NBCUniversal, Second City Showcase New Talent with BREAK OUT COMEDY FESTIVAL This Weekend

The Second City and NBCUniversal are proud to announce the first annual NBCUniversal Second City Break Out Comedy Festival at UP Comedy Club (230 W. North, 3rd Floor of Piper's Alley) today, June 5, and tomorrow, June 6.

The NBCUniversal Second City Break Out Comedy Festival is a new comedy fest spotlighting some of the country's best emerging talent in sketch, improvisation and stand-up. Hosted by Al Madrigal (NBC's "About a Boy") on June 5 and Ron Funches (NBC's "Undateable") on June 6, the event will feature performances highlighting emerging comedic talent and an industry panel event.

Featured performers include Joel Boyd, Nigel Downer, Calvin Evans, Martin Morrow, Chucho Perez, Danielle Pinnock, Chris Redd, Jasbir Singh Velasquez, Kevin Vidal and Dominizuelan (Lorena Diaz and Wendy Mateo).

Tickets for the NBCUniversal Second City Break Out Comedy Festival start at $20.00 and are available online at www.UPComedyClub.com or by phone at 312-662-4562. Performances are 7:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. on Friday, June 5, and Saturday, June 6.

Featured Performers:

JOEL BOYD - Joel is a Second City Touring Company understudy and a recent graduate of Columbia College. A Comedy Studies program grad, he's performed in Second City's Go, Improv, Go! and Urban Twist productions. He performs stand-up comedy, improv and sketch in various Chicago venues including Jokes & Notes, Laugh Factory College Night, The Annoyance and the Attic showcases. His weekly YouTube sketch show entitled "Wisconsinuts" can be found on www.joelboydtv.com.

NIGEL DOWNER - Nigel wrote and performed in four critically-acclaimed Mainstage comedy revues with The Second City, including Dreams Really Do Come True and Other Lies and The Meme'ing of Life. He can be seen on television as a frequent guest on Off the Record and Cabbie Presents (TSN), Odd Squad (PBS) and Fool Canada (CBC). He's also the guy making funny faces in numerous commercials, for Caramilk, McDonald's, and Luvs, just to name a few. Nigel continues to play and host in numerous comedy and improv festivals across North America.

CALVIN EVANS - Calvin began his stand up comedy career while attending the University of Illinois Champaign- Urbana; where he received his Bachelors in Sports Management. He traveled the country and abroad performing stand up at colleges and clubs. Named WGN's Chicago's Next Big Comic and Best of the Fest in the Just For Laughs Festival Chicago, Calvin is a Second City Conservatory grad, PUMA scholar recipient and a 2015 Bob Curry Fellow.

MARTIN MORROW - Martin is a recent Second City Bob Curry Fellow recipient. The Birmingham native is a Second City Conservatory graduate and PUMA scholarship recipient. He has appeared on comedy stages all across the country and magazine pages in an ad for Skittles. He's Twitter followable at @martinMmorrow.

CHUCHO PEREZ - Chucho tours with The Second City Touring Company. When he isn't on the road, you can most often see him performing solo shows, with his rap group Handsome Naked or with Pimprov Friday nights. Hailing (Go Blue) from Michigan, you can follow him and his Detroit sports bias @TheChuchoPerez.

DANIELLE PINNOCK - Danielle is a Second City Bob Curry Fellow. Her work has been featured in BuzzFeed & WBEZ Vocalo. Recent stage cedits include: Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 (Other Theatre Company) and By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (Goodman Theatre). Last June, Pinnock was selected by Anna Deavere Smith to workshop the course "Personal Narratives." She has been developing her one-woman documentary play, Body/Courage, based on interviews she has conducted worldwide. www.bodycourage.com.

CHRIS REDD - Chris was born in St. Louis, MO moved to Chicago, IL when he was 8 and considers himself a Chicago native. Chris has trained with the Second City Chicago, iO Theater Chicago, Comedy Sportz, toured with Second City Touring Company and had a brief stint on the e.t.c stage before venturing on to work at NBC on an Untitled Sketch Comedy Pilot. He is a series regular on the Tina Fey produced ABC Comedy 'Family Fortune' as well as a reoccurring role on FOX'S new show 'Empire'. He's performed with TBS Just For Laughs Festival, Up Comedy Club, Chicago Laugh Factory, Jokes & Notes, The Playground in Chicago. Follow him on Facebook or twitter @Reddsaidit.

JASBIR SINGH VELASQUEZ - Jasbir tours with The Second City Touring Company. He is a graduate of the Second City improv, writing, acting, and Conservatory programs. Jasbir has performed with the Second City House Ensemble, the Outreach program, at iO, The Annoyance Theater, and with his award winning sketch group Warm Milk. You can check out his videos at vimeo.com/jasbir.

KEVIN VIDAL - Kevin was born and raised in Toronto. He decided to pursue his love of acting in his last year of highschool and can now be seen doing theatre and improv around the city. He is an alumnus of The Second City and is currently starring in CityTV's Sunnyside. Kevin's previous theatre credits include; Sixteen Scandals, We Can Be Heroes (The Second City), RENT (Lower Ossington Theatre), Hairspray (Curtain Call Players), Radio Active Drag Queens of the Year 3000 (Toronto Fringe), RENT (Fallen Rock), Skule Nite 0T9/1T0 (UofT Skule).

DOMINIZUELAN - Dominizuelan is made up of Lorena Diaz and Wendy Mateo, bicultural American Latinas and lovers of the culture of comedy. Dominizuelan has been a selection of the TBS Just for Laughs Festival: Chicago as well as the New York City Fringe Festival. They have been featured in Latina Magazine, Chicago Tribune, and WGN News. Wendy Mateo has been seen on stage at the Lookingglass Theater directed by David Schwimmer and on television on Showtime's Shameless. Lorena Diaz has been seen on stage at the Goodman Theater and on television on NBC's Chicago PD. Both ladies are represented by Gray Talent Group and managed by Bryan Brucks at Luber Roklin Entertainment. NBCUniversal Talent Development & Inclusion.

As part of its continued commitment to increasing inclusivity, NBCUniversal Talent Development & Inclusion hosts a variety of programs and events and partners with other entertainment entities to develop, nurture, showcase and provide networking opportunities for emerging actors, writers, directors and other artists in order to broaden our pool of talent. The programs include Late Night Writers Workshop, NBCUniversal Short Film Festival, the Directing Fellowship Program, Writers on the Verge, StandUp NBC, Scene Showcase, the Casting Apprentice Program and the Diverse Staff Writer Initiative, among others. For more information, log onto www.nbcunitips.com.

The Second City - Beginning as a small cabaret theatre on Chicago's north side in 1959, The Second City has grown to become a comedy empire - building a robust $50+ million business based on its core improvisational methodologies. Resident theatres in Chicago and Toronto create topical sketch comedy revues that satirize politics, culture and news of the day. Additionally, Second City performs thousands of shows each year in regional theatres, colleges and performing arts centers. Beyond its stages, The Second City created the foremost school of improvisation-based arts in the world - with training facilities in Chicago, Toronto and Los Angeles that currently enroll over 11,000 students annually; a corporate division that works with hundreds of Fortune 500 companies in areas of training, marketing, entertainment and brand services; and The Second City's forays into television and new media include the classic, Emmy Award-winning comedy series SCTV and continues to produce new content and programming originating from The Second City Entertainment's offices in Los Angeles.