Where is the first place you go when reading a headline from an article online? THE COMMENTS!!! That’s where this show starts.Join us as we explore the rich backstories of the people you might know that are making ridiculous comments online and see what drove them to share their inner most thoughts with the world!

CAST
	Jess Kent began her improv journey in 2011, studying at The Backline in Omaha, Nebraska. Always one to be incentivized by success, her interest in the art got a huge boost when her improv team, pH Balanced, beat her instructor’s improv team in The Arena, Backline’s weekly improv competition. Rather than travel the world and find new masters to beat, she chose instead to continue to study and perform locally with Backline and Big Canvas, and began teaching at Big Canvas in 2018. Jess has spent the pandemic months performing and studying online with amazing improvisers from all over the world that she might never have otherwise had the chance to meet. Her current performing teams are Roll the Dice and The Hard Times of Northwest Indiana. She’s recently guest performed with The Grid and Improv Sucks. She also semi-regularly jams with The InterCity Long Form Improv Jam and The Chicago Improv Studio eJam.
	Vessy Mink got her improv start back in the summer of 1993 at A Columbia College workshop. After moving to LA, Vessy got cast in an improv show called 15 Minutes Of FEM. Vessy Mink’s music has been licensed to a plethora of commercials, documentaries, web series and feature films.  Vessy has been cast in national commercials, performed all over the West Coast with an outstanding A’capella trio called The Smiling Minks and various other improvisational musical acts., and has performed a musical residency in France. Vessy writes and produces songs out of her home studio and is currently hard at work with various musical projects including ARC Arinova Rhythm Colletive, THM NME and her solo album. Vessy has released many songs in the past 5 years available on all online digital platforms. For more info, please visit https://www.vessymink.net.
	Brian Sebby has been studying improv since 2011, when he bought a Groupon for a class at ComedySportz Chicago. He quickly fell in love with improvisation, and after finishing the program at ComedySportz, went on to study at The Annoyance, iO, and in the Players Workshop right here at Westside Improv. He also performed for three years with the One Group Mind team Kelly Machiavelli. When he’s not improvising, Brian works in IT for the government, and is also a member of the Board of Directors of Otherworld Theatre Company.
	Lisa Szanyi was raised and educated in East Chicago, Indiana. Her educational quest led to a degree in Adaptive Physical Education from Indiana State Univ. After teaching one year in Illinois, she returned to East Chicago to teach special needs students while also organizing the Special Olympics for the Tri-City area. Having lived and taught in Northwest Indiana for over 40 years she has followed her family’s roots. Lisa now enjoys traveling the Midwest with her husband Ron to create comedy as a duo called Cheaper than Marriage Counseling. Ron and Lisa have performed improv and stand-up comedy on almost all the Chicago area stages. Over the last few years, she have become part of Improductions’ comedy menagerie. Lisa is enthusiastically looking forward to performing with a wonderful cast to help create Hard Times of NWI.
	Ron Szanyi was born and bred in East Chicago, IN. With only four years in college (Terre Haute) and a year living in Illinois, Ron has been a lifelong resident of Northwest Indiana (NWI). Having experience in working in the mills of NWI and working as lead instructor for the White Sox Training Center camps in NWI and the Chicago South suburbs Ron has experienced the essence of NWI. Recently retired after 40 years of teaching and coaching muliple sports, Ron has some time on his hands. Having spent 5 years roaming Chicago armed with his harmonica and playing in blues bands, a change occurred. The comedy bug bit. For the last nine years Ron studied and performed standup and improv at the many Chicagoland comedy cathedrals. While performing at ComedySportz Chicago, Ron and his wife Lisa (an improv novice at this point and now partner in Cheaper Than Marriage Counseling) were introduced to Nelson Velazquez who they found lived 10 minutes away from them in NWI. The last four years Nelson has served as guru, producer, and friend for comedy. Ron is extremely pleased to be part of the cast of Hard Times of NWI.
CREW
	Angela Heid (Stage Management) has almost 30 years of community theater experience in Northwest Indiana in the areas of Lighting and Sound. She has worked on over a hundred different shows in area theaters, such as 4th Street, Improductions, Valparaiso Theatrical Company, and Memorial Opera House – to name a few. She is a board member for 4th Street Theater and NIETF. She will be assisted in this production by her cat Precious. Angela would like to thank her parents for getting her involved in theater at a very early age.
	Nelson Velazquez (Director/Producer) is thrilled to leading this fantastic cast of actors.  He has been involved in improvisational theatre for the last 13 years. He is currently the Artistic Director of Salsation Theatre Company, a 20+ year old Latino theatre company specializing in sketch and improv comedy. He currently serves as head musical director for Los Improviachis, an improvised musical mariachi band. He has trained and performed at Second City Training Center, The Annoyance Theatre, and ComedySportz Chicago and has performed with various groups across the country. He’s also a former associate producer for the Chicago Improv Festival. Nelson was also the founder of the improv program at Crown Point Community Theatre and is currently the CEO for Improductions, LLC. He’s taught workshops across the country including The Baltimore Improv Festival, The Chicago Improv Festival, The San Jose Improv Festival, The San Diego Improv Festival The Trill Comedy Festival, Melanin LatinX Comedy Festival, and The Grand Rapids Improv Festival. He is also serves as faculty at Second City Chicago.