Dina Facklis has been performing improvisation for the last fifteen years. She is a fixture at the illustrious iO Chicago where she performs and teaches whenever she can. Dina has toured and directed for The Second City National Touring Company, and can be seen performing as a cast member in the Armando Diaz Experience, Virgin Daiquiri, and Stubs with Brad Morris. She wrote and performed two one woman shows, Something Suite and (gasp). Recently, Dina produced, directed, and co-wrote her first pilot BRING IT IN (starring some members of Virgin Daiquiri). Her movie credits include The Weather Man with Nicolas Cage, and the upcoming Mole Men of Belmont Avenue.How were you first introduced to improv comedy?
I had a BA in Theatre and was applying for theatre internships in Chicago. Second City offered me one and gave me a free improv class to boot. I fell in love and never looked back.
Where did you study?
I have studied at The Second City Conservatory, iO, Steppenwolf (summer intensive) and have taken Mick Napier workshops at The Annoyance Theatre.
The Armando Diaz Experience has been running at the IO for fifteen years, are there any memorable monologists that stand out in sets you have appeared in during your tenure?
TJ Jagodowski always delivers beautiful, unbelievably honest monologues. I also really loved it when Stephanie Wier (from MadTV and my improv idol) did monologues. It's really gorgeous when people can just tell the truth up there.
Could you tell our readers about the one woman shows you wrote and performed in?
Both were truly labors of love-- I developed both of them almost completely out of improvisation with the guidance of directors-- as well as previewing some of the material in front of audiences. For some reason, I seem to be in love with the themes of crisis and the unexpected and that's what guided my improv and writing in both cases...or rather, I looked back on my writing in both cases and then realized these were the prevalent themes. I keep telling my students not to worry about plot or theme-- that it will emerge naturally if you're fully committed to the moment (you know, the old Del Close quote: "Fall and you'll figure it out on the way down"). Working on both those shows proved that to me.
You are the founder of Virgin Daiquiri which is an all female improv troupe performing at the IO on Wednesday nights. Do you find that you perform any differently when playing with all women compared to a team made up of men and women?
Virgin Daiquiri has taught me what it is like to play with an ensemble in which I completely trust everyone. That is the most freeing thing imaginable to an improviser. And I really do not believe it has anything to do with gender. As long as you play with people who you know have your back, you can always perform at your best. I know all of the wonderful women on VD have my back and it makes the shows with them so alive. I've had some of my best improvisational shows with both sexes.
What is it about improv that has made you want to keep performing after 15 years?
Truthfully, it is just too much fun-- and it's always changing and providing new challenges and discoveries. I can't ever seeing myself stop. In a way, I feel like it keeps me young. And the people in it are the best around-- completely unpretentious for the most part and in love with improv as much as I am...
You produced a web series called Bring it In. What is it about and how was improvisation used in the production?
Bring It In was a concept inspired by a character that Andy St. Clair did in a Second City show-- a school's basketball coach. I was interested in working with a specific group of women I knew so I made these women Andy's middle school all-female basketball team. At the onset, the cast would meet up and we developed character and dialogue through improvisation and it was a blast. Eventually, I put a script together for 5 mini-episodes. I asked my brothers' studio-- Resolution Digital Studios- if they would co-produce it and we filmed the whole thing in a week. I just worked on a re-edit (to make it a short film) and I'm very happy with it. It recently showed at the Midwest Independent Film Festival and I was so proud of everyone involved with the project.
In addition to appearing in the movie The Weather Man as Nicolas Cage's secretary, you are also appearing in a film with many other Chicago improvisers called The Mole Man of Belmont Avenue. What can you tell us about it?
Not much except that I'm hearing great things about the edit. It was a ton of fun to do and such an impressive project for those guys to take on. They let me improvise some of my lines--which is always a treat.
Are there any other upcoming projects that you are currently working on?
Virgin Daiquiri is working on a ton of stuff for which I'm truly excited-- some short videos and some TV ideas. I'd really love us to write a musical together but our schedules are so crazy. Brad Morris (The Reckoning, Second City Mainstage) and I are also working on some Stubs' (our two-person show) projects together. I've also been writing a book for the past two years-- Essays from a Vintage, Overpriced Soapbox-- and I'm hoping to finish that this spring.
