Susan Messing | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1963-12-26)December 26, 1963 (age 61) |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, Director, Comedian, Author, Teacher |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Known for | Annoyance Theater The Second City iO Theater |
| Notable work | Co-Ed Prison Sluts Messing with a Friend |
Susan Messing (born December 26, 1963) is an Americanimprovisational theatre performer, teacher and author associated with theAnnoyance Theater andiO Theater inChicago.[1]
A New Jersey native, Susan Messing graduated fromNorthwestern University with a degree in theater. Following graduation, she began performing improvisation atiO Theater, where she appeared on the Harold team Blue Velveeta. In 1998, she was hired as a performer on The Second City mainstage.[1]
Messing is an ensemble member ofAnnoyance Theater where she performed in "Co-ed Prison Sluts," "The Miss Vagina Pageant," "The Real Live Brady Bunch" as well as directingWhat Every Girl Should Know... An Ode to Judy Blume (based on the work of Judy Blume).
She has performed on NBC'sLate Friday and Comedy Central'sPremium Blend along with her puppet Jolly after showcasing at the HBO/US Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen. She also voiced the character "Eos" in the 2001 video gameRed Faction.[2]
Susan is a founding member of TheAnnoyance Theater (1989) where she has created roles in over thirty original productions includingCo-Ed Prison Sluts (the longest-running musical in Chicago),That Darn Anti-Christ,The Real Live Brady Bunch and the famed Judy Blume adaptation,What Every Girl Should Know. Other shows includeThe Miss Vagina Pageant andYour Butt, among others.[2] She is regarded as one of Chicago's finest improvisers—male or female by Tribune reporter Kevin Pang.[3]
Messing was cited as “Best Improviser” in the Chicago Reader's 2008 Best Of Chicago issue,[4] and is currently running a show at The Annoyance Theater calledMessing with a Friend. The evening includes guests improvisers from theiO Theater,Second City, and TheAnnoyance Theater. In a favorable review, Ryan Hubbard of the Chicago Reader wrote that her skill improvising with others, "…is a testament to her congeniality, experience, and broad intelligence."[4] She can also be seen improvising in the showsMolly alongside Second City director Norm Holly at iO every Tuesday night andThe Boys alongside Rachael Mason at The Second City on every Friday night.
Susan teaches and performs at theAnnoyance Theater and theiO Theater. She also teachesimprovisational comedy forDePaul University, TheUniversity of Chicago and Loyola University.
As a writer, her essays have been published inThe Second City Almanac of Improvisation and inCharna Halpern's book,Art By Committee and endorsed Jon Jon Lannen's bookThe Giraffe That Taught Me How To Laugh.
Susan married formerSaturday Night Live andSesame Street writer Michael Clayton McCarthy on September 30, 2012. McCarthy passed away on April 8, 2020.[5]
