Jeff Garlin joins the ABC Fall line-up with a new family sitcom, "The Goldbergs." Set in the '80's, "The Goldbergs" also features Wendy McClendon-Covey. Click here to check out the trailer.
5/20/2013 Comments (0)Alumni of The Second City Touring Company Jane Lynch began performances as orphanage matron Miss Hannigan in Broadway's "Annie" on May 14. Click here for more information about the production and ticket information.
5/17/2013 Comments (0)Second City and SCTV alum Martin Short is set to star in Paul Thomas Anderson's new movie "Inherent Vice," an adaptation of the 2009 Thomas Pynchon novel of the same name. Click here to read the full story from Splitsider.
5/17/2013 Comments (0)Looking for more reasons to check out "The Second City's Christmas Carol: Twist Your Dickens" at the Kirk Douglas Theater in LA? Center Theatre Group and The Second City have assembled an eclectic collection of stars from the worlds of stage, screen, radio, politics, music, food, fitness, spirituality and interplanetary transport who will drop in, one by one, for a special surprise cameo performances during the run of "The Second City's Christmas Carol: Twist Your Dickens."
The partial list of guest stars includes musicians Lance Bass and Henry Rollins; actors Rose Abdoo, Jason Alexander, Ed Begley, Jr., Barry Bostwick, Neil Flynn, Keegan-Michael Key, Sharon Lawrence, John Lehr, Ben McKenzie, Lamorne Morris, Danny Pudi, Shoshannah Stern, George Takei and Fred Willard; radio personalities Lisa May and Sandra Tsing Loh; writer Bruce Vilanch; performer Miss Coco Peru; scientists Bobak Ferdowsi and Bill Nye; chefs Susan Feniger and Valerie Gordon; professional wrestler John Hennigan (formerly known as WWE superstar John Morrison); child actress turned politician Sheila Kuehl; and LA treasures Father Gregory Boyle and Richard Simmons.
Please note that to keep the surprises, no one will be announced in advance of each performance. Most will appear only once, some may appear more than once. Our Audience Services staff will not know who is appearing.
Click here for more information and to book your tickets.
11/26/2012 Comments (0)The world premiere of The Second City's A Christmas Carol: Twist Your Dickens!, written by Peter Gwinn (formerly of "The Colbert Report") and Bobby Mort (currently of "The Colbert Report"), begins previews on November 24 with performances through December 30 at Center Theatre Group's Kirk Douglas Theatre in Los Angeles, CA.
Directed by Second City alum, Marc Warzecha (Resident Director, The Second City) the cast features Frank Caeti ("MADtv"), Larry Joe Campbell ("According to Jim"), Dan Castellaneta ("The Simpsons"), Amanda Blake Davis ("Second City Does Dallas" at the Dallas Theatre Center), Brian Stepanek ("The Suite Life of Zack and Cody"), Jean Villepique ("Up All Night") and Ron West ("3rd Rock from The Sun") as Scrooge.
Click here to reserve tickets and for more information. Want to go backstage? Watch below for interviews with the cast:
11/21/2012 Comments (1)The Second City scoured their address book to assemble a cast of seven luminary L.A.-based alumni for their hilarious take on the beloved Charles Dickens tale of hope and redemption. The world premiere of The Second City's A Christmas Carol: Twist Your Dickens! is written by Second City alums, Peter Gwinn (formerly of "The Colbert Report") and Bobby Mort (currently of "The Colbert Report"), and opens November 29, 2012, at Center Theatre Group's Kirk Douglas Theatre. Previews begin November 24 and performances will run through December 30.
Directed by yet another Second City alum, Marc Warzecha (Resident Director, The Second City) the cast features Frank Caeti ("MADtv"), Larry Joe Campbell ("According to Jim"), Dan Castellaneta ("The Simpsons"), Amanda Blake Davis ("Second City Does Dallas" at the Dallas Theatre Center), Joe Flaherty ("SCTV," "Freaks and Geeks"), Brian Stepanek ("The Suite Life of Zack and Cody") and Jean Villepique ("Up All Night").
The scenic design is by Tom Buderwitz, costume design by Leah Piehl, lighting design by Brandon Baruch and sound design by Cricket S. Myers. The production stage manager is Kirsten Parker.
With its trademark humor, irreverence and originality, The Second City, in a creative collaboration with CTG, is taking the classic Charles Dickens' Christmas tale and giving it a hearty twist. In addition to Scrooge (played by Joe Flahety), the ever-morphing ensemble will bring the famous Victorian streets to frenzied life with Tiny Tim, that fat, plucked goose, all those know-it-all ghosts, a host anachronistic characters and hilarious improvs which will have Dickens guffawing in his grave. The cast will be joined by an ever-changing stable of starry, drop-in special guests.
The Second City specializes in sketch comedy and improvisation and has delighted audiences for over 50 years. With resident stages in Chicago and Toronto and touring ensembles, The Second City entertains over a million guests each year. It is also the largest training center in the world for improvisation, sketch and acting, with schools in Los Angeles, Chicago and Toronto, and 20,000 registrations per year. The Second City served as a training ground for a host of famous alumni, including Mike Myers, Bill Murray, Gilda Radner, John Candy, John Belushi, Catherine O'Hara, Tina Fey, Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert and more. Colbert said, "The Second City was everything to me," and Murray said, "Second City is the best job anybody in the American theatre can get. It's incomparable." The New York Times reported that "The entire recent tradition of America satire can be summed up in three words: The Second City."
Tickets for A Christmas Carol: Twist Your Dickens! are available by calling (213) 628-2772, online at www.CenterTheatreGroup.org, in person at the Center Theatre Group box office at the Ahmanson Theatre or two hours prior to performances at the Kirk Douglas Theatre box office. The Kirk Douglas Theatre is located at 9820 Washington Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232.
10/24/2012 Comments (1)On Sunday, Stephanie Cutter was featured in the New York Times and they included a nice shout-out regarding the "Stephanie Cutter Freaks Out" video that had been produced by The Second City Network's Andy Cobb.
10/15/2012 Comments (0)The Second City Training Center is one of a number of improv schools around the country to offer a free class to social media followers of the IFC comedy show BUNK. Each Friday night after BUNK airs, they will post a challenge on their Twitter feed, and the lucky winners receive a voucher to use for a class. Check out their website for the details.
Also, don't forget to follow the Chicago Training Center on Twitter @SecondCityChiTC and Second City Hollywood @SecondCityLA
7/11/2012 Comments (3)The Alliance For Children's Rights, Los Angeles' preeminent nonprofit dedicated to protecting the rights of at-risk children, is announcing the 3rd annual RIGHT to LAUGH comedy event.
Andrew Alexander and The Second City will be honored at this year's event which includes an all-star comedy performance line up including Martin Short, Fred Willard, Patricia Heaton, Rachael Harris and Jeff Garlin. Funds raised will benefit The Alliance for Children's Rights in their quest to help impoverished and abused children in LA.
The RIGHT to LAUGH will take place at the Avalon Theatre, 1735 N. Vine Street, Hollywood, on Tuesday, June 12, 2012 starting with a red carpet cocktail reception at 6 p.m. The Second City, the world's premier comedy theatre and school of improvisation, has launched some of the most prominent names in comedy from Alan Arkin, Gilda Radner, Steve Carell and Tina Fey to name a few. This year's RIGHT to LAUGH Award will go to The Second City's Owner & Executive Producer Andrew Alexander.
"What The Alliance is to kids in need, The Second City is to comedy in our industry. Laughter makes our world a better place and for that we are proud to salute them," says Peter Benedek, UTA, Co-Chair of the event.
The comedy salute line-up to-date include The Second City Alumni and comedic greats: Martin Short (Jiminy Glick, SNL), Neil Flynn (Scrubs, The Middle), Jeff Garlin (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Richard Kind (Spin City), Joel Murray (Mad Men, God Bless America), Suzy Nakamura (Go On, Help Me, Help You), Rose Abdoo (Gilmore Girls), David Steinberg (Inside Comedy), George Wendt (Cheers) and Fred Willard (Best in Show), along with other Special Guests Pamela Adlon (Californification), Ed Begley, Jr. (St. Elsewhere), Willie Garson (Sex & the City), Rachael Harris (Hangover), Patricia Heaton (The Middle), Phil LaMarr, Laraine Newman (SNL) and Amy Yasbeck (Wings), with special messages by Steve Carell and other illustrious Second City Alumni. To date, celebrity guests attending the event include Larry David, Selena Gomez and Diane Keaton.
Funds raised will benefit The Alliance for Children's Rights, which focuses on protecting the rights of impoverished and abused children and youth so that they have safe homes, health care and the education they need to thrive. "Laughter for a good cause is hard to resist and we are honored to be a part of something so worthwhile," Andrew Alexander, CEO of The Second City.
The RIGHT to LAUGH sponsors include: CBS, UTA, DreamWorks Animation, Guess?, Symantec, Robin, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, City National Bank, Zoo Productions, Warner Bros., Kymberly Marciano-Strauss & Even Strauss, Kaplan Stahler Agency, Mintz Levin, Janet & Bob Daily, Bill Maher, Tom Bezucha, Larry David, Nathalie Marciano, Gene Stein & Geert De Turck, Michael J. Fox & Tracy Pollan, Sarah & Bill Odenkirk, 495 Productions and Comedy Central.
Sponsorship opportunities and tickets for this event are still available. Visit www.kids-alliance.org for details.
6/6/2012 Comments (0)Frank Caeti and Matt Craig to return to Piccolo Fringe this weekend. After three popular turns at Piccolo Fringe, Los Angeles improv duo FrankenMatt (commonly referred to as "the short guy and the tall guy") return to Charleston with American Imperil, an evolving, politically themed sketch show that takes their familiar brand in new directions. Read more about their Piccolo performances here. American Imperil was originally presented the Hollywood Studio Stage and we wish the guys tons of success with it at the festival!
5/24/2012 Comments (0)
Book one of Second City’s touring shows at your theatre, or have us create a completely customized show for your city.
more info
