Yes, And a Pandemic

Kelly Leonard was a producer in the 90s and 2000s for the Second City improv theater in Chicago. He is personally responsible for hiring Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Amy Poehler, and Steve Carell. Kelly talks us through Second City’s Pivot into virtual improv performances during the 2020 pandemic. We learn about the difference between improv and spontaneity, how to gain agency over our emotions, a brilliant exercise you can do to achieve clarity and mental calmness in difficult times, and why he describes COVID as a period of “sway."