Tim Meadows to Host The Second City and NBCUniversal's Second Annual Break Out Comedy

The Second City and NBCUniversal announced today the return of the NBCUniversal Second City Break Out Comedy Festival, taking place in Chicago June 3 and June 4, 2016. They also announced that this year's festival will be hosted by Second City and "Saturday Night Live" alum Tim Meadows, who co-stars in "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping," which opens nationwide on June 3.

The Break Out Comedy Festival was created in 2015 as part of a relationship between NBCUniversal and The Second City with the goal of showcasing diverse voices in comedy. Each night of performances will feature
some of the country's best young, diverse talent in sketch, improvisation and stand-up.

"The Second City has a proud history of providing opportunities for diverse, young talent," said Dionna Griffin-Irons, Director of Diversity and Inclusion for The Second City. "It's something we're very serious about and our theater has become a talent pipeline for some of comedy's best and diverse performers of color."

In addition to special guest host Tim Meadows, featured performers for the festival include The Defiant Thomas Brothers, Sammy Arechar, Joel Kim Booster, Erica Clark, Sonia Denis, Alex Kumin, Martin Morrow, Felonious Munk, Marlena Rodriguez, Chris Redd and graduates from the Bob Curry Fellowship program.

Tickets for the Break Out Comedy Festival are on sale now for $20.00 and can be purchased online atwww.UPComedyClub.com or by phone at 312-662-4562. All performances will take place at UP COMEDY CLUB (230 W. North, 3rd Floor of Piper's Alley) with shows at 7:30 and 10:00 p.m. on Friday, June 3 and Saturday, June 4.

About The Second City Beginning as a small cabaret theater on Chicago's north side in 1959, The Second City has grown to become a comedy empire, building a robust $55 million business based on its core improvisational methodologies. Resident theaters 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 theaters, 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 enrolls more than 11,000 students annually. The Second City also has a business division that works with hundreds of Fortune 500 companies in the areas of training, marketing, entertainment and brand services, and The Second City's forays into television and new media continues to produce new content and programming, including the classic, Emmy Award-winning comedy series SCTV.

About NBCUniversal Talent Development & Inclusion 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 new and diverse actors, writers, directors and other talent. The programs include Late Night Writers Workshop, NBCUniversal Short Film Festival, NBCU Emerging Directors Program, Writers on the Verge, StandUp NBC, Scene Showcase, the Casting Apprentice Program and the Diverse Staff Writer Initiative, among others. For more information, please log onto www.nbcunitips.com.

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