One goes to a Second City show with high expectations. Afterall, this is where comedy greats including John Belushi, Steve Carrell, Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey and many others earned their chops over the last 60 years before making it big. The cast of The Second City: Comedian Rhapsody, running July 17-Aug. 11, 2024 at Garner Galleria Theatre didn’t disappoint in our expectations of this newest generation of comedic talent.
A few opening night technical glitches did dampen the wow factor the troupe could have had, however. Multiple times, the sound cut out which meant we missed portions of the jokes. And when they were quick, fast-paced jokes, they were a complete dud. Other times, the voices were just too loud which distracted from the funny. Hopefully that was just a first-night issue and won’t stand in the way of full enjoyment for the rest of the run. By the way, this isn’t a Second City issue – there have been sound issues on opening nights even for the Broadway shows across the way at The Buell. Enough about that. Onto the humor!
I’ve seen numerous comedy shows in the intimate Garner Galleria venue including Broadway’s Next Hit Musical, The Improvised Shakespeare Company and The Secret Comedy of Women all of which, like Comedian Rhapsody, combine scripted sketches and improvisation that plays off suggestions from the audience or audience members themselves, brought up on stage. Nearly every time, whether opening night or not, the shows do not start off with a laughter-bang. It takes a while for the audience to get into the groove of what’s happening. And it takes a while for the performers to gel with the audience and vice versa. And, frankly, the audience needs to commune with itself, getting a kick out of its collective suggestions for things, sharing knowing laughter over uniquely Denver things. Until that all happens, jokes can fall flat and the actors have to really cajole the audience to play along. At one point, early in the show, when the actors told us all to stand up for a “bit,” only a few did. He asked again and a few more did. Finally, he had to say (playfully), “would you all get the F… up please?” We did.
It’s got to be so hard to be an improvisational comedian because it isn’t just you alone or even your fellow actors. You and the audience are a symbiotic thing, feeding off each other and nurturing each other. So, when you go, relax from the get-go. Do what they ask of you and play along.
The team of Tina Arfaee, Bill Letz, Cat McDonnell, Zoe McKee, Preston Parker and Cassidy Russell was talented, there’s no denying. They are impressively quick-on-their-feet, literally and figuratively and they work well together.
Some skits missed the mark and some are right on. Some are even touching and thought-provoking.
Note that this is not a “clean” show by any means and kids shouldn’t be there (the website recommends 17+). There was a child in the audience the night we went. I thought of her often as the sexual content and f-bombs flew. That had to be an awkward drive home.
But for the rest of us adults, it’s a good time watching these individually-funny comedians work together and with the audience to provide something we can all really use, an evening of laughter.
To learn more about the show and to purchase tickets, visit the website here.
-By Courtney Drake-McDonough, publisher and managing editor, In Good Taste Denver
Please note: As members of the media, it is common practice that we receive comped tickets to shows to help facilitate writing about them. However, as is always our policy, our opinions are our own, honest and true, for the informational benefit of our readers.
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