People don’t get into comedy because they want to pay their bills. They perform because they have a need to entertain. For those who aspire to make a living being funny, Second City is their best chance. Many comedians, from Bill Murray and John Belushi to Tina Fey and Steve Carrell, got their start at the theatre, which not only is a pipeline to “Saturday Night Live,” it’s also a gig that allows actors to finally quit their day jobs, as employment is often offered on cruise ships, in touring companies or home shows in Chicago, Toronto and Las Vegas. With this third show at the Alliance, there are three Atlanta actors in the cast who may become the next big thing. Encore Atlanta spoke with them about their comedic background and aspirations. To follow their Twitter musings, search for the hashtag TSCATL2010.
Tara Ochs
Astrological sign:
Pisces
Where are you from?
My father is Navy, so we moved a lot, but I usually say “Florida” because he retired there.
How long have you lived in Atlanta?
I moved back last summer from Los Angeles. Prior to living in L.A., I lived in Atlanta for three years, so a total of four years. Dad’s Garage is a home base for me. There isn’t a lot of live theatre in L.A., and I was missing it, and the theatre here is 1,000 times more fulfilling than doing showcases. I also have good friends here and wanted to be closer to them. If you want to survive in theatre, now, you have to be a hybrid artist. But that’s hard to do in L.A.; you get pigeonholed into one type of career. If you’re an actor, you can’t do production. If you do stand-up, you can’t do improv. Here, I can do whatever I want to do.
What are some of your favorite things about the city?
The restaurants. I sometimes claim I moved here for Taqueria Del Sol. I like having hot summer days and big storms, and chilly days [that are] not too cold. I love the community. There’s so much going on in the city. There are tons of festivals, and people come out to see live shows – there’s a pretty fantastic art scene across the board. I like the people. People here will come out to your party, meet you for lunch, and you don’t have to drive 45 minutes to see anybody. There’s a community. And I like all the green space.
Who were your comedic idols, growing up?
Like all kids of my generation, I was a “Saturday Night Live” addict. There was SNL and Damon Wayans – all the Wayans — in “In Living Color.” Those were the two sketch shows I watched religiously. [I liked] Dana Carvey. I loved Gilda Radner — she was one of my favorites — and Steve Martin. He was — is — amazing.
When did you start doing improvisation?
I did it in college [Florida State University]. I ran into this little group called the Whammo Players, who were seniors. They were the guys who started Dad’s Garage. I was a groupie. They left behind one of their members, Stephen Guarino, so we started doing improv theatre together at FSU.
What do you love about the art form?
I don’t have to practice! (Just kidding.) I don’t have to learn any lines! (laughs) It’s the riskiest, the potential for failure is pretty great, and that’s why the audience loves it so much. We have an arsenal of rules and tools we use to kind of hedge our bets, but you never know if it’s going to work. And I like being big and silly and loud and obnoxious, which I’m not necessarily allowed to do in my normal life.
Is this your first time working with Second City?
It is. I’m so excited. I have had my eye on that company for a long time. That’s a big deal for me.
What does it mean for you?
On the surface it’s a kind of validation. Laughter from an audience is one of the best pats on the back you can get. But it feels nice to be offered a part in a show from a respected company. It gives you a sense of professional validation. There aren’t a lot of places we can make money doing improv, but we love it a lot so we do it. And the thought of a company that can help us pay our bills for a day or two, it’s kind of like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It’s nice to be recognized for your art.
The show gently pokes fun at some Atlanta icons and traditions. What things about this city would you like to make fun of?
I’ve been wondering about that. We’re supposed to be tailoring this show to Atlanta specifically. I don’t want to be mean, because there’s so much hope in this city and potential for progress, like the Beltline project. But it’s hard to be patient with a project that amazing but it’s like … any day now. You have to laugh at the real estate markets. I have so many friends in areas that were just about to turn around, and they just haven’t. You can laugh about the hundreds of empty condos. And the traffic — you can always make fun of that.
Amy Roeder
Astrological sign:
Cancer
Where are you from?
Originally? New London, Minn. The town didn’t have a stoplight.
How long have you lived in Atlanta?
I moved to Atlanta last August, but for the first show I was driving from Athens to Atlanta. I was completing my masters in performance at the University of Georgia.
What are some of your favorite things about the city?
I love how cultural it is and the accessibility of theatre. I’ve seen more good theatre in Atlanta than in my whole life, combined. I love how friendly the people are — and it’s genuine! And I love how into SEC football everybody is.
Who were your comedic idols, growing up?
Tim Conway, definitely, and Carol Burnett. I watched “The Carol Burnett Show” obsessively. And Lucille Ball. I tend to skew older in my comedic references because we didn’t have cable growing up.
When did you start doing improvisation?
Twelve and a half years ago. I was getting my MFA in Theatre Performance when a friend of mine from undergrad sent me an e-mail out of the blue. He said, “I wanted to tell you I found improv, and really love it and think you should give it a try.” So I looked up improv in a phonebook (I was in Boston) and saw a theatre. I called them and asked if they had auditions, and they happened to have auditions that week. I tried out and got cast, and I was with them for four and a half years. So, I got into improv because of a random e-mail from [“30 Rock” actor and Second City alumnus] Jack McBrayer. We went to undergrad together at University of Evansville, Ind.
What do you love about the art form?
I love that it is so collaborative. You’re onstage with a group of people and if you don’t support each other, the scene doesn’t work. The whole is greater than the sum of your parts. I love that I can play anything from someone my own age, who’s very close to me, to a guy to a living room set, and the audience is willing to suspend its disbelief. It’s very freeing to not be stuck to a script and one part you’re cast in. You can fill in wherever you’re needed.
This isn’t your first time working with Second City?
No. It’s my third time working with them [on this show]. This past January through May, I worked with them on a Norwegian cruise line ship, so I got to sail through the Panama Canal, which is something I’ve always wanted to do.
What does it mean for you?
It meant a lot because Second City was always sort of the theatre that did the kind of work I always wanted to do. And a lot of my friends worked there. I went to audition for them a lot in Chicago, and I always screwed up and felt like a total nob. But after the Atlanta audition, I felt like I’d showed them my best and that I wasn’t completely tool. Its a theatre I’ve always really admired and always wanted to be a part of.
The show gently pokes fun at some Atlanta icons and traditions. What things about this city would you like to make fun of?
My biggest thing I love making fun of is also something that I secretly adore and something we made fun of last year — “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” When I was told I was playing Kim, I was over the moon, because she’s crazy.
Randy Havens
Astrological sign:
Libra
Where are you from?
I’m from Georgia. I grew up in Gwinnett County, in Lawrenceville.
How long have you lived in Atlanta?
My whole life. I’m a Georgia boy.
What are some of your favorite things about the city?
I like the nightlife. I like that there’s always something to do. I really like going to the movies, and we have a lot of great movie theaters like the Plaza Theatre on Ponce. I love that place.
Who were your comedic idols, growing up?
The classics: I grew up watching Steve Martin and really loving the stuff he did. I liked him as a kid and I like the stuff he does now. But when I look at the stuff I liked as a kid I’m like “why did I ever like this?” He’s got a lot of adult humor, but he’s really stupid, which I loved. And re-runs of “Saturday Night Live.” I started watching those with John Belushi and Gilda Radner. I just felt an attraction to it for some reason.
When did you start doing improvisation?
About 1999. I started doing sketch shows at Dads Garage, and that moved [me] into improv, because I saw some of their improv and thought, “That looks really cool.”
What do you love about the art form?
It’s immediate, and you can find things with other people. I love that you make discoveries, and it’s that moment of discovery, where you’re with another person making something up on the spot that you find something that you didn’t know was there.
Is this your first time working with Second City?
Yes.
What does it mean for you?
I think that anybody who does improv knows about Second City. For me Second City is just the best. It’s the top. To get to work with them is just a great opportunity. When I first started doing improv, I never thought that would be possible.
The show gently pokes fun at some Atlanta icons and traditions. What things about this city would you like to make fun of?
All of the condos. I think it’s funny that we take these old neighborhoods and rip them down and build condos. We have such a great history in Atlanta, and it’s like “rip down that history and let’s put up apartments!” I like seeing old buildings converted. You can’t go anywhere without hitting traffic. Last year, they made fun of the Clermont Lounge … but it’s definitely make-funnable. One of the interesting things about Atlanta, and I think there’s room for comedy in there as well, is the fact that Atlanta is so integrated. You could be sitting at a bar and there’s such a wide assortment of people there. You don’t see that in other cities. You can sit in a room and see a great cross-section of the Atlanta population.
