Chicago After Dark - Chicago - page 156

Chicago, from Second City and elsewhere. Besides Mike Myers, suc-
cessful alums include the late Chris Farley, Tim Meadows, Andy
Dick, and Conan O'Brien's former Late Night sidekick, Andy
Richter. 3541 N. Clark St. (at Addison St.). & 773/880 - 0199. www.iochicago.
net. Tickets $5-$14. Subway/El: Red Line to Addison.
Second City For nearly 50 years, Second City has been the top
comedy club in Chicago and the most famous of its kind in the
country. Photos of famous graduates line the lobby walls and include
Elaine May, John Belushi, and recent Saturday Night Live cast mem-
bers Tina Fey, Horatio Sanz, and Rachel Dratch.
Today's Second City is a veritable factory of improv, with shows
on two stages (the storied main stage and the smaller Second City
ETC) and a hugely popular training school. The main-stage ensem-
bles change frequently, and the shows can swing wildly back and
forth on the hilarity meter. In recent years, the club has adopted the
long-form improvisational program pioneered by iO (Improv-
Olympic; see above listing), which has brought much better reviews.
Check the theater reviews in the Reader, a free local weekly, for an
opinion on the current offering. To sample the Second City experi-
ence, catch the free postshow improv session (it gets going around
10:30pm); no ticket is necessary if you skip the main show (except
Fri). 1616 N. Wells St. (in the Pipers Alley complex at North Ave.). & 877/778 -
4707 or 312/337 - 3992. www.secondcity.com. Tickets $8-$25. Subway/El: Brown
Line to Sedgwick.
3 The Music Scene
JAZZ
In the first great wave of black migration from the South just after
World War I, jazz journeyed from the Storyville section of New
Orleans to Chicago. Jelly Roll Morton and Louis Armstrong made
Chicago a jazz hot spot in the 1920s, and their music lives on in a
whole new generation of talent. Chicago jazz is known for its col-
laborative spirit and a certain degree of risk-taking—which you can
experience at a number of lively clubs.
Andy's Jazz Club Casual and comfortable, Andy's, a full restau-
rant and bar, is popular with both the hard-core and the neophyte
jazz enthusiast. It's the only place in town where you can hear jazz
nearly all day long, with sets beginning at noon, 5pm, and 9pm on
weekdays; Saturday at 6 and 9:30pm; or Sunday at 5 and 7pm. 11 E.
Hubbard St. (between State St. and Wabash Ave.). & 312/642 - 6805. www.andys
jazzclub.com. Cover $5-$20. Subway/El: Red Line to Grand.