Second City Training Center
Encyclopedia
The Second City Training Center was founded in the mid-1980s to facilitate the growing demand for workshops and instruction from the world famous The Second City
theatre. Training Centers are located in Chicago
, Toronto
and Los Angeles
. Satellite centers formerly existed in Metro Detroit
, Las Vegas
, Cleveland and New York
.
The centers offer a variety of classes for different ages. Programs of study include Improvisation
, Comedy Writing, Acting & Scene Study and Music Improvisation. The flagship program is the Conservatory which trains performers in the Second City style of creating sketch comedy through a process of improvisational techniques. The Conservatory requires an audition to enter the program and culminates with a show written and performed for several weeks by the graduating class.
Each center also offers specialized workshops in areas such as advanced improvisation techniques, long-form improvisation, and stand-up comedy
. For students who do not live near one of the Training Centers, they offer three-day intensives and one-week immersions held at the centers throughout the year as well as a one-on-one comedy writing e-mail correspondence class. The Training Centers also offer a variety of classes for children and teens including two-week summer camps.
Former Training Center students include Steve Carell
, Tina Fey
, Amy Poehler
, Mike Myers
, Chris Farley
, Tim Meadows, Bonnie Hunt
, Stephen Colbert
, Halle Berry
, Sean Hayes
, Jon Favreau
, Hinton Battle
, Jack McBrayer
, Dave Foley
and Kevin McDonald
. Classes are taught by working professionals, many of whom are current and former Second City performers.
From 1985 until his death in 2001, the Second City Training Center was headed by Martin de Maat
. The Chicago Training Center facility is now dedicated to him and features a plaque bearing one of his most famous quotes, “You are pure potential.”
The Second City
The Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
theatre. Training Centers are located in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. Satellite centers formerly existed in Metro Detroit
Metro Detroit
The Detroit metropolitan area, often referred to as Metro Detroit, is the metropolitan area located in Southeast Michigan centered on the city of Detroit which shares an international border with Windsor, Ontario. The Detroit metropolitan area is the second largest U.S. metropolitan area...
, Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, Cleveland and New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
The centers offer a variety of classes for different ages. Programs of study include Improvisation
Improvisation
Improvisation is the practice of acting, singing, talking and reacting, of making and creating, in the moment and in response to the stimulus of one's immediate environment and inner feelings. This can result in the invention of new thought patterns, new practices, new structures or symbols, and/or...
, Comedy Writing, Acting & Scene Study and Music Improvisation. The flagship program is the Conservatory which trains performers in the Second City style of creating sketch comedy through a process of improvisational techniques. The Conservatory requires an audition to enter the program and culminates with a show written and performed for several weeks by the graduating class.
Each center also offers specialized workshops in areas such as advanced improvisation techniques, long-form improvisation, and stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a comedic art form. Usually, a comedian performs in front of a live audience, speaking directly to them. Their performances are sometimes filmed for later release via DVD, the internet, and television...
. For students who do not live near one of the Training Centers, they offer three-day intensives and one-week immersions held at the centers throughout the year as well as a one-on-one comedy writing e-mail correspondence class. The Training Centers also offer a variety of classes for children and teens including two-week summer camps.
Former Training Center students include Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
, Tina Fey
Tina Fey
Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer, known for her work on the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live , the NBC comedy series 30 Rock, and films such as Mean Girls and Baby Mama .Fey first broke into comedy as a featured player in the...
, Amy Poehler
Amy Poehler
Amy Meredith Poehler is an American comedian, actress and voice actress. She was a cast member on the NBC television entertainment show Saturday Night Live from 2001 to 2008. In 2004, she starred in the film Mean Girls with Tina Fey, with whom she worked again in Baby Mama in 2008. She is...
, Mike Myers
Mike Myers (actor)
Michael John "Mike" Myers is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and film producer of British parentage...
, Chris Farley
Chris Farley
Christopher Crosby "Chris" Farley was an American comedian and actor. Farley was a member of Chicago's Second City Theatre and cast member of the NBC sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live from 1990 to 1995....
, Tim Meadows, Bonnie Hunt
Bonnie Hunt
Bonnie Lynne Hunt is an American actress, comedian, writer, director, television producer and daytime television host.- Early life :...
, Stephen Colbert
Stephen Colbert
Stephen Tyrone Colbert is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an...
, Halle Berry
Halle Berry
Halle Berry is an American actress and a former fashion model. Berry received an Emmy, Golden Globe, SAG, and an NAACP Image Award for Introducing Dorothy Dandridge and won an Academy Award for Best Actress and was nominated for a BAFTA Award in 2001 for her performance in Monster's Ball, becoming...
, Sean Hayes
Sean Hayes (actor)
Sean Patrick Hayes is an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Jack McFarland in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace, for which he won an Emmy Award, four SAG Awards, one American Comedy Award, and six Golden Globes nominations.He also portrayed comedian Jerry Lewis in the...
, Jon Favreau
Jon Favreau
Jonathan Kolia "Jon" Favreau is an American actor, screenwriter, film director and comedian. As an actor, he is best known for his roles in Rudy, Swingers , Very Bad Things, and The Break-Up. His notable directorial efforts include Elf, Iron Man and its sequel, and Cowboys & Aliens...
, Hinton Battle
Hinton Battle
Hinton Battle is an American actor, dancer, and dance instructor. He has won three Tony Awards, all in the category of Featured Actor in a Musical...
, Jack McBrayer
Jack McBrayer
Jack McBrayer is an American actor and comedian. He gained national exposure for his characters on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien"...
, Dave Foley
Dave Foley
David Scott "Dave" Foley is a Canadian comedian, writer, director, and producer best known for his work in The Kids in the Hall, NewsRadio, A Bug's Life, and Celebrity Poker Showdown...
and Kevin McDonald
Kevin McDonald
Kevin Hamilton McDonald is a Canadian comedian and actor, known as a member of the Canadian sketch comedy group The Kids in the Hall.-Early life:...
. Classes are taught by working professionals, many of whom are current and former Second City performers.
From 1985 until his death in 2001, the Second City Training Center was headed by Martin de Maat
Martin de Maat
Martin de Maat was a teacher and artistic director at The Second City in Chicago. He also taught at Columbia College and Players Workshop. He studied under Viola Spolin...
. The Chicago Training Center facility is now dedicated to him and features a plaque bearing one of his most famous quotes, “You are pure potential.”