The Second City production is in residence at the Denver Center’s Garner Galleria

They can be hit or miss, these touring comedy shows that come through the Denver Center’s Garner Galleria Theatre. Fortunately, the production of The Second City: Comedian Rhapsody in residence there through Aug. 11 is indeed a hit. The two-hour mix of sketch comedy and improv features six excellent performers racing through a barrage of material that’s timely, well performed and, yes, funny.

The show kicks off with some goofy jokes and the cast cavorting around with beach balls, which immediately started bending the needle on the ol’ hokey-meter. But they soon settled down into a series of sketches and bits that ranged the gamut from parenthood and Hallmark movies to friendship and dating.

Some of the sketches were actually touching while still delivering laughs. One I found particularly affecting focused on two male high-school friends saying good-bye as they prepare to head off to college. As the realization hits that they may not see one another again anytime soon — or ever — they tone down the guy-talk and say how they feel.

Another that hit home was a musical bit that had to do with dads on vacation. Along with the usual dad jokes and groaning kids comes dad’s confession that his zeal for the vacay is rooted in his knowledge that it won’t always be this way. The kids will grow up, the trips to the lake will end and those times will never come back.

Photo: Timothy M. Schmidt

Led by an effervescent Cat McDonnell and Paul Sottnik’s piano accompaniment, the Second City “Blue” cast does a very nice job of going from strangers to players we know and love. That quickly established rapport makes the strong bits funnier while making the crowd more forgiving on the stuff that don’t perhaps land as well. Along with pulling people out of the front seats, the cast keeps up an ongoing patter with the audience that resulted in a rockin’ room resonating with laughter.

Director Carisa Barreca has done an exceptional job constructing this show. The pacing is spot-on, the entrances and exits well timed and the use of music, sound effects and lighting all contribute to a pretty slick production. That’s not something I’d typically say about anything involving improv based on its very nature, but the highly professional staging of Comedian Rhapsody doesn’t take away from the spontaneity at all. Meanwhile, the rehearsed bits work as sure-fire comedic tentpoles around the improv.

The Garner Galleria is a cabaret-style space, with a full bar and table service. With the booze flowing and the laughs rolling off the stage, it makes for a fun night out on the town.

Photo: Timothy M. Schmidt