JOE DE GISE II (Writer/Performer/Director) was a founding member of Unexpected Company, an improv-comedy group that held regular runs off-Broadway. He also co-founded and wrote for the sketch comedy group, Bitter Harmless People. Other credits include Nickelodeon, OZ, Live! With Regis and Kelly, and The Morning Show on WNEW-FM. Joe can be heard on several radio commercials, and seen in the mockumentary film, Hacks. He also teaches improvisation and has performed and led workshops for many corporate audiences. All glories to Sri Krishna.

ANNIE FIGENSHU is extremely excited to be involved in the Chicago City Limits Resident Company. IMPROV: Chicago City Limits (Resident Company, National Touring Company), Comedy Sportz New York, Luck of the Draw (Garage Theatre, The Improv, The PIT), Toyota Comedy Festival (Public Theatre), Monday Night Musical (The PIT), Melodious Din (Trilogy Theatre), goga (Melbourne International Comedy Festival). SKETCH: Mouth, 2 All-Beef Patties. Theatre: Night of the Living Dead...The Musical! (Spotlight On Award nominee, Chashama Theatre), Swingtime Canteen (Perennial Productions), I Ought to Be in Pictures (Bickford Theatre). TV & FILM: Date My Mom (MTV), Cut to the Chase (TBS), What Would Jesus Improv. Annie holds a BFA in Drama from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Trained in musical theatre, directing, acting, and comedy, she teaches students of all ages. Find out more at ThatFigenshuGirl.com, or just ask her mother, Jan. She'll be happy to tell you.

STEFAN SCHICK is thrilled to be part of the CCL Main Stage after 3+ years (and shows in 21 states) with the CCL National Touring Co. Stefan grew up mostly in Massachusetts and graduated from Brown University, where he studied biochemistry (the most hilarious of the sciences). Stefan the Improviser grew up at Chicago City Limits. He also performs with several other improv troupes, including The Hamptons and the improvised musical Luck of the Draw. He has appeared in several plays and short films in NY. Television credits include Criss-Cross, a comedy pilot that was well-received at the 2005 NY Television Festival. Stefan has studied improv with CCL, the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and Armando Diaz, and acting with T. Schreiber Studios. He would like to thank CCL and his talented teachers and friends there, and his family and his girlfriend for all their support.

ROB SCHIFFMANN (Writer/Performer) has been working as an actor / musician all over the U.S. for the past 13 years. Rob has been a cast member of Chicago City Limits since 1994. In that time, he has been the music director, a member of the national touring company and currently, a member of the resident company. He is also the director of the national touring company. Rob is also a member of the Next Big Broadway Musical, a 2005 MAC award nominee, at Don't Tell Mamas. Rob has taught improvisation and musical theater extensively throughout the United States, including at Perry Mansfield Performing Arts School in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Rob is the writer/singer/guitarist/music director for the acoustic rock band, The Hillary Step (TheHillaryStep.com), who are about the release their second CD, Note to Self. Rob's self-created character, Ronnie DiFranco, who can be seen nightly at Chicago City Limits, has been hired to perform at parties / meetings all over the United States and is available for your function as well. Rob is also a corporate host for several different production companies. Rob is based in NYC.

PAUL ZUCKERMAN (Director / Writer / Executive Producer) studied improvisation with Del Close and Jo Forsberg at The Second City in Chicago, and was an original cast member of Chicago City Limits. He helped bring the show to New York where he directed and performed with the company for over 10 years, and has continued to direct and produce over 30 CCL comedy revues. Other directing credits include Comedy Et Al, television's first interactive comedy series, and the Off-Broadway comedy Rosa Krantz and Gilda Stern Aren't Dead. He was anchorman for CCL's TV series Reel News on the USA Network, appeared in the film Lovesick, TV's Cagney & Lacey, PBS's Reading Rainbow, Tales of the Unexpected and The Today Show. Paul holds a doctoral degree in psychology from the University of Michigan. He is married to Linda Gelman, with whom he co-produced Zara, Philip and Eli.

National Touring Company:

PETER AGUERO was born and raised in New Jersey, and has been a member of Chicago City Limits since 2003. He has appeared off-off Broadway in Marvin's Room (Bob) and Flying Dreams (Herman). Television credits include Cut to the Chase (TBS), The Watch List (Comedy Central), and Viva La Bam (MTV). Peter has completed a "comedy" CD called graphicvulgarlunacy vol.II: Jacoby Appliance Parts. It can be purchased online at digstation.com and cdbaby.com. For questions or comments, check out www.myspace.com/graphicvulgarlunacy. Peter loves his mom.

JASON FLETCHER Jason was born in a small city nestled in the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York called Kingston. He began his study of improvisational comedy with Rob Schiffmann at Chicago City Limits and is extremely honored to be a part of the CCL Touring Company. In addition to CCL, Jason has studied improv at The Upright Citizens Brigade, People's Improv Theater, ComedySportz Philadelphia and with Armando Diaz and Christina Gausas. Jason is on an eternal quest to answer the immortal question "Can I get a 'whuh-whuh'?".

SHARON FOGARTY grew up in Queens, NY and got her degree in dance from the University of Brockport where she studied improvisational theatre with Gisela Fritching of Viola Spolin's Berliner Cabaret. Sharon founded Making Light in 1986 to produce her own works of dance, theatre and music while studying improv with Gloria Maddox of Keith Johnstone's Loose Moose Co. Sharon began training with Rob Schiffmann and Travis Ploeger of Chicago City Limits while performing with the Funny... Sheesh and Loos Scrooz improv groups. As a writer, Sharon's plays include the newly published Bride of Frankenstein - an experiment in intimacy and Sep'-ul-kur. Sharon has performed extensively with the IMAGO Mask Theatre Ensemble, Manhattan Theatre Source and Making Light. Favorite roles include Marilyn Monroe in Putnam, Sister Marlena in Where Sleeping Gods Lie, Sophie in White Liars, Lillian Farmer in St. Frances of Hollywood and Mrs. Chaste in The Devil of Delancey Street. Sharon was recently entered into the Manhattan Theatre Source Hall of Fame and made Person of the Year by NYTheatre.com for contributions in production and performance in theatre.

CANEDY KNOWLES (National Touring Company Performer) is thrilled to be a part of Chicago City Limits cause improv ROCKS! She just returned from Tennessee where she played Corinthianne in the world premiere of the bluegrass musical That Other Woman's Child. New York theatre credits include the Off-Broadway improvised musical Luck of the Draw, the NYC premiere of Cheatin' (Sara Lee Turnover), the Actors Studio's workshop of Hope is the Thing with Feathers (Estelle Parsons, dir.) and Bravo on Broadway. Regional credits include the world premiere of Skin, Meat, Bone (Robert Wilson, dir.), The Woolgatherer (Rose) and Carnival (Lili). On the big screen, she appeared in Mona Lisa Smile, The Devil and Daniel Webster, Spider-Man and many independent films. On the small screen (that's the television) Canedy starred in TNN's improvised series Lifegame and has appeared on Strangers with Candy, Saturday Night Live, Sex and the City, CityKids and regularly on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Canedy is a Virgo who likes long walks on the beach and would someday like to own a pony and a tiara.

RACHEL KOROWITZ has been a New York-based improviser since 2001, and has studied with and performed at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, The PIT and The Magnet Theater. As a member of the improv trio Evil Cathedral, she co-founded, co-produced and co-hosted the long-running weekly variety show, Ash Wednesday; she was also an original member of the cult favorite X Plus One (a group specializing in fully improvised science-fiction radio shows). On the small screen, Rachel has appeared on AMC's Date Night, in multiple short films for Channel 102, and as a commercial actor . She makes her feature film debut in the upcoming comedy American Standard.

DEB RABBAI is a native New Yorker who's been acting, singing and improvising professionally for the last twenty years. She's a graduate of the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and trained improvisationally at Chicago City Limits. She's a former member of Freestyle Repertory Theatre and performed and taught with them for nine years. She's a co-creator of and performer in the MAC-nominated and critically acclaimed show The Next Big Broadway Musical, an improvised musical comedy. She's a member of Comedysportz New York. She's an accomplished voiceover artist who has done voiceovers for products you love in addition to creating the voice of Shenfa in the SEGA Dreamcast game Shenmue, and is well known as a voice actress among anime fans, having voiced 35 anime films. She hosted the cable show Live from Downtown, which featured downtown theatre, music and dance. She is also an experienced teacher of improvisation and acting who has taught at New York University, Marymount Manhattan College, The American Comedy Institute, Humber Comedy Center, New York Improv Festival, Funny Women Festival, Orlando Fringe Festival & Weist Barron. She has led workshops on teamwork and creative thinking to corporate executives in companies such as Revlon, Western Union, Oxygen Network & Merck. She has helped create programs which teach curriculum through improvisation and has taught improvisation to children in the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut public schools. She can tap dance and does a mean hula! Visit her at misspeep.blogspot.com

JEFF SCHERER hails from Rochester, NY and Wilmington, DE, among other places, but New York City has become his hometown. He studied Writing for TV, Film & Radio at Syracuse University, and has written four screenplays, of which Skeletons was a semi-finalist both at the Austin Film Festival and on Project Greenlight. He and his friends formed the theatrical group Toolbox Productions and produced three plays, two of them at the NY International Fringe Festival: St. Rosita & the Francophone (which he co-wrote with Jeremy Carr), and Pipe Bomb Sonata (in which he played several roles). Since getting involved with improv comedy, Jeff has been in over a dozen teams and shows, performing at variety shows and theaters around New York. He is currently writing a children's book, a novel and an original series for television.

RORY SCHOLL grew up and started his improv career in Dallas Texas, but got to New York as fast as he could. He has had bits featured on Howard Stern, and Good Morning America, and soon to be on Sirius radio. He plays around the city in his two person novelty band Pembroke and Lu (www.pembrokeandlu.com) and is also a member of Comedysportz. A little known fact: he has his own line of womens underwear coming out in the winter. He is extremely stoked to be playing with Chicago City Limits, and hopes you dont think he looks fat in those pants.

ANN SCOBIE has a Bachelor's in Psychology and a Master's in Social Work, which have laid a very solid bedrock for understanding the craziness that is involved in improvisational comedy. She performs voiceovers for TV and Radio for such clients as BMW, Dove, McDonald's, Verizon, Pizza Hut, Kohl's and lots more. For the past 2 years she has enjoyed taking classes with the incredible improv teacher Christine Turner. She performs stand-up comedy at Don't Tell Mama, The Duplex and other venues. She loves animals, long walks on the beach and AC/DC.

NELSON WALTERS would be proud to tell you he was born and raised in town of Easton, Pennsylvania, where he first got on stage as part of the high school's drama program. Slowly, the drama began to turn into comedy, and after high school he was spending many of his hours at Haverford College performing and rehearsing with Lighted Fools, an on-campus sketch/improv troupe. Upon graduating, Nelson moved to Brooklyn, where he currently resides. He'd like to thank his friends, family, but most especially his parents for their support, as well as for being an never-ending source of comedic material.

Staff:

DAVID CHERNICOFF (Associate Producer Stage Manager) is a 23-year-old longhair from Berkeley, CA, a place best known for its blue-blooded traditionalism and enormous library; he graduated in 2007 from Yale University, a place best known for its radical leftist leanings and penchant for manufacturing with hemp. David gets his performance fix by improvising with Madam? and portraying Russell in the web sitcom Inconvenient Molly. Past employers include Comedy Central, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and The Onion, where he remains a contributing writer. David is thrilled to be a part of the Chicago City Limits team, and he’ll be sure to get on that important thing you need him to do as soon as he’s done with this important thing he’s doing.

LINDA GELMAN (Producer) is a founding member of Chicago City Limits. Prior to life with CCL, she was a dancer, choreographer and Artistic Director of the Gelman/Palidofsky Dance Theatre. She has performed in musicals and cabaret, including Rick Crom's MAC Award-winner Absolutely Rude, A Thurber Carnival, and It Just Ain't a Party Without You. On TV, she has appeared in Tales of the Unexpected and Reading Rainbow. She and Carol Schindler wrote and performed Rosa Krantz and Gilda Stern Aren't Dead. Most recently, she appeared in Larry Bell's comedy MaRCK as a neurotic hooker. She and Paul Zuckerman have three children: Zara, Philip and Eli.

ELLIOTT LIPSEY (House Manager) has been in love with improv for 25 years, both as an actor's tool and as a life skill. Elliott has taught workshops for the last 15 years, and he has also produced and directed his original production, Folktales. Regional credits include such classic characters as Tevye and Nathan Detroit. His dog is named after B.B. King, the Chairman of the Board of blues singers.

GEORGE TODISCO (Founder, 1951-1982) left his native Brooklyn to attend Loyola University in Chicago where he became a member of the Loud Minority, a company touring with Meagan Terry's Viet Rock. After Loyola, he took a brief departure from the theater to open and operate Giorgio's Pizza Amore. Northwestern University's Graduate School of Theater brought him back to the stage where he appeared in several productions, among them Romeo and Juliet and Eugene O'Neill's Where the Cross is Made. He began improvisation with Del Close at The Second City. Mr. Todisco founded Chicago City Limits in 1977 and served as its first Artistic Director and Producer.