Comic from Geauga lives dream with Second City

By John Benson

Even if you haven’t heard of The Second City, you definitely know its alumni.

Names such as Tina Fey, Steve Carell, John Belushi, Bill Murray, Stephen Colbert, Joan Rivers, John Candy, Gilda Radner and dozens more have gone on to shape Hollywood. A northeast Ohioan hoping one day to add her name to the list of luminaries is Chesterland native Dana Quercioli.

After getting her start in Cleveland, including acting at Lakeland Community Theatre, as well as with Cabaret Dada and the now-defunct The Second City Cleveland, Quercioli moved to Chicago in 2003 where she eventually joined the famed comedy troupe. In fact, she’ll be on stage when The Second City 50th Anniversary Tour comes through Cleveland for a Saturday show at the Ohio Theatre.

“My focus was always I wanted to be an actor, but also I wanted to be a comedian, so Second City has given me both, which is amazing,” said Quercioli, a 1998 West Geauga High School graduate.

“I’m really grateful for that. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be working in television. I auditioned for ‘Saturday Night Live’ last year, and I’m hoping it’s something I get to do again. I want to write for television and movies. Actually, Tina Fey’s career path is pretty ideal starting off as a writer on ‘Saturday Night Live,’ becoming head writer, building up a solid reputation and finally getting her own show [‘30 Rock’] and acting on that show.”

Formed in 1959 by University of Chicago undergrads, The Second City was a small cabaret outfit that would become the most influential and prolific comedy theater in the world. With the debut over 15 years later of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” populated by such Second City alums as Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Radner and Murray, the theater became internationally known for its ever-increasing roster of comedy superstars and its Canadian sister theater’s comedy series, “SCTV.”

But what exactly is happening on The Second City 50th Anniversary Tour?

“We do sketch and improvisation,” Quercioli said. “Some of the scenes are original to our company, some are from the archives and some of them are improvised. Right now, they want us to do mostly archival scenes from the 50th anniversary because it’s such a momentous thing for us. So we’ll be doing stuff that’s been written by Tina Fey, Rachel Dratch and Dan Castellaneta, the voice of Homer Simpson. There are so many amazing scenes to pull from. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel.”

For some people attending The Second City show, the expectation may be similar to seeing an episode of “Saturday Night Live,” sans live music. Quercioli points out that’s not the case.

“Here’s the thing about ‘Saturday Night Live’: The stuff they put up they have a week to write, and it’s 50/50,” Quercioli said. “You never know what you’ll get. I know because I have friends who write for that show. But with Second City, the material we’re doing is tried and true. This is stuff that has been done by some of the greatest comedians of our time. And, really, it’s a high success ratio as far as the material is concerned. One of the things that Second City is known for is Midwestern sensibilities. So it’s not snooty; it’s not overly pretentious. It speaks to a lot of people.”

if you go

What: The Second City 50th Anniversary Tour

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Where: Ohio Theatre, 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland

Tickets: $10 to $30

Info: (216) 241-6000 or (866) 546-1353, or go to PlayhouseSquare.org