Like many of you, I love to catch up on entertainment late at night before bed, and lately, I've seen some really great TV shows, movies, stand-up specials and documentaries that have reminded me of my own journey as an improviser. So if you're looking for a little creative inspiration, here are a few things […]
I have interviewed a lot of comedians and improvisers over the years, and I always find it interesting who turned them on to their first comedy album, or movie or TV show. For me, it was my older brother, Bobby. I was a grade behind him in school, so when I was in seventh grade, he […]
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Jon Glaser is a writer, actor and producer whose new show, Jon Loves Gear, premiers on TruTV on Oct. 26. He has written for Conan and Inside Amy Schummer and has acted in Trainwreck, Girls, and Parks and Recreation. Jimmy talks to him about starting out in improv in the '90s, his approach to comedy […]
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Laura Kraft is a comedic writer and actress, an iO Chicago and Second City alum and former staff writer for the Colbert Report. Jimmy talks to her about how improv helps her write for television, how she seems to find herself in the right place at the right time, and lessons she's learned from her […]
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Micah Philbrook is one of Chicago's most thoughtful and innovative improvisers and teachers. He teaches at The Second City Training Center, he's a founder of pH Productions, and he performs in the Tim and Micah Project. Jimmy sat down to talk to him about joining a cult-like improv group when he first moved to Chicago, the importance […]
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Marty DeRosa is a comedian who is considered the king of Chicago crowd work, using a lot improvisation in his stand-up act. He is a founding member of Comedians You Should Know and he co-host the hilarious podcasts Marty & Sarah Love Wrestling, and Wrestling with Depression. Marty talks about experiencing the death of one of […]
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Jeff Quintana is the Artistic Director and co-founder of The Villain Theater in Miami. He is a respected teacher and improviser who has studied in New York and Chicago. In this episode, we recorded live at The Villain Theater and talked to Jeff about his dream of opening up an improv theater, being homeless in New […]
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Joe Bill is an international improv teacher and performer. He is a co-founder of the Annoyance Theater and tours with Mark Sutton in Bassprov. He has taught at Second City, The Annoyance and iO Chicago and continues to teach around the world. Jimmy sat down with him in this live episode to talk about The […]
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Simon Helberg is best known as Howard from the hit CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory. He is currently starring in the new film Florence Foster Jenkins with Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant. We talked to him about following in his father's footsteps at The Groundlings, how acting is like improv, and the importance of […]
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This is our 200th episode of Improv Nerd. To acknowledge this milestone, we have compiled 15 of our favorite pieces of past guests' advice for people who are going into improv or comedy today. You will hear wisdom from people like Adam McKay, Broad City, Lauren Lapkus, TJ and Dave, Jill Soloway, Bob Odenkirk, Jon Favreau […]