“The Best Decision You’ve Ever Made”

Recommended ***  One thing that I have noticed over the years ( and I mean YEARS) of visiting Second City and its stages is that the audience gets younger and younger as the years go on. The performers are also younger and of course the topics handled by them, more up-to-date and a lot more “Black Lives Matter” and sexual/gender jokes/comments. What does this mean?

A younger, more HIP audience gets what they are saying! I notice it more when Jane goes with me. I am more into the non-stop comedy and casual sex joke than she is, so often she will question why I am laughing. I laugh when things are funny. I go to a Second City performance to enjoy an evening away from home and the everyday circumstances contained there. No TV! No bills to worry about! Did I pay the water bill? Who cares? If I did not, it will be there in the morning- tonight is escape from reality, have some drinks, a little “nosh” and a lot of fun!

Is the new ETC show a rock solid comedy? Probably not as much to us as it is to the 30 somethings, but it is funny and when audience members yell out things for the actors t incorporate into their skits, it is fun to watch the creative minds reach for ways to use the products, or foods or jobs that the audience members shoot out as responses. This they did well, and even when they had a few moments of “breaking-up” we enjoyed struggling with them to finish what they started. That is the beauty of “improv” and when I attend a show, I always think about the cast members and which ones might one day fit as new arrivals on SNL ( Saturday Night Live). This show has two!

The cast is made up of Atra Asdou, EJ Cameron, Mark Campbell, Laurel Krabacher , Chuck Norment and newcomer Alex Bellisle.

These performers also wrote the show and as always, they will make changes along the way. Audience participation and response play a major role in the work of young comics/writers.

Directed by  Frank Caeti, who makes the most of the small stage at ETC.

The show is about choices we make and how they impact our lives as well as those who live with us and around us. The music is handled by Tillisky Ramey, a newcomer to the Second City, but a name you will learn to know in the years to come.

Second City ETC is located at 230 West North Avenue. The second floor is where you will go to pass thru the Covid checkpoint and then you will be taken into the theater.

Ticket prices start at $29 and are available by calling 312-337-3992 or you can visit www.secondcity.com

For performance dates and times, I suggest you go to the website- again, www.secondcity.com

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “The Best Decision You’ve Ever Made”.

My choices: Chuck Norment and Laurel Krabacher- maybe one day they will be members of the SNL cast. We’ll see!