About Us
We are an auditioned improv team that runs out of Second Stage Productions, and we rehearse twice a week on campus. Many of our cast members are Theatre majors, however, we welcome people from all majors and backgrounds to improv with us! Some of our cast members are Business, Digital Storytelling, and English majors. We utilize improv to develop skills useful in acting and all other professional fields. While not all of our team plans on pursuing comedy professionally, we take our craft seriously, developing new games to further the art form. After School Special is also passionate about community outreach and the function of comedy as social change, providing free improv shows and workshops to underserved communities.
Our History
Originally founded under the name Second Stage Improv, After School Special began in 2017 by MSU students Grant Cleaveland and Brandon Drap. Led by Second City alumni and Department of Theatre faculty, Sarah Hendrickson, our team has grown considerably over the years: both artistically and in size. After School Special 's mission is to provide a place for performers to practice the craft of improvisation and elevate their performance to a professional level. The team has had many in-house performances in MSU Auditorium's Studio 60, as well performing at MSU Science Fest, The Riverwalk Beer and Wine Festival, and a variety of workshops around the Greater Lansing area.
After School Special is a subsidiary group of Second Stage Productions, a student lead organization in affiliation with the MSU's Department of Theater. Second Stage Productions puts on a variety of high-octane, creatively inspired shows each semester. For more information about Second Stage Productions, please visit their Instagram @secondstagemsu.
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