Second City

Second City is where Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Bill Murray, Steve Carell, and Mike Myers learned to perform. Since 1959, it has been the most influential comedy institution in the world, and since the 1980s it has been applying the principles of improv to corporate training and organizational development with results that have made it a fixture in the world’s most sophisticated companies.

Improv as a Business Skill

The same techniques that make great improvisers, listening fully, building on others’ ideas, staying present under uncertainty, are the techniques that make great collaborators, communicators, and leaders. Second City’s corporate programs are not comedy classes. They are skill-building experiences that use improv methodology to develop the behaviors that drive team effectiveness, creative thinking, and communication under pressure.

Customized for Every Organization

Second City Works, the company’s corporate division, develops programs specific to each client’s culture, challenges, and goals. Engagements range from keynote experiences to multi-day workshops, and the content is always tailored rather than templated. Organizations in healthcare, financial services, technology, and retail have all used Second City to shift culture, improve communication, and develop leaders who can think on their feet.

Second City keynotes and programs are booked for events focused on team building, communication, innovation, creative leadership, and developing the improvisational mindset that helps organizations respond to change with agility and confidence.

Improv show – We hand-select our best actors for a short-form improvisation show, taking live audience suggestions to create an entirely original set in the moment using concepts most relevant to your business. Our actors make sure all suggestions are safe and corporate appropriate.

• Cast of 6 (4 actors, 1 musical director & 1 stage manager)
• Lead time 4 weeks
• 30-45 minutes in length

Best of the Second City show – We pull our best material from our nearly 55-years of theatrical history archives, including sketches and improvisation based on your audience and event theme. Pulling relevant scenes will make the audience feel as if the show was written just for them but without the custom pricing.

• Cast of 7 (5 actors, 1 musical director & 1 stage manager)
• Lead time is 4-6 weeks
• 50 minutes in length

Custom show – This option includes ⅓ of each: improv, “best of” material and custom-written sketches. We’ll write 3 brand new scenes and embed them within the show. The client works with a director and 2 writers, and has approvals over all custom material – this process is about 3 or 4 phone calls.

• Cast of 7 (5 actors, 1 musical director & 1 stage manager)
• Lead time 4-6 weeks
• 60 minutes in length