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Posts in category "iO Theater"

A Chicago Guide for the Intense

It’s June! When an improv school makes the completely altruistic and noble move of creating a Summer Intensive program. People (mostly young folks) come to Chicago for weeks at a time to study for hours a day. No matter which institution you attend, the program is, well, intense. We could go on and on debating... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
May 31, 2011 at 11:19 am
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Famous People Doing Funny Things

The third Chicago-based Just for Laughs Festival comes roaring into town June 14th! The Festival began in 1983 all the way up in Montreal, but in 2009 a Chicago Festival was added and with the added financial and broadcast capabilities of the TBS network it has grown very fast. What I personally like about the... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
May 26, 2011 at 11:02 am
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Happy Birthday, Tina Fey

Elizabeth Stamatina Fey was born 41 years ago this day!  She was hired for the Second City Touring Company while still in classes at Second City. She started dating Jeff Richmond then, who is now her husband, father to her two children and executive producer of 30 Rock. So, uh, get on that, you slacker... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
May 18, 2011 at 10:00 am
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Comedy is Top Heavy

This past weekend we were graced by the presence of Maya Rudolph and Darrell Hammond on SNL. And is that a good thing or a bad thing? While it’s great that those people come back to reprise their characters and use their prodigious talents again (and maybe, just maybe surreptitiously plug their upcoming movie), couldn’t those parts... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
May 12, 2011 at 12:34 pm
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Closed Quarters

Next week will be the end of an era. It will be barely recognized, but extremely important to me. Two years ago, some friends and I remounted the classic, legendary long-form improv show called, “Close Quarters.” Farrell Walsh gathered some people he liked and wanted to perform with and we (Ryan Dolan, Sarah Fineout, Barry... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
March 22, 2011 at 11:22 am
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Happy 77th, Del Close!

March 9, 2011 would have been Del Close’s 77th birthday. There’s a lot of talk about Del and his work in high terms and glowing praise, but some people have had different experiences with him. I took his class almost non-stop for a year and, without hyperbole, I can say that it changed my life... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
March 8, 2011 at 2:43 pm
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Sarah Palin Explains America At You

This is a new show that I’ve been working on and it opens Thursday (March 3rd!) As you might expect, it stars “Sarah Palin,” in her very own variety/talk show. It most closely resembles the old Dinah Shore show, or maybe even Hefner’s Playboy After Dark with a little bit of the Brady Bunch Variety... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
March 2, 2011 at 10:51 am
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Fire + Puppets = BAD

Matt Nelson, a founding member of the improvised puppet show, FELT, has lost it. And by it, I mean, just about everything. Thankfully, he and his girlfriend Hilary, were not at home when a fire last week destroyed everything they owned, including their two pets. It’s a sad time, especially this time of year, but... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
November 22, 2010 at 12:32 pm
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Tina Fey: Ever the Twain Shall Meet

America’s sweetheart, Tina Fey, is a comedy legend. What, too soon? Well, not now. Yesterday, (November 9, 2010) Tina was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for Humor at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. (there’s a sentence that names 4 great Americans.) That picture over there <—– is Tina and her husband Jeff Richmond. I... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
November 10, 2010 at 9:01 am
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HalloQUEENS

I grew up in Queens, New York in the 70s and 80s. Halloween was a special time of year and I can remember it being a time of terror and hilarity. As you aged out of “trick-or-treating” you became more involved in “bombing” and “egging.” Various groups of (barely) teenagers would roam the neighborhoods of... Read more »
By Jason Chin,
October 25, 2010 at 1:32 pm
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