The Second City Training Center

The Second City Training Center The Second City Training Center is the instructional arm of The Second City, offering improvisation and sketch comedy training that has influenced television, film, and theater. Founded to formalize pedagogy around improvisational techniques, the center has fed performers into ensembles, writers' rooms, and screen productions across North America. Its curriculum and alumni network link it to major institutions, studios, and festivals that shape contemporary comedic practice.

History

The Training Center grew out of workshops associated with The Second City ensembles in the 1970s and 1980s, parallel to developments at Steppenwolf Theatre Company, Second City Detroit, and the Chicago theater scene. Early teachers were alumni who had moved through connections with University of Chicago, Northwestern University, and the Annoyance Theatre, bringing methods pioneered by practitioners linked to Del Close, Viola Spolin, and companies like Compass Players. As television opportunities expanded with Saturday Night Live, SCTV, and Late Night with David Letterman, graduates migrated to NBC, CBS, and ABC sketch programs, prompting the center to formalize classes, ensembles, and professional tracks. Over ensuing decades, partnerships with production houses such as Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, and Warner Bros. studios further tied the center into wider media pipelines, while festivals like Just for Laughs and institutions like The Kennedy Center amplified its profile.

Programs and Curriculum

The center offers multi-level tracks including beginning improvisation, long-form improvisation, sketch writing, character workshop, and on-camera technique used by entertainers working with entities like SNL, The Tonight Show, and Saturday Night Live writers. Course modules reference exercises developed by figures associated with Del Close and Viola Spolin, and incorporate scene study methods found in training at Actors Studio, Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, and Tisch School of the Arts. Advanced programs prepare students for ensemble work with audition preparation aligned to casting processes at NBCUniversal, HBO, Netflix, and Amazon Studios, and for writing rooms for series on Fox Broadcasting Company, Hulu, and Showtime. The curriculum often includes masterclasses with guest instructors from Saturday Night Live, The Simpsons, Portlandia, Key & Peele, and feature film directors from Marvel Studios and Focus Features.

Faculty and Notable Alumni

Faculty draws from performers, writers, directors, and producers who have credits on projects for Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live Weekend Update, SNL Digital Shorts, The Colbert Report, The Daily Show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Late Show with David Letterman, 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation, Community, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Arrested Development, Veep, The Office (U.S. TV series), Seinfeld, Frasier, and The Simpsons. Notable alumni have included performers who later appeared in films for Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., and Universal Pictures and who headlined series on Netflix, HBO, and Amazon Prime Video. The Training Center’s lineage connects it to comedy figures associated with Saturday Night Live ensembles, SCTV players, and writers who went on to win Primetime Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award recognition. Faculty have included directors and coaches linked to Tony Awards productions, Obie Award winners from Off-Broadway circuits, and writers who contributed to The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.

Campus Locations and Facilities

Primary campuses are situated in Chicago, Toronto, and Los Angeles with satellite programs in partnership with venues in cities tied to touring circuits such as New York City, Detroit, Atlanta, and San Francisco. Facilities typically include blackbox theaters used for workshops and revues, rehearsal rooms modeled after spaces at Steppenwolf Theatre Company and Guthrie Theater, and on-camera studios equipped for audition tape production compatible with standards at Casting Networks and Backstage. Spaces host showcases that attract casting directors and producers from NBC, CBS, FOX, Amazon Studios, and Netflix, and serve as incubators for sketch revues staged at festivals like Just for Laughs and clubs such as The Comedy Store, Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, and Carolines on Broadway.

Influence and Cultural Impact

The Training Center’s pedagogy has shaped approaches used in television writing rooms for series on NBCUniversal Television, HBO, FX Networks, and Comedy Central. Alumni networks intersect with production ecosystems at Universal Television, Warner Bros. Television, and independent indie firms while contributing performers and writers to ensemble pieces debuted at Just for Laughs, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and The Sundance Film Festival. The center’s methods influenced improv communities linked to Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, Boom Chicago, and international companies in London, Toronto, and Amsterdam. Its graduates have impacted popular culture through appearances in films and series associated with Marvel Studios, DC Comics, and streaming hits on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, and have received industry honors including Primetime Emmy Award, Tony Award, and Peabody Award recognition.

Category:Comedy schools