NEWS ARTICLE

July 17, 2009 - THEY director is Featured in the Tampa Bay Business Journal

THEY improv director was featured in the Tampa Bay Business Journal

July 17, 2009: Corporate world takes a cue from theater community for training
by Staff Writer

TAMPA - Interactive, creative methods have found their way into corporate training at a time when employees are in need of a morale boost.

At Publix Super Markets Inc., training can involve games, skits and other imaginative exercises.

"Not all of our classes are sit-down, technical, read-out-of-a-book types. We make them fun and interactive," said Shannon Patten, media and community relations manager for Publix.

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Second City may be best known for its famous alumni and for its comedy shows, but the underlying reason is the training component, said Steve Johnston, president of Second City Communications, the theater's corporate branch.

"Underneath that we are a training organization. We have been grooming talent. That is why we have been able to get the quality of performers consistently over five decades," Johnston said.

Second City has done corporate work for more than 30 years but only in the last 20 years was Second City Communications formally established.

Second City Communications runs training centers in Los Angeles, Chicago and Toronto, in addition to theaters in Chicago and Toronto.

On Florida's east coast, Sunny Isles Beach-based They Improv LLC does private shows and corporate events in addition to corporate training. Director Todd Rice works with rosters of performers in cities around the country, including Tampa.

On one occasion, two days before a scheduled training session, a client company announced it would lay off 80 percent of its work force but did not disclose specific names. Rice devoted the day's training to teambuilding exercises and reminded the employees they could use the lessons in job interviews.

"One of the fundamental elements of improv is 'yes and,' accepting the ideas of others, rather than immediately saying 'no,' and in most environments you're punished for accepting someone's ideas," said Rice.

THEY improv is Florida's leader in corporate comedy shows and performs regularly for some of the areas' top companies. Often performing for charities, THEY improv is changing the face of comedy in Florida. THEY can be seen in various venues in the area and our Tampa Page is regularly updated with information about upcoming events and shows.