Founder of famed comedy theater Second City took its name From an essay by New Yorker writer AJ Liebling. More than 60 years later, Second His City has found its home in New York.
The improv stage and training center, based in Chicago since 1959, announced Thursday it will open its first location in New York City.For decades, Second City has opened outposts in Toronto and Hollywood. However, they are still operating and Detroit and Las Vegas are also closed.
Starting next summer, the facility, which was the early home of performers such as Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert and Keegan-Michael Key, will also have a physical location in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood.
Second City’s Ed Wells said: The CEO who recently joined the non-profit organization that makes “Sesame Street.”
“New York feels natural,” he said.
The expansion will include a main stage for performances, a stage for students, restaurants and classrooms, the company said. New York states that it is his third largest market for the virtual class, behind Chicago and Hollywood.
Comedy institutions have struggled during the coronavirus pandemic due to lengthy closures and slow return of audiences.About a year after the pandemic, Second City was sold to a New York-based private equity group . It’s the first time the company has changed ownership since his 1980s.
The Upright Citizens Brigade, a hub of acclaimed improvisation and sketch comedy, cited a “financial strain” when it closed two Manhattan stores in 2020, leaving some of New York’s up-and-coming talent to move to bricks. and wanted a mortar training center.
The last few years have been a time of transformation for Second City. Adding to the economic challenges of the pandemic, 2020 saw complaints from performers of color who told stories of being marginalized and tokenized. As a result, the company’s chief executive and executive his producer, Andrew His Alexander, resigned, and management promised to “break it all down and start over.”
Second City’s new leadership included Chief Operating Officer Parisa Jalili and improv veteran Jon Carr, the company’s second black executive producer. ever since Company. They said last year that they were working to become a fairer organization with more diverse performers and to expand the company’s reach.