Article by: Matt McQuaid
Steve Carrell. Chris Farley. Mike Myers. Tina Fey. These are just some of the legends that have come through the Second City, and next week the comedy juggernauts will be coming to Boston to team up with local laugh legends Improv Asylum to put on a number of shows in the coming week.
The Second City evolved from the Compass Players, a 1950s cabaret revue that was started by University of Chicago undergrads. Since then, The Second City has opened theatres in a number of different cities, had a successful TV show that ran from 1976 until 1984, and has opened several training centers to facilitate the growing need for workshops and instruction in the world of comedy. The Improv Asylum show is part of several in a number of other cities, including Atlanta, Denver, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh in conjunction with Second City’s 50th Anniversary.
Improv Asylum has wasted no time establishing a reputation of its own in the Boston comedy scene. “Improv Asylum has 50,000 fans. We wanted to give them more,” stated Norm Laviolette, co-founder of Improv Asylum in a press release. With theatres in both the North End and Cambridge, Improv Asylum, founded in 1998, has had over 3,500 shows for over 500,000 people and has even landed an appearance on the HBO Network. Most recently, Improv Asylum gained acclaim for their musical You’re a Good Man, Scott Brown, based on the rise of a certain Junior Senator.
Production for the Second City show has been in progress for as long as six months. A great deal of the show’s material has been written with a local focus in mind. Two of Second City’s writers came to Boston to do research on the city for a few days, and even met with Mayor Thomas Menino and a member of the City Council. “[They] tried to learn about Boston to make the show specific to the city,” said Kristin Martin, Events Manager at Improv Asylum.
Suffolk students are also looking forward to the event. Christian Roberts of Seriously Bent, Suffolk’s own Improv Comedy Troupe, expressed excitement for the upcoming collaboration between the two comedy teams “It’s really cool Second City is coming to Boston,” Roberts stated. “I’m one hundred percent positive they will put on a great performance.”
Anticipation has been building around the event, as the two epic comedy teams are joining forces for what is sure to be a remarkable performance. “We’re really excited to bring them here and have them in Boston,” said Martin. “We’re hoping it’s going to be a really good show.”
Improv Asylum Presents the Second City will be running eight times per week at Calderwood Boston Center for the Arts from April 9 to May 9. Tickets are $45-65 and can be purchased at BostonTheatreScene.com
