If self-isolating has got you stuck in a Groundhog Day-like existence, two of the city’s sharpest comedic minds are about to upset your routine – in a very funny way.
Chris Earle and Shari Hollett, Second City alumni and multitalented writers/directors/teachers/actors, have devised something called Home-Prov.
Dubbed a “virtual improv experience,” the hour-long workshop provides a new way for families and friends to have fun and stay connected, according to their media release.
“We’re basically taking improv to families, and groups of friends to help them stay connected at home through laughter,” wrote Hollett to me in a separate email.
Up to eight players per session can take part – for ages seven and up. There are two ways to play. You can host your own private improv session by inviting friends and family with the duo from anywhere in the world. Or you can choose the public mode, where you improvise with other families across Canada.
Hollett and Earle, who are a couple, are offering free workshops weekly to essential workers – “as a thank you for keeping us all safe.”
Earle has directed some of the funniest Second City Mainstage shows, including last year’s excellent Walking On Bombshells and the classic Psychedelicatessen, which topped NOW’s list of the best comedy shows of 2002. Hollett has directed many of Earle’s plays, including the award-winning Radio :30, which began as a sold-out Fringe show before receiving many remounts. A few years ago, Hollett wrote and starred in (with the couple’s daughter, Lucy) the autobiographical show For The Record, which Earle directed.
In May, the couple will revive Earle’s Radio :30 as part of the #CanadaPerforms series, with Earle as the slick voice actor and the couple’s son Sam (Degrassi: The Next Generation) as the unseen sound engineer.