Before audiences will really laugh, they need to see recognizable elements in what performers are doing so they can make a connection with them, discovering what they have in common.  And the more the performers, writers and directors know who is in the audience, the easier it will be to create connections.  For example, creating connections with an audience for a Second City 8 pm main stage show that is made up of tourists from around the country will take a different form than creating connections with a local audience attending a late night, edgier show.

Second City brings that concept to businesses to foster bonding among their employees by discovering and capitalizing on what people have, and feel, in common.  Sometimes what people have in common is surprising and unique – as Second City found at a Department of Education conference, where it went to help bond groups that were often at odds.

Indeed, Second City works with all sorts of businesses to find out what is funny to them in their world and their environment and in people’s behaviors – and they are often specifically brought in when it is the most important.

Up Next: Humor Creates a Culture Where Risks Can be Taken