Description: This class focuses on the fundamental elements of scenic improv including idea generation, finding the game, and heightening. Learn how to play with a scene partner, use the environment, and sustain the relationship. Prerequisite: Improv 101 or the equivalent.

Times/Days: Tuesdays 6:00-8:00 PM (1/20/26 – 3/10/26)

Class Length: 8 weeks; 2 hrs. per week

Location: Fine Arts Building – Studio A (410 S. Michigan Ave.)

Teacher: TBD

Student Showcase: Wednesday, March 18th (6:00-8:00 PM)

Description: Learn the fundamentals of improv in this fun, supportive, introductory class. We’ll cover listening, ensemble-building techniques, and the principle of “Yes and…” This is a great opportunity to try improv right at its birthplace in Chicago! No experience necessary. Each session concludes with a Student Showcase for friends and family.

Times/Days: Wednesdays 6:00–8:00 PM (1/21/26-3/11/26)

Class Length: 8 weeks; 2 hrs. per week

Location: Fine Arts Building – Studio A (410 S. Michigan Ave.)

Teacher: Lori McClain

Student Showcase: Wednesday, March 18th (6:00-8:00 PM)

Lori McClain has been an actor, singer, improviser, voice-over artist, teacher, and corporate trainer in Chicago for the past 30+ years. She toured with The National Touring Company of the Second City, including a USO Tour to Iraq and Kuwait in 2004, and starred in Second City Theatricals productions, “Rod Blagojevich, Superstar!” (Patty Blagojevich) and “The Real-ish Housewives” (Baroness Ravonka). She has improvised with “Sirens Improv” for over 20 years, and has appeared in dozens of television commercials (Lyrica, KFC), and in TV dramas (Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, and 61st Street). She’s performed most recently in the fully improvised musical, “Blank! The Musical” at The Revival, and has narrated several audiobooks.

Description: This course prepares aspiring comedians with the confidence and skills to embark on their stand-up comedy journey! Weekly sessions cover: joke structure, material development, discovering your unique attitude and persona, audience engagement, and crafting a cohesive set. The course concludes with a performance for friends and family.

Times/Days: Sundays 5:30-7:00 PM (1/25/26-3/15/26)

Class Length: 8 weeks; 1.5 hrs. per week

Location: Fine Arts Building – Studio A (410 S. Michigan Ave.)

Teacher: Claire Sundbye

Student Showcase: Wednesday, March 18th (6:00-8:00 PM)

Claire Sundbye is a Chicago based comic. Her animated, quick-witted, and conversational delivery leave audiences everywhere laughing! Claire is a regular at Laugh Factory, Zanies & CYSK. She performs with nationally touring acts including Jason Cheny, Ashley Gavin, Dan Donohue and more. This year, Claire’s episode of the popular show “Subway Takes” went viral, amassing over 20 million views.

Description: Learn the fundamentals of improv in this fun, supportive, introductory class. We’ll cover listening, ensemble-building techniques, and the principle of “Yes and…” This is a great opportunity to try improv right at its birthplace in Chicago! No experience necessary. Each session concludes with a Student Showcase for friends and family.

Times/Days: Sundays 3:00–5:00 PM (1/25/26-3/15/26)

Class Length: 8 weeks; 2 hrs. per week

Location: Fine Arts Building – Studio A (410 S. Michigan Ave.)

Teacher: Micah Philbrook

Student Showcase: Wednesday, March 18th (6:00-8:00 PM)

Micah Philbrook was raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and moved to Chicago to pursue improvisational theatre. He has trained with the iO, the Annoyance, and the Second City Conservatory. While in Chicago, Micah is a faculty member at the Second City Training Center, performs with the tim&micah project, and is a founding member of pH Productions.

Description: Armando, La Ronde, Harold and more! This class begins with an exploration of traditional improv forms. Then, the ensemble will create a completely original form of their own! Use everything you’ve learned up to now and take your improv to the next level. Prerequisite: Improv 301 or the equivalent.

Times/Days: Mondays 6:00-8:00 PM (1/26/26-3/16/26)

Class Length: 8 weeks; 2 hrs. per week

Location: Fine Arts Building – Studio B (410 S. Michigan Ave.)

Teacher: Cassidy Russell

Student Showcase: Wednesday, March 18th (6:00-8:00 PM)

Cassidy Russell is a member of the Second City National Touring Company and plays with Chicago’s longest-running improv team, Deep Schwa, and Annoyance Theatre house team, Sight Unseen. Cassidy directs plays and sketch shows and teaches improv in Chicago. In the summer, she teaches comedy classes in Alaska at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp. Outside of the comedy world, Cassidy writes reviews of children’s books for a literary journal, works part time as a librarian, and was once in a commercial where all four of the other actors were cats. Her teaching pedagogy revolves around hunting down delight on stage, playing with joyful abandon, and figuring out how to combine selfishness with extreme generosity.