Okay so our director, Julia Morales, is a visionary! She put together a fabulous concept for our Bob Curry Showcase’s promotional materials that I am so excited for y’all to see. Though I cannot share the concept yet, just know that our director came up with a plan to make us look polished, professional, and entertaining! Julia let the Second City marketing team in on her BC 10 concept and vision back in since September to get a head start. I admire how Julia puts a tremendous amount of thought and intention behind our showcase; she is really taking care of us! Julia also let us know right from the jump the vibes she was going for and of course what the theme was (so we could dress accordingly) with a mood board and all y’all! This was so helpful when I was rummaging through my closet to find looks that were on theme and that showcased my personal stage style. Of course I had a different outfit for my headshots and group shots because ya girl did not come to play.

So when the day of the photoshoot came and I was ready! I walked onto set full of America’s Next Top Model energy, (mostly because I have been binge-watching the show) but nonetheless I think Tyra would be proud. A Spotify playlist we made as a cast, full of energetic feel-good songs, was playing in the background and Julia was rooting me on! Tim Schmidt, our photographer was snapping away and it was easy to relax and have fun with him. Tim’s photos are all over the Second City building showcasing its stages and casts. I am eager to see the shots we took!

Once we all had our individual shoots we took off to the De Maat Theater to take some group action shots. Though our photoshoot was a private session we had a crasher! Thank goodness Julia was not having it at all and escorted the interloper out of the theater. So does this mean we’ve made it? Are people already trying to copy our flow? LOL! In reality, I think the dude was just curious about what was going on and wanted in on the fun.

Our last location was the iconic 1616 Wells Main Stage entrance. Fun fact: the sculpture heads featured on the entrance are historical German creatives Giacomo Meyerbeer, Fritz Reuter, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Gotthold Ephraim Lessing. The original Schiller Theater Building, later known as Garrick Theater, was built for the German Opera Company and was once one of the tallest buildings in Chicago. The building has gone through several iterations since then including a movie theater, television studio, parking structure, and now the home of The Second City.

We ended the shoot on such a high and marketing gave us the green light to share the behind-the-scenes photos of the day’s shoot. I hope you enjoyed this sneak peak from the BC 10 photoshoot. Do not be shy on social media either; show us some love! Comment on and share the Bob Curry Fellowship marketing posts once they go live on The Second City Training Center socials. Support BIPOC artist y’all!

-Rissy