This past Friday, the eight members of PGHS’s improv troupe “Wince & Repeat” had the exciting opportunity to participate in a comedy workshop with players from a Second City traveling troupe. Second City, the legendary Chicago-based improv institution, boasts an impressive roster of alumni — past performers include Tina Fey, Chris Farley, Stephen Colbert, and Steve Carell to name a few.

Elderly sisters from “Upper Kansas,” Meredith (Marina Lieberman) and Derth (Izzy Rowntree-Smith) reminisce on their time working the dirt farm and elaborate on their favorite pastime… skydiving?

After seeing their show the night before, “Wince & Repeat” members joined two Second City players (Jordan Savusa and Alison Banowsky) at the Sunset Center in Carmel for a hilarious and helpful workshop. After warming up with some initial games, PGHS students learned important lessons about working in space, matching a partner’s emotional state, and developing characters from scratch. Scenes consisted of bumbling bank robbers and nauseated gravediggers, micromanaging firefighters and cordial mad scientists.

Respected English monocle salesman William Bucksberry (Luke Herzog) struggles to keep his eccentric, half-blind, adopted brother Donovan (Blake Vogelpohl) at bay.

In the end, “Wince & Repeat” found the experience very rewarding: “The workshop was a whole lot of fun, and super informative,” explains Elijah Taurke. “It definitely put us in the right mindset for our show later that night,” added Marina Lieberman. “Thank you to Second City and the Sunset Center for the wonderful opportunity!”