Gezon Auditorium (Calvin)

Located in the Spoelhof Center of Calvin College, it is the first administrative building as you drive in the main Burton street entrance. This theater has been newly renovated and holds approximately 330 people.

Make sure to arrive early for Christmas shows at Calvin, they tend to sell-out.

dave

You are Dave's favorite person for taking the time to read his bio. You are Dave's extra-favorite person if you recognize that this is Dave's first bio update since he joined River City in 2008. On a related note, you are Dave's superlatively favorite person if you qualify Jeff as "the new guy" even though he is actually "the returning guy" and join Dave in new guy hazing.

jeff

Jeff made his River City debut in 1997 but left us after two years to perform full time and nationally with CPR Improv Comedy where he learned vacations aren’t vacations if you take them all the time and leave your wife and kids at home. So after several years of the crazy travel life, he came back to the sweet life of RCI in 2008. Jeff is married (to St. Lisa) and has two daughters (Jessa and Kassidy). When he's not on the RCI stage, he's with them doing lots of things and sometimes nothing at all. Ah, balance.

marty

Marty grew up in a grammatically militant home and is reminding you that something cannot be “important to my friends and I” just as is cannot be “important to I and my friends.” You cannot “drive safe” but you can have a “safe drive”. A party host can ask you to bring something to share, but when it’s in your hands, you’re taking it. You cannot lay down, but can lay something down. He hopes this is mentally challenging for you as you wait for the show.

mel

Is supremely excited for sunny springtime in Michigan. Perhaps because this winter has left her with little hope at all for anything, she is quite content with looking forward.

michele

3 fascinating facts about Michele, that you're not sure you need to know about but, can't help yourself from reading (because she started with the word "fascinating"): 1. She needs at least 9 hours of sleep a night to feel peppy in the morning. 2. She can't stand cottage cheese, cheese cake, tapioca pudding, or yogurt...all because of the texture. And, 3. She has been known to back into objects larger than the car she's driving...on many occasions, but she has never once hit an animal or a human.

mike

Welcome to Mike's bio. Please remember to remove your shoes, or use the shoe covers provided at the entrance. Mike recently came into possession of a "crock-pot," and enjoys "fire and forget" meals - a phrase he all too often uses in conversations. Mike is also a new Uncle, and looks forward to accidentally teaching his nephew new words and mannerisms.

rick

Rick no longer works in politics full time. He is spending his extra time tracking his calories with myfitnesspal.com You should download the app, it makes calorie counting fun. After his kidney stone episode in 2011, his doctor told him he had too much animal protein in his diet. As a result, he is now using his new fruit and vegetable juicer to balance out his poor eating habits. His greatest fear is that a Five Guys Burgers & Fries will open up in Grand Rapids.

todd

Todd Herring is still growing. Soon he will join the NBA, the NFL, NBC, NASDAQ, PBA and any other group looking to add height to their roster. Todd has worked with River City Improv for a certain number of years that is greater than that of Mike, Dave and Mel, less than Rick, Marty, Wendy, Russ, Michelle, Jeff* and Tracey yet equal to that of Adam. Todd is currently looking for his keys, and would like to thank his wife Amy, who will most likely find them. *Jeff’s tenure is classified, statement is based on arbitrary estimates…. and Jeff is older.

tracey

As high school graduation approaches, her senior students are on her mind as they prepare for new lives, much like our beautiful Michigan springtime! She now looks greatly forward to summertime, when she has more time to spend with her own kids, and "The Newsroom" and "True Blood" will be back on television.

wendy

Wendy has been applying the tricks and principles of Burn Notice to her every day life. She recently fixed her boss' broken office chair with multiple layers of super glue. In Fearless Leader, Michael Weston's voiceover said super glue is strong enough to seal a metal door permanently shut - with the help of some compressed air. While I might have chosen a fast-curing epoxy for this specific job, a broken chair by comparison is easy peasy. It's like Hints from Heloise with a little more sass and a little less Good Housekeeping.

amanda

Amanda is our goto woman for taking tickets and other stuff, and happens to be an RCI spouse (Russ).

andy

Andy is our goto man for taking lights and sound, and happens to be an RCI spouse (Mel).

bob

Bob performed with us from 1995-1999, and still performs improv with fellow RCI alumnus Mary Jane in the group Fishschtick. Bob's wife Kris is one of our dedicated crew members.

cate

Cate is the most approved ticket taker and happens to be a spouse of one of our tech guys (Tim).

chris

Chris is one of our tech guys handling lights or sound whenever he isn't working on a big show in another local theater company!

eric

Eric is our goto man for taking tickets and carrying heavy things, and happens to be an RCI spouse (Wendy).

james

James is our technical goto man in the booth, and happens to be a RCI spouse (Tracey).

jane

Jane is one of our fantastic house managers!

kris

Kris is our goto woman for house stuff, and happens to be an RCI alumnus spouse (Bob).

matt

Matt is probably the best ticket seller and ripper we've ever seen. His quest for excellence comes from his liberal arts education.

tim

Tim is a spectacular tech guy who likes to move to the groove.

adam

Adam joined River City in 2001 after repeated attempts to lead his own improv team through the mid to late nineties. The retired "Diversity Improv" combined radical social awareness seminars with live, three hour improv performances. DI also sought to raise awareness in West Michigan about productive community programs while exposing each program's potentially harmful outcomes. The final and most memorable show "Urban Garden: Square of Poison" was aptly reviewed by local media as "A dramatic presentation of ideas". DI may be re-uniting 2010 after nearly a decade of silence.

jeanne

Jeanne was one of our co-founders before she went on to greatness as a stage director.

joel

Joel joined our team in 1999 and was a regular performer until he moved out to LA with his wife Ellen. Currently is in the movie biz with the major motion picture company Alcon Entertainment.

leah

Leah brought her hilarious personality to the stage for us in 2000. She performed with us for a short while before moving on to bigger and better things!

marc

Marc Evan was an original member who moved onto Second City Detroit in 1996. Currently he's living in and working in LA where he has performed various roles and cameos in popular tv shows and movies.

mj

MJ was an original member that left us in 2000 and went on to great things with Second City in Detroit and then founded Fishladder and FISHSCHTICK right here in Grand Rapids.

russ

Russ is the king of pratfalls, physical humor, wordplay and general hilarity. He started with RCI in the beginning and although he is not performing with us as regularly as he had been in the past, there is always a part of him that is still on stage with us. He left a lot on stage.

TYPICAL SHOW DETAILS

River City Improv private performances are typically 35-45 minutes in length, have at last 3 seasoned RCI members performing, we don't provide our own amplification, should be in a setting where everyone can have a seat to provide a comfortable setting to yell suggestions from, we love the outdoors but don't typically perform outside without a proper stage and amplification.