What Is It?
The great Stephen Sondheim composed eight musicals in 31 years.
Slacker.
At One Night Only, the cast creates a brand new musical each night, complete with singing, dancing, rhyming, rapping and free play. These veteran Chicago improvisers use audience suggestions to create a 60-minute joyride that's never been seen before -- and will never be seen again. Part of the 2012 Araca Project.
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Cast & Crew
We are...
Producer, Michael Girts
Michael Girts has performed for The Second City in Rod Blagojevich Superstar, Rush Limbaugh! The Musical and Fair and Unbalanced. He has also performed for The Second City aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines. Other credits include the Chicago Improv Festival, Chicago Sketchfest, Laugh Out Loud Theater (Schaumburg, IL) and ImprovAcadia (Bar Harbor, ME). Michael is half of the award-winning improvised musical Kate & Mike: The Musical and a proud member of Mansical. He earned his BFA in acting from Syracuse University and his MBA from the University of Notre Dame. Michael teaches improvisation and runs workshops for various universities and professional organizations.
Director, T.J. Shanoff
T.J. Shanoff has been with The Second City since 1997. Composer/lyricist credits include: Rod Blagojevich Superstar, Rush Limbaugh: The Musical, Jewsical, Barackstars, Sex & The Second City, and original Second City revues in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Atlanta. Directing credits include: Chicago Live!, The Second City’s 50th Anniversary On Tour, and many productions aboard the Norwegian Cruise Line. Musical Direction includes An Evening with Martin Short, Songs Of The Second City, The Chicago Emmy Awards, and The Roof Is On Fiddler (also co-writer/director). Other credits include hosting talk shows on Sporting News Radio, WGN-AM, and WCKG-FM; contributor to the Chicago Tribune; and emceeing Gilda’s Club’s annual “Night of 1000 Noogies” fundraiser since 2008. A native Chicagoan, T.J. attended the Latin School of Chicago, trained at Harand Theater Camp, and graduated from Emerson College in Boston, MA.
Ensemble, Nicole C. Hastings
Nicole C. Hastings is a member of the Second City National Touring Company, performing sketch comedy and improvisation at theaters great and small around the U.S. and Europe. She can also be seen with her all-female team Eleanor and her two-person improv group Free Trophies. She has performed with Second City Training Center's Twisty/SketchCo and Infinite Sundaes, Laugh Out Loud Theater (Schaumburg, IL) and ImprovAcadia (Bar Harbor, ME). Nicole trained at iO and the Second City Conservatory and Music Improv programs. She is a native of Northern California and graduate of Columbia University.
Music Director, Mike Descoteaux
Mike Descoteaux is the director of the nationally renowned Charles River Creative Arts Program in Boston, MA. He also directs ImprovBoston’s touring company and is a resident musician there. Mike served as head of the Music Program at The Second City Training Center and music director of the Second City ETC stage in Chicago. He has had the privilege of working with Tony Award-winning artists such as Jason Robert Brown, William Finn, Mark Hollmann and James LaPine. He has “composed” and “conducted” over 1,000 completely improvised musicals with Musical! The Musical, Baby Wants Candy, I Eat Pandas and many others. Mike, a Northwestern grad, has received a Jeff Award and was named one of the top young songwriters in the country by the Johnny Mercer/AMTP association.
Ensemble, Kate Cohen
Kate Cohen has been improvising in Chicago since 2004 and performs regularly with ComedySportz Chicago, Laugh Out Loud Theater and as one-half of the musical improv duo Kate & Mike: The Musical. Other credits include Chicago Sketchfest, Infinite Sundaes and ImprovAcadia in Bar Harbor, Maine. Kate performed for The Second City at sea aboard the Norwegian Jewel and Gem and toured Chicago schools with SCTC's Educational Touring Company. Kate is also an instructor for The Second City and ComedySportz Chicago. Kate has a BA in Theatre Arts from the University of Arizona and is a graduate of The Second City Training Center's IFA, Conservatory and Musical Improv Conservatory programs.
Ensemble, Matthew Van Colton
Matthew Van Colton is a Chicago-based performer, teacher and director. He has worked with Chicago Dramatists, Northlight, Annoyance, Playground, Victory Gardens, iO, Royal George and TUTA theaters among others. He is a faculty member at The Second City Training Center, where he teaches and directs in the music conservatory; he has also recently taught or coached for Evanston Township High School, Acting Studio Chicago, Happy Karaoke Fun Time and Clown Car to Sicily. He is a veteran of Infinite Sundaes and has recently performed in Best Musical for Porchlight Theatre and at Second City’s Donny’s Skybox with Mansical. He is a member of Actor’s Equity.
Associate Music Director, Amanda Murphy
Amanda Murphy is a pianist, composer, improviser, singer, and actress. Originally from Nova Scotia, currently living in Chicago, she has also lived and worked in both Toronto and NYC in both the comedy and musical theater worlds. Amanda is on the music faculty at The Second City Training Center in Chicago. She is also associated with Chicago's ComedySportz, iO (MD for "Storytown"), and The Annoyance (composer and MD, "Earthqueef"), and is composer and MD for the long running "Oprah! A Comedy! Live Your Best Laugh!", now in its second year. She is the music director for GayCo, Chicago's premier GLBT sketch comedy group. She has co-written and composed several musicals, including "Never Have I Ever" and the award winning "four play" (Best New Work, Broadway World.com), in which she also played the role of "Polly". She is MD and director of "Clown Car to Sicily", which recently performed at the Del Close Festival in NYC.
Ensemble, Katie Dufresne
Katie Dufresne is a an ensemble member with the Second City Training Center’s Infinite Sundaes/SongCo. Katie also performs as one half of the musical duo Brouhaha: An Improvised Puppet Musical and sketch team Snooty Pageant. Other credits include the Chicago Improv Festival, Happy Karaoke Fun Time, and Thirsty Improv. She is a graduate of Second City’s improv and musical improv conservatories and is currently studying at iO Chicago. Katie hails from Virginia, is a graduate of Virginia Tech and works as an interior designer.
Ensemble, Kevin Sciretta
Kevin Sciretta has performed for The Second City in Rush Limbaugh: The Musical, aboard Norwegian Cruise Lines and as a member of the Second City National Touring Company. Kevin has lived in Chicago for the past 10 years, where he has performed improv, sketch comedy and theatre at places such as iO Chicago and the Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival. Other credits include The Cupid Players, The Deltones, Haterade and Bullet Lounge. Originally from Queens, New York, Kevin graduated from State University of New York College at Fredonia with a BA in Theatre.
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