What I Learned From 22 Weeks of Improv at Second City Chicago

Giovanni: That is good, that is good. Welcome back to Actors Notes. This is simply just a podcast, a channel, a place to share the notes, the thoughts, my opinions that I have during acting class, and I really want to dive deep into my improv journey at the second stadium in Chicago. And I've been taking this journey since November of 2025, and we just wrapped up. In August of 2026. I did classes Improv 1 and I decided to pursue more of the acting side that the Second City has to offer. So there are classes for actors, and Improv for Actors 1 and Improv for Actors 2 is the route that I went, and that lasted for about 14 weeks in total, seven weeks each class. So Improv for Actors One was seven, improv for actors two was another seven. And improv one, that is the base. If you ever want to take improv classes and you don't know where to start at the second city, improv one. They have two, three, four, and five. And so I was like, I just want to learn the foundations. I want to learn what everybody learns in the beginning. So your yes and why you don't ask questions. There's so many things. But I really just want to start off with that first day. Whether you are an actor or maybe you've been in this industry for quite some time. Maybe you have more experience than I have. I've been acting for about four and a half years, almost five years, this coming December of 2026. And there's still so much I have to learn. I've booked a fair amount of commercials here in the Midwest. I've been fortunate enough to burk my book my first ever feature film with Alex Wolf and that was such a joy because there were so many things I didn't I didn't know that I now know that I would love to share with you guys and I wrote down in my notes in terms of all right, how do you handle weird call times at nine PM and you don't wrap up until six AM? How do you handle that that that that three AM zone where you have to deliver your lines, how much caffeine is okay to drink at three AM and being professional with the casting crew with background. what to say, what not to say. And I wanna all lead that to say that there is so much to learn, so many notes that I've written down, that I would love to share with you guys. And it all starts with improv. This is one of the biggest journeys that I've embarked on embarked on as an actor, but it was the most meaningful and it was a great place to start. So if you were thinking about Taking improv, maybe this is something you might experience. So on day one for improv 1, whether you have experience or you don't, so many people I met in class. That's that's something I want to point out here. I read down notes about people in class. That's one of the first things that I ever did, including my instructor. His name is Tom, Tom Rhodes. If you ever have the opportunity to go to the Second City in Chicago. hopefully he might still be teaching there, but you won't miss him 'cause he's like six seven. Six seven. I don't know why I don't know why that became a thing. Anyways, I know I wrote down a lot of things about him and a lot of things about my other classmates. Some have been acting and taking improv for well over ten years, and some just wrote or sor sorry, some Just read a book that said you should take an improv class to help you in your career, in your business as an entrepreneur. And some people signed up the day of just because a book told them to. Some people traveled from California and said that the second city is what brought them there. Theater is what brought them there. And the theater scene in Chicago is absolutely amazing. The improv scene is incredible. And so not only did I write about Tom, I wrote about my fellow classmates. The maximum was about fifteen in that class, and there were about I can count right here. There was Nez, John, James, there was Michael. Michael is the name that you will probably hear reoccurring throughout this entire actor's notes series of recapping up my time at the Second City, because Michael was Someone who's been with me not just for improv one, but improv for actors one and two, which is crazy because the second city provides countless classes at countless times throughout the year. So the fact that we were put together for the whole 22 weeks I was at the second city is incredible. So Michael, there was TJ, Christina, there was Louise, Louise, and Adrian and Gensey. And the people that you meet, it's very it's very important. You don't have to write down notes, but I did because not only did I want to network, and that was the biggest thing. You meet so many people of walks of life and in different stages of their acting career or in different stages of their life that you just never know when you're gonna cross paths again. So it's always nice to to know their name. That's probably the the the base minimum to know their name. And I also wrote down things that Nez actually was from Paris and he studied theater there. and he just moved to the second city. During that time, he moved to Chicago and it was been it's been a month. So the fact that he put himself out there to take an improv class. And first off, taking an improv class, whether you are an actor or you're not, is something so is courageous. Okay? Stepping in front of maybe 10-15 people, one person. and performing something that you don't you don't even know how to do. It it it takes a lot of courage and it's it's uncomfortable, it will be embarrassing, but it will be fun and it will be worth it. And the fact that he did this after moving from a different country and it's been only a month living in the States, let alone Chicago, to pursue improv, I gave Nash a lot of respect. So so so with every other Classmate that I had. But after a little introduction from Tom writing down things about my fellow classmates, we started to dive into improv. And this was so I mean, I just remember sitting there and I was starstruck because Steve Carell, Tina Faye, Amy Poe, Stephen Colbert, so many amazing alumni came from the second city in Chicago. That specific location. There are other locations, but I was just like sitting in class, I was in room 403, and then There was just like it was like a regular classroom. It was an empty space, some chairs, a whiteboard, a TV in the corner that never turned on. and I was just sitting there and I was like, Did Steve Corell sit in this chair one time? Possibly. I don't know. I don't know. and as we went throughout the the class after check-ins, the teacher kind of gave instructions. About how the class was going to go, how not every class is going to be the same. And this could go in your case, not every improv class is going to be the same. It's the instructor that always makes the difference. And I've had a few instructors follow a specific regimen that they love and it's routine for them. And others tailor the curriculum, because we were there for seven weeks, they tailor the curriculum towards the students. Okay, what do the students need to learn? What do they need to work on? And that's what we're going to learn. Yes, we learned our basic rules, which the first one is And I'm just gonna write down from what I wrote down here. If this is true, then what else? I believe we were yes, okay, we were playing the yes and game. and yes and is the golden rule. And a lot of people think of improv as just that. It's yes and. But what does it mean? we played this game, but it didn't start off with that. It was called no but. So we played no butt. We played yes but and then we played yes and and this is what I love about improv, we play so many games, and so the no but game goes like this. We pair up into twos, and the situation is we're going to lunch. And so you deliver a line to person A, person B, person A delivers a line saying, We should go to Subway for lunch. Sounds really good. You can say anything, just give a suggestion. on what you should have for lunch, like we should make some sandwiches for lunch, or actually we should just skip lunch. And person B will always start off with no but. And then so you should say with person A, we should go to Subway. Person B says no, but we should go to rallies instead. And then now you flip the script. Person A says, no but. So after they after person B says, we should go to rallies instead. No, but I think we should just get pizza, actually. The next person goes, no, but I'm really feeling dessert instead. Let's just have some dessert. Then person A goes, no, but, and you continue to go on from there. So you're essentially just rejecting what they say, but and then you, you know, you say, but, and then you give your suggestion, and then the other person says no, but and you see, it kind of goes into this. You go it goes nowhere. Then for a while, you play that, then you play the yes but you play the same game, but then you say yes but so to begin off. Person A says we should go to Subway. Person B says yes, but I really am craving some pasta, but luckily Subway serves pasta as well. Person A says yes, but I'm the one paying the bill, so we should just get some. sandwiches actually. Person B could go, yes, but Hmm, you paid last time. Let me pay. There's no wrong way to do this as long as you have that yes but no but in front of it. And so this is essentially agreeing to what they say, but not fully. So you say that but and then you add your two cents. Then you play the yes and game, which is the whole point of improv. So you can start off the whole situation again. And I forgot to say that the no but, the first game. You're going out to lunch. The yes, but you're planning a party. So you could be like excuse me. Yes, person A says, Ooh, we should get a wedding cake for this for this birthday party that we're planning. Ooh, yes, but make sure it's Reese's flavored all the way through. And the next person goes, Yes, but let's think about the food. We can't think about just the I'll order some Papa John's. Person B says yes, but and it goes on like that. The last game with yes and say you're planning a vacation, and person A says, Ooh, let's go to Hawaii. Person B, yes, and I'll buy the tickets. Person A, yes, and I already packed all my things. Person B, yes, and I already packed my stuff too. Person A, yes, and let's just get going. I'm ready to go. Person B say, yes, I'm I'm good to go too. Yes, and so y it it shows you that yes and just gets you quicker to a more specific place, more specific things to talk about. You agree, you don't stop the suggestion, you say yes, and you add on top of that. I feel like someone else could have explained that my t Tom could have explained that so much easier, but I bet he can't explain it from my point of view, and that's the whole point of actors' notes. This is all from my point of view. Everything that I say isn't for certain. I I should have prefaced that. I kinda did. This is all my opinion, this is all my thoughts, and the whole point of this podcast is that maybe someone out there might be feeling the exact same way. So you don't feel as alone in this industry, because it can get very Tiring. It can, you know, this amount of rejection that you face on a daily basis can get very discouraging and feeling like there's a roadmap to follow. You listen to all these Hollywood actors or actors you aspire to be like, and they share advice, but they share advice that helped them. They share advice that they wish they followed when they began. And no one path is right. It's not like if you take improv before you take singing class is the right way to go, or you should probably learn Meisner or Stella Adler or Udahagen before you pursue this. Maybe you should start off at the Moscow Art Theater. there's so many that's another thing. Being half Russian, being half Filipino, I definitely know that I'm going to go to Moscow one day and then I don't know if I can take a class 'cause I can't speak. And that's all I can say in Russian is I know a little Russian. Going back to what we learned in improv was these are just notes. So I wrote down that Tina's Fay book. Tina Fay's book, I forgot what it was called already. that is posted up everywhere. at the Second City. And there's so many different quotes. It is called Bossy Pants. There is a A wall that has like a poster dedicated to her book, Bossy Pants, and she just shares her time at the Second City because Tina Faye came from the Second City. And after actually after that, after that whole no but, yes but, yes and game, that was already an hour and a half in. Like it didn't sound like a lot, but when you're moving, when you're getting physical, time flies. So that was during halftime. That's what I like to call halftime. We get about a ten-minute break, we come back to class, and then we played I Am a Tree game. We played so many games. There's so many different games. And what this game was was one person would volunteer and they would stand in the middle of the room and they have their arms out just like that and says, I am a tree. And then one person comes up, they volunteer, and add To that scene, meaning that someone could get down on all fours, and then someone says, I am a dog near the tree. And then someone else volunteers, they s come up, they sit down in a ball right next to the tree and they say, I am an apple from the tree. And then someone could come up and then, you know, grab with permission, always have always ask permission to if you're going to make physical contact, they would grab. The tree's arm and says, I am a branch from the tree. There's no wrong way to do this. There's just your interpretation on it and you're adding to the scene. And so at the end of this, after everyone has gone and they gave in, they've given their suggestion, Tom says a quote that I love. He says, We lead the leader and follow the follower in improv. We lead the leader and follow the follower. Essentially, what that means is that no one is in charge. And no one is following anyone else, but we're following each other. In improv with the yes and, we're always giving a suggestion. And then when you take in that suggestion, you add on top of it. And on top of that, they add on top of this, they add on top of that. You just keep going, whether it's one person or the entire group. You always say yes and. Now there are times to say no, you can ask questions, you can break the rules, but it's very important to know the rules in order to break them. This is just the foundation. This is the first class. I'm not trying to complicate things. But with this game, I am the tree, we learned we lead the leader and follow the follower. No one's in charge and no one's following. The power is given and taken and given and taken, and you realize no one really has the power. No one really has the power to lead the scene or follow the scene in the in the whole in the whole scene, if that makes any sense. Another thing that we learned was the more specific you were, the more interesting it was. Now, this is something I'm going to talk about specificity throughout this entire series of actors' notes as we recap on my time at the Second City. The more specific, the more interesting you are, or the more interesting the scene is, and you are. And what I got from this was that say you and your scene partner are ha are eating at a dinner table. You're having You're having lunch, and then you say, Can you pass the ketchup bottle, please? That was a question, don't worry about it, but can you pass the co the ketchup bottle, please? And they pass the ketchup bottle. It's all right, makes sense, you pass the ketchup bottle, but be specific. Can you pa can you pass the Heinz so I can put over my Chicago dog because it's pretty dry, the the jardonner is very dry. You're painting a picture for the audience, for your scene partner, to get a better understanding. of what you're doing, of what's going on, and it just makes it more interesting. And this goes beyond what you're physically doing. Give the person that you're talking to a name. Give the location specific details. Now like I said, this is just day one, so I'm not going to get too into it. But we all talk about relationship. That's a big word that you're going to hear. Relationship, relationship, relationship. And this ties into specificity. What's your relationship to the location? Do you like where you are? Is it a is it a abandoned island? Are you on a roller coaster? What's your relationship to that? How do you feel about that? What's your relationship to your partner? Are you brother and sister? Are you mom and dad? Your relationship matters because it makes the scene more interesting and once you understand how to develop the scene to get to your relationship, to get to these specificities quicker, the better. Now, a lot of these are just questions that I have about Polite improviser syndrome. What is that? Make sure you write and ask a lot of questions. especially because someone else in that class might have them as well. Now, what is polite improviser syndrome? That's something that my teacher said that I didn't really understand, and that was in many cases, the instructor will say, I need a volunteer. Just like any public speaking class or improv class or acting class, someone has to go first. And the teacher might say, I need a volunteer. What do majority of us do? We just I'm just gonna wait. I don't wanna go first. Don't wanna embarrass myself. No, you gotta, you gotta go. Well, that's not what a a polite improviser syndrome is. Polite improviser syndrome is say you have two people who stand up at the same time, and you're no, no, no, no, you go. You're being polite, you let them go. But truthfully, there is no right time to go, there is no wrong time to go. If you both go. Go together. Or when you're in a scene and you say something you don't want to reject the other person's offer. And it's okay to reject, but you gotta understand why you're doing it. And some people say sorry. Some people say sorry a lot in scenes because they feel like what they offered the suggestion, as in, you know, I have a Heinz Ketchup bottle. Someone says, No, that's mustard. sorry, no, that is Haydn's ketchup bottle. I mean, there's no wrong way to do improv. There's just your way. And trusting your intuition, following these rules of yes and be specific, have a relationship. That's what's most important here. In the first class. I know if I'm throwing a lot at you right now, but this is this is what we learned at the the Harvard of all sketch comedy schools in the country, the second city. Now is a great time for a little little drink break. Don't forget to drink your water. Even though this is Rise. We played a whole bunch of different games a lot with the group. that made it a little bit more easier to understand improv as a class instead of just two people in a scene and you don't really know what you're doing. I think group games are very important too. my gosh, I totally forgot to mention the most fun game of them all. Was the zip zap, was the whoosh game. These are like icebreaker games that we played. I totally forgot to say this in the beginning. Where the whoosh was one of my favorites. We would stand in a circle, and then the teacher, whoever begins, says, Alright, I have a ball of energy. And I'm gonna simply pass it to the next person and say whoosh. The next person will grab that ball and say whoosh. And you just go out through the circle saying whoosh. Grab the ball, whoosh. And then you start to add more things. You could, you know, when someone says whoosh, they pass the ball to you. You could reject it and say, and then you would you would go the other direction. You'd be like, all right, whoosh, and then you would go, someone would say and then you would just go clockwise, counterclockwise, and you would add more to it. There's so many different ways to add whoosh. The zipzabza is another one, and this really just trains your attention. Alright, are you are you focusing on where the attention is? So essentially someone would say zip, they would do some kind of motion to you, they would clap, they would point, whatever it is, they would zip, say zip and look at someone, and then that someone would say zop or zap. See, I'm already messing up. Zip zap. You would say zap, look at someone else, the next person would say zop, and then you would just repeat it. Zip zap zip zip zop. Excuse me, I've messed this game up. So many people have, where they say zip zip, zop ity zap, zop. Dilly bup people would say random words, but as long as you knew where the attention was and you were keeping up with the game, well that's what really matters for the warm-up. After so many different games and understanding the yes and, the specificity, and the relationships, those were the biggest takeaways that I learned here. and playing group games, the polite improviser syndrome that I didn't really face polite improviser syndrome, but the people who did struggle with that, I feel like they weren't. They didn't trust what they said was enough. They didn't trust that what they they felt like what they said was wrong somehow. And I think this is the biggest takeaway to end off today's actor's notes, which is that whatever you say, treat it as if you were a genius in it. No matter if you messed up how you said it, no matter if it didn't make any sense. Because the job of the other improvisers to say yes, and add on top of it. No matter what. Just trust what you say is is true to you, is right to you. Has to do a lot with confidence. And that's another quote that I'll leave you with here, that Tom said that he quoted from I believe his name was Del Close, and you'll learn a lot about Del Close, Shauna Halpern, amazing improvisers who really set the foundation for what improv is today. And if he's Said anything, because he was a mad genius, Del close. He said if we treated each other like geniuses and poets, then geniuses and poets they will be. Treat yourself like a genius and a poet, and trust what you say is true to you. Have some courage, and I'll see you in the next one. I love you.