The Second City is a comedy enterprise that was founded in 1959.
This comedy club offers stellar performances and lessons, with a focus on improvisation. It has a colorful selection of impressive alums, including: Tina Fey, Steve Carell, Bill Murray, and Joan Rivers, to name a few.
Every Wednesday to Sunday night, an ensemble cast of comedians perform in a show called ‘A Red Line Runs Through It’. The Red Line, otherwise known as the ‘L’, is a 24-hour train service in Chicago that runs between Howard on the North Side, and 95th/Dan Ryan on the South Side. The premise of the show is that the comedians are riding the L from the North to South side, performing sketches indicative of the typical locals at each stop. The show is directed by Matt Hovde, and is written and performed by Lisa Beasley, Aasia LaShay Bullock, Peter Kim, Katie Klein, Julie Marchiano, Scott Morehead.
Matt, the director, informed us that the rehearsal period for the show was 12 weeks, from zero to finished product. Through the use of improvisational techniques, the rehearsals were a platform through which the cast could test out their ideas. The performers were encouraged to focus on topics that they had a personal connection to, which was extremely evident in the show. Interestingly, some of the cast had never ‘played together’ before, so part of the rehearsal process was devoted to building and strengthening the ensemble.
The performance area for the show was modest, but spacious. There was a floor seating area close to the stage, and an elevated seating area at the back half of the room. With a stage at the front of the room, a raised pathway along the side of the audience for the actors to walk along, and a chalkboard, the performers had plenty of room to play.
The beginning of the show was set on the Red Line, with the actors waiting on the train to get to their different destinations. The scene showed what you would normally expect from a train journey; passengers being forced to move their bags off chairs to provide more seating area, everybody awkwardly avoiding eye contact, and constant train delay messages that are impossible to hear or understand.
Abruptly, the train stops, and the lights go out. An announcement voice that constantly cuts out, informs the passengers that there has been an unexpected delay, and the passengers should panic. When the lights come back on, all members of the ensemble have ‘Anonymous’ masks on, and they perform a surprisingly good dance. The masks are a recurring theme throughout the show, so we asked the director what the inspiration behind this was. The director Matt explains, “The masks are a visual way to represent the subtle theme of revolution in the show. People are mad, and they are acting out on that anger – we see this in the ugly rhetoric of the Trump campaign, in the violence in our streets, on social media, etc. So we built into the show an undercurrent of revolution that manifests in the propaganda that accumulates on the set, in sketches such as the Rahm song and the improvised Revolution song, and in the masks. It is a way of reminding the audience that there is a status quo, and that sometimes we must challenge it. Plus they look really cool under black light.”
Following on from the train debacle, there are numerous different short sketches, beginning with two gossiping neighbors. This sketch stars Lisa and Aasia – the two strongest performers in my opinion – who play two teachers, leaning out of their household windows, and complaining about life. They complain about everything from their job, to how they were told off for teaching their primary school students about herpes. Throughout the sketch, other people from the neighborhood pop by and chat to the ladies, having what appears to be a friendly encounter, however, as soon as they leave, Lisa and Aasia immediately start bitching about them. In order for the sketch to work, impeccable comedic timing was necessary, and Lisa and Aasia had that in bucket loads.
There were countless amusing sketches, such as a very pompous and seemingly wealthy woman, who is shown around an apartment by and equally uppity man. It is then revealed that they are on a tinder date, and the apartment is grungy and tiny – the juxtaposition between the characters and circumstance were very comical.
Politics was a large focus through out the show – there were political raps, a song about the Chicago mayor, and a list of where the political parties got their money. Often the greatest humor is found in truth, and although the points the comedians made were humorous, many of the subjects raised were highly valid.
Some of the more lighthearted sketches included a work out video that led to a client committing murder, a black magic scene that focused on race, a drag scene when a overtly heterosexual man is being taught how to dress, walk and talk like a woman, and a sketch about an anniversary meal which results in humans pretending to have horse sex.
The most exciting parts during show were when the comedians performed improv. Perhaps this is because it adds an element of risk to the performance, or perhaps it is because the audience sees the actors thinking on their toes, but every audience member was on the edge of their seat throughout these sketches. There was a news network improv, where the comedians made up different news segments depending on what part of the world the audience says they are from – our night it was France and Philadelphia. In another scene, as per audience suggestion, there was a horse whisperer and a mortician, called Oprah and Grenadine, who crashed their car into a water buffalo. I’m sure you can imagine the ridiculousness of that scenario, and it was absolutely hilarious.
The show ended back on the train. Then the audience was informed there would be another 30 minutes of pure improvisation, and we could stay and watch for free. Of course, because of the effectiveness of the improv throughout the show, everyone in the audience stayed. Unfortunately the improvisation at the end did not quite live up to the quality of the improvisation during the show – the audience suggestions were not the best to work with, and the comedians may have been having an off night, as usually the improvisation at the end of the shows are much stronger. That being said, the show as a whole was hugely successful, intelligent, and impactful, and I would highly recommend watching it.
If you would like to purchase tickets to Second City’s ‘A Red Line Runs Through It’, follow this link: http://www.secondcity.com/shows/chicago/red-line-runs/
