The Second City's Fast, Loud & Funny

Saurabh Pande, Dana Quercioli, Asher Perlman, Ryan Asher, Kevin Sciretta, Nicole C. Hastings

If you happen to be spending time in Chicago, as this Toronto-based reviewer was on Saturday afternoon, do yourself a favour and go see The Second City's Fast, Loud & Funny at Up Comedy Club.

Featuring a talented ensemble, including Ryan Asher, Nicole C. Hastings, Saurabh Pande, Asher Perlman, Dana Quercioli and Kevin Sciretta, this 90-minute adventure in comedy is a raucous blend of timely/local jokes, audience participation and millennial nostalgia. Skits concerning a proposal at Applebee's, a girls' softball team and middle-aged cheerleaders at a 10-year reunion get big laughs, while other scenes, such as a first date game show, rely on input from the crowd and will change depending on the night.

At Saturday's performance, a spoof on a 1980s police movie was especially comical as people threw out suggestions for the identity of the cop's partner (McLovin from Superbad), and the villain was none other than Abe Lincoln (portrayed with quick wit by Perlman) with a scheme to eat a pile of stolen mufflers. Some of the evening's best moments involve physical comedy which this particular group of entertainers has honed to perfection. Highlights include Asher's aghast face as a pissed off softball coach, Hastings' wacky imitation of an inflatable tube man at a car dealership, and Pande's theatrical dancing throughout.

Don't miss this infectiously energetic show. The Second City's Fast, Loud & Funny is playing at UP Comedy Club, 230 W. North Ave., Chicago, Tuesdays at 8pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 4pm until May 31, 2017. Visit secondcity.com for more information and to buy tickets.