Magnet Theater

With prior connections to the Upright Citizens Brigade and the Peoples Improv Theatre (a.k.a. The PIT), Chicago native and Second City Conservatory alum Armando Diaz has finally staked out his own turf with the Magnet Theater. Diaz, regarded as a mentor, even a guru, by many in the improv world, opened this space in spring 2005 with a team of Windy City cohorts. It's an unassuming storefront now housing a spacious black-box space (for classes and shows) with recycled movie seats sporting drink cup holders on the armrests.

Performances vary weekly and range from The Tiny Spectacular—starring the theater's faculty—to a showcase for two-person teams. Throughout, the work is deftly executed with improvisers clearly sharing a common technique that allows scenes to slide into one another seamlessly. The comedy is generally apolitical, largely asexual, and surprisingly uncontroversial. — Helen Zelon