The Second City presents its 102nd Revue DEPRAVED NEW WORLD.
The new Mainstage show at Second City is tight! The scenes flow. The laughs roll. The cast soars. Chelsea Devantez, John Hartman, Mike Kosinski, Tawny Newsome, Emily Walker and Steve Waltien are terrific. They are the writers, the performers but first and foremost they are ‘the ensemble.’ There is this dynamic synergy bonding them together in collaboration. These six just go together…effortlessly.
The gentlemen even look alike. Hartman, Kosinski, and Waltien, sing a little diddie pointing out their hilariously similar brown hair, pasty white skin, and slender builds. The ladies, Devantez, Newsome, Walker, go full-on moxie compiling a ‘don’t’ list for guys and gals. Walker, in particular, belts out her zingers with drawling sass. Singly, doubly, triply or altogether, this cast delivers a jest-full romp. The running theme of the sketches is what people are really thinking. The subject is topically explored via Facebook, internet scams, a haunted house and even a nursing home. In one of many all-ensemble shticks, firefighters complimenting each other take a sizzling twist. Riotous!
Director Mick Napier paces the sketch-fest in high-energy. The action clips along. This close-knit crew plays well together. The comedy is heightened as Napier slows down the merriment to expose a disconcerting internal voice. Hartman makes a bath sound deliciously sinister. He is aided by Lighting Designer Kyle Anderson illuminating his internal voice in red. Later in a silent scene, the cast act out a date being serenaded by a violinist. Musical Director/Composer/Sound Designer Jesse Case provides the perfect fiddling for the antics. In another number, Case provides the soundtrack to the charming Waltien’s lip-syncing.
In the second half of the show, the cast prove why The Second City is first in comedy.DEPRAVED OF THE NEW WORLD interacts with the audience. The improvised set is impressive feats of quick wit. In one segment, Newsome exhaustingly chatters about guacamole. Another stint has Devantez and Kosinski interrogating an audience member. Their grilling is spontaneous and specific to the victim. It’s just all so damn clever! The show is an amusing mix of rehearsed and improv-ed originality.
DEPRAVED NEW WORLD is as funny as it gets. Don’t deprive yourself of thisDEPRAVED ensemble.
Running Time: One hour and forty-five minutes includes an intermission
The Second City Mainstage Theatre, 1616 N. Wells Street
Written and performed by Chelsea Devantez, John Hartman, Mike Kosinski, Tawny Newsome, Emily Walker and Steve Waltien
Directed by Mick Napier
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays at 8pm
Fridays, Saturdays at 11pm
Sundays at 7pm
Buy Tickets at www.secondcity.com
Production photo by Todd Rosenberg