Comedy Writing and Performance Archive

August 27, 2020, would have been the 85th birthday of Sheldon Patinkin–longtime chair of the Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department, noted director and teacher, and cherished friend and mentor to many in the Chicago theatre community. Born August 27,...
Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department faculty member Anthony LeBlanc has been named Interim Executive Producer of The Second City, the nation’s premier comedy theatre and training center. LeBlanc succeeds the theatre’s longtime CEO and Executive Producer Andrew Alexander, who...
James Sherman in "The Ben Hecht show"
Actor-playwright James Sherman, a Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department faculty member who teaches playwriting and improvisation, performs his one-man play The Ben Hecht Show as part of “Teatron: Chicago’s Jewish Theatre Festival,” running November 3 through 10 in conjunction...
Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department alum Aidy Bryant ’09, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Acting and now a regular cast member on NBC’s Saturday Night Live, is profiled in an article in DEMO, Columbia College’s...
Congratulations to Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department alum Pam Klier ’94, a graduate of the Theatre Department’s BA Program in Acting. The show business trade publication Billboard reports that she has joined the staff of Paradigm Talent Agency, as...
The Second City, America’s premier comedy theatre and training center, is marking its 60th anniversary with the publication of The Second City: The Essentially Accurate History, coauthored by the Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department‘s late longtime chair, Sheldon Patinkin....
Sheldon Patinkin (August 27, 1935-September 21, 2014)
August 27, 2019, would have been the 84th birthday of Sheldon Patinkin–longtime chair of the Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department, noted director and teacher, and cherished friend and mentor to many in the Chicago theatre community. Born August 27,...
Otherworld Theatre Company, an ensemble founded and led by Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department alumni, presents A Taste of Man Flesh: A Parody About a Fellowship August 15 through 24. The show runs at Otherworld Theatre’s space at 3914...
Numerous alumni and faculty of the Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department are featured in the new book Ensemble: An Oral History of Chicago Theater, being published August 13, 2019, by Chicago-based Agate Publishing. Authored by oral historian Mark Larson,...
Columbia College Chicago has been named No. 1 in College Magazine‘s list of “Top 10 Colleges for Aspiring Comedians,” published July 11, 2019. With its nationally recognized BA Program in Comedy Writing and Performance at the Columbia College Chicago...