debra Ehrhardt (interview with Chris Jones)
Musical guests David Hernandez and Street Sounds
Chicago Live! Almanac
Comedy from The Second City

Tickets for Chicago Live! are $18.00 and can be reserved here. Stick around after the show for cocktails and mingling with the writers and guests.

NATO Summit Planning Info - May 19 - 21

If you're planning to visit us this weekend, we look forward to seeing you. Please note Chicago is hosting the NATO Summit this weekend (May 19 - 21) and there are planned road and Metra closures south of our theater.

For a complete map of closures and security measures during the NATO weekend, please click here to find the best route to and from the theater.

Please keep in mind there will be Intermittent Street Closures for motorcades May 19-21, including:

• I-90/94 from O'Hare to I-55
• Ohio and Ontario streets from I-90/94 to Fairbanks Court/Columbus Drive
• Streets Surrounding the Sears/Willis Tower
• Roosevelt Road, 18th Street and Canalport Avenue near I-90/94

For your convenience, we suggest planning an alternative route to prepare for any potential closures.

If you're planning to use CTA service this weekend, please click here for any service changes and to map your trip.

For a complete list of closures and updates, please visit the Chicago NATO Host website for more information.

Opening Tonight! Andrea Martin and Seth Rudetsky at UP Comedy Club

Legendary Emmy®- and Tony®-Award winning comedienne Andrea Martin in her hilarious new one-woman show Final Days! Everything Must Go!! featuring musical accompanist and YouTube sensation Seth Rudetsky. From SCTV on television to Young Frankenstein on Broadway to My Big Fat Greek Wedding on screen, Andrea Martin brings a bounty of characters & decades of award-winning performances to this high-octane program.
Final Days! Everything Must GO!! is a 'tag sale' comedy and musical extravaganza, where everything is up for grabs in which Ms. Martin opens the book on her life in song, story and a bit of Greek dancing.

Click here to reserve tickets.

Want to know more about Andrea? Click here to see her on WGN News or here for her recent appearance on Chicago Tonight.

The Second City Announces Auditions for New Resident Teen Troupe

Teen publication, The Mash, invites teen readers to help name the youth company

The Second City is proud to announce auditions for its first resident teen company on June 1 and 2, 2012. Open to 13 to 17 year olds, this company will have a regular weekly performance spot at The Second City.  The new teen troupe will be sponsored in part by The Mash, Chicago Tribune's teenage media brand.

Teen Troupe Auditions will be held on Friday, June 1 (4:00 - 6:00pm) and Saturday, June 2, 2012 (10:00am - 5:00pm). Call backs to these auditions will be announced at a later date. Anyone in the age range of 13 - 17 may audition. The audition itself will primarily be made up of improvisation.

"In the past five years we've seen tremendous growth and incredible talent coming out of our youth classes and summer camps," says The Second City's CEO/Executive Producer Andrew Alexander. "It seemed only fitting that we provide more resources to these talented teens and a regular stage to share their unique voices."

Interested teens are invited to email a current picture (head shot if available) and your contact information (full name, age, email address and phone number - or a proper resume) ON THURSDAY, MAY 17 - 20 to: auditions@secondcity.com. Subject line: Teen Troupe. Please note space is limited so we may not be able to accommodate all applicants. A waiting list will be taken.

The Mash - Chicago Tribune's teenage newspaper and journalism program - will help Second City encourage Chicago youth to suggest creative names for the new company. The Chicago-wide contest to name the new company will launch in The Mash newspaper and on TheMash.com on May 17th. The contest is open to teens only, ending June 10th, and prizes include Second City comedy packages, tickets, cash and a congratulatory ad in the newspaper.

"The Mash is thrilled to partner with Second City to help rally Chicago teens around this launch," says Mash General Manager, Maggie Wartik. "There's no better way to empower kids through creative expression than by putting the name itself into their hands, allowing them to be part of the artistic process. Second City's newest venture is especially exciting for us."

The Second City Training Center offers classes, workshops and camps for students ages 4-18, in improv, comedy writing, acting, music improv, physical comedy and video. During the summer months, Second City hosts over 700 teens from all over the world for 2 week camps focusing on sketch and improv. Second City is currently registering for summer camps which will run from June 11-August 31. Call 312-664-3959 for information or online at www.secondcity.com/training/chicago.

Chicago Live! Returns to UP for Second All-Star Season

Chicago's best happy hour returns for a second unforgettable season at UP Comedy Club on Thursday, May 10 at 7:00p. Chicago Live! features guests fromthe worlds of arts, entertainment, sports and popular culture, as well as Chicago's top newsmakers with an opportunity to mingle with the guests at one of the best post-show receptions in town.

Each hour-long show is taped for WGN Radio to be aired Saturday nights and is based on the news of the week and the events of the city.

Click here to reserve your tickets.

The Columbia Chronicle Covers Our "Improv for Anxiety" Class

"To many, the pressure of jumping on stage and entertaining an audience with improvisation can induce anxiety. But Second City’s new “Improv for Anxiety Boot Camp” is aiming to do the opposite by using humor to treat the condition..."

To read the full article visit The Cloumbia Chronicle.

The first "Improv for Anxiety Boot Camp" session will began April 30 at the Second City comedy club, 1616 N. Wells St.

Congrats To Training Center Faculty Member John Hildreth On His 2012 Jeff Nomination!

The Jeff Committee, honoring excellence in Chicago theatres, selected John Hildreth as a nominee in the "Best New Adaptation" category for his work on "Watership Down" at Lifeline Theater. John teaches in the Improv, Writing, and Conservatory programs at The Second City Training Center and is running a specialty class called "Games! Games! Games" starting this Friday. For more information on classes, call 312.664.3959. To see the list of this years nominees, click here

About John Hildreth
John Hildreth is an alumnus of The Second City appearing in three revues at The Second City, Northwest including Casino Evil, three revues at The Second City, e.t.c. including White Water for Chocolate, and directing five consecutive revues for The Second City, Detroit including Generation X-Files. More recently he directed Second City...In Color at Theatre on the Lake and three revues with The Second City's Diversity and Outreach Program including Wii the People. John also recently appeared for The Second City as Roland Burris in Rod Blagojevich Superstar!, in Apparently Heaven Can't Wait: The Best of Jim Zulevic at The Second City, and in Disgruntled Employee Handbook: A Musical.

About The Second City Training Center
Chicago is the world capital of improvisation (improv) and sketch comedy, and The Second City is in the heart of it. For over fifty years The Second City has created a wealth of comedic material from a legendary group of performers. The Training Center follows the traditions developed by these groundbreaking and innovative men and women while encouraging the continued growth and development of the art forms of comedy and improvisation. Today, The Second City Training Center is the largest school of improvisation and sketch comedy in the world.

About the Jeff Awards
The Jeff Awards has been honoring outstanding theatre artists annually since it was established in 1968. With 50 members representing a wide variety of backgrounds in theatre, the Jeff Awards is committed to celebrating the vitality of Chicago area theatre by recognizing excellence through its recommendations, awards, and honors. The Jeff Awards fosters the artistic growth of area theatres and theatre artists and promotes educational opportunities, audience appreciation, and civic pride in the achievements of the theatre community. The Jeff Awards evaluates over 250 theatrical productions and holds two awards ceremonies annually. Originally chartered to recognize only Equity productions, the Jeff Awards established the Non-Equity Wing in 1973 to celebrate outstanding achievement in non-union theatre.

The Second City Wins Best in Sketch Comedy INNY Award

Thank you to all who voted in the 2012 INNY Awards for choosing The Second City as the Best in Sketch Comedy.

Congratulations also to the many great Chicago winners including our own Second City Training Center - Chicago for winning Best Training Center, and Michael Gellman for Best Instructor.

The INNY Awards, from Improvisation News, honor excellence in comedy. See the full list of winners here.

Live Well in Old Town

Treat yourself with a visit to Old Town this weekend. Twenty-one different wellness businesses in Chicago's historic Old Town neighborhood will be collaborating Thursday, April 26 through Sunday, April 29 to offer an entertaining and informative series of promotions and events. The neighborhood wide collaboration will feature helpful medical screenings, chiropractic services, health lectures, and beauty seminars. Classic Old Town comedy from Second City is featured nightly - listed below are special offers to help you Live Well.

The Second City 100th Revue: Who Do We Think We Are?
20% off tickets (Thrs. 8p | Sun. 7p) with code “HEALTH”.

Sex, Love & The Second City: A Romantic dot Comedy
20% off tickets (Sat. 2:30p | Sun. 4p) w/ code “HEALTH.”

The Second City's History of Chicago
20% off tickets (Sun. 1p) w/ code “HEALTH.”

Click here for a complete list of events.

Second City's Tour of Old Town Returns for a Fourth Season

*|DATE: F j, Y|*, Chicago -- The Second City is proud to announce the summer re-launch of "The Second City's Neighborhood Tour." This humorous and historic walking tour of Chicago's beautiful Old Town neighborhood will begin on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012 at 4:30pm and will continue every Sunday and Tuesday through Sunday October 28th, 2012.

Written by Margaret Hicks, an experienced Chicago tour guide and author of Chicago Comedy: A Fairly Serious History, "The Second City's Neighborhood Tour" both entertains and informs while highlighting the architecture, history and development of Old Town as well as various Second City alumni haunts and the stories that go with them.

The walking tour begins outside The Second City theatre on North Wells Street and winds its way through the historic Old Town neighborhood. The tour ends inside The Second City theatre and gives guests a chance to view the lobby photo display documenting over 53 years of comedy at The Second City

Tickets for "The Second City's Neighborhood Tour" are $15.00 per person. They may be purchased directly from The Second City Box Office by phone at 312-337-3992 or online at www.secondcity.com. Tours can have up to fifteen guests and advanced reservations are recommended. The tours are every Sunday at 10:30am and Tuesday at 4:30pm and last from one hour and 30 minutes to two hours. The walking pace is suitable for all ages.

Additional days/times are available for groups -- call Tiffany Smith at 312-664-4032 for more information or to request a special reservation for larger groups