Legendary Chicago comedy institution The Second City is excited to announce auditions for the 3rd Annual Victor Wong Fellowship, a program focused on developing the next generation of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) comedic talent.
Named for The Second City’s first Asian American performer and funded by Peng Zhao, CEO of Citadel Securities, the Victor Wong fellowship will support the training and development of a cohort of actors and music directors.
In addition to a 12-week, tuition-free master program in improvisational comedy taught by The Second City’s top professional instructors and directors, the fellows will also have access to the theater’s executive creative team and alumni, including AAPI mentors. Following the training, the fellows will present a mix of their original comedy, improvisational games, and classic scenes from The Second City archives in a showcase event on The Second City’s e.t.c. stage in May of 2025.
In the lead-up to auditions, The Second City Training Center will be hosting informational sessions, an improv jam for AAPI performers and a practical clinic to work on the solo piece component of the audition process for interested actors.
Key dates:
Selected participants will be notified in late December.
Training for Music Directors will begin in late January with the cohort of actors meeting twice a week (on Tuesday & Thursday evenings) starting on February 4, 2025 culminating in a run of public performances on May 6, 13, 20 & 27, 2025.
About Victor Wong
California native Victor Wong (1927-2001), moved to Chicago in the 1950s to study theology at the University of Chicago before becoming involved with The Second City. Mr. Wong joined The Second City at the encouragement of his close friend and famed theater academic, Viola Spolin. A fixture in the San Francisco Beat Scene of the 1950s and ’60s alongside Jack Kerouc and Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Mr. Wong’s acting credits included notable roles in the films “The Joy Luck Club,” “The Last Emperor,” “Big Trouble in Little China,” “The Three Ninjas” series, and “The Golden Child.”