After attending four colleges (KU being one of them) Ryan Dolan took a chance. Originally from Kansas City, Mo., Dolan decided to do what many only dream of. He dropped everything, moved to the big city (Chicago) and is trying to make it big in the world of improvisational comedy. He has been a part of many different improv groups including a guest act at Chicago’s infamous Saturday Night Live breeding ground, Second City. Currently working in Boston with Improv Asylum, he and his partner Tony Amatuzio, are bringing their improv show, “Powder Blue Unis,” to Kansas City. Dolan gives Jayplay his opinions on why Lawrence needs an improv theater, advice for future improv artists and his take on why the Royals suck.

Q. Why and how did you decide to go ahead and go for it and move to Chicago?

A. KU was fourth college I had attended (Georgetown, Johnson County Community College and Washburn). Except for Washburn, I really struggled in the classroom. After dropping out of KU at the age of 26, I figured maybe I should stop kidding myself and go to Chicago and study improv. I had taken an online writing course through Second City and had gotten good feedback from my teacher. I had seen shows at Second City and Improv Olympic, and loved it. At I.O. (Improv Olympic), I saw a hilarious show at 10:30pm on a Tuesday, which was packed. I thought that was where I needed to be. I was actually so bad at improv in Topeka, I told everyone I was moving to study sketch writing; lest they think I was crazy.

Q. How did you start out as a newbie in the improv field in a big market such as Chicago?

A. Chicago is the best place on Earth to learn improvisation. It’s affordable. It’s a one hour, $100 round trip ticket from KC. People are friendly, and it’s easier to support yourself as opposed to New York. It has three great improv schools: Annoyance, I.O. and The Second City. The best thing you can do to meet people is to either intern at I.O, or work at Second City in some capacity. I got a job in the box office and I learned a lot about the business aspect of comedy and theatre.

Q. What is the funniest (to you) topic someone has shouted out to you during a performance?

A. In Chicago, I never did shows that garnered a lot of suggestions. Here at Improv Asylum in Boston, we get a lot of suggestions over the course of a show. A lot of people think they’re being funny, when they yell out crap like “proctologist” or porn-related things but we hear them so often, it’s not funny. Sometimes, we will pull people up to tell us about their day or a bad date, and the “funniest” people just tell the truth. Life is funny enough on its own. And honestly, comedians are the filthiest people on Earth. If you want to see a scene about a dildo, we’ll do one so awful it will make you sorry you’re alive, but in a good way.

Q. What is a time that you were on stage and had a performance where you felt like you nailed it?

A. The first time I played during the Second City, we got a suggestion for a scene of “Underwater Apartment” or something. Seven of us went out, and everyone made a comment about the great underwater view. I was last, and I commented, “the fish tank is kind of redundant.” You had to be there but there was this pause, and then the audience of 180 people blew up. That was a pretty awesome feeling. I went to the side of the stage with a stupid grin on my face and started shaking. I blame it on hypothermia.

Q. You have traveled all over performing, what has been your favorite place and why?

A. Being able to play for three weeks at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival was pretty awesome though. I went with this show from Chicago called “Chairs.” We had good crowds, covered some expenses, fought a lot and I’ll never forget it. After our show one night, the girls in the cast went out and the guys from our show went to a bar to drink. A couple of hours into it, Andrew Moskos, from Boom Chicago walked in (Boom Chicago is a comedy theatre in Amsterdam, where a lot of actors and writers at MadTV and SNL have performed). He was with Boom Chicago alum, Seth Meyers, who is on SNL. We drank with them all night. Later the girls came running in and they had these oomp-loompa outfits on from this show they had been to and they were covered in paint. My friend runs in laughing and then realizes that she’s staring at Meyers and Moskos and she looks like a Smurf on acid. That was my favorite night there.

Q. Compare American audience suggestions to audiences overseas?

A. American audiences are more improv savvy, so they laugh at what they think is funny. In Edinburgh, improv isn’t well known so half of the time they were just trying to absorb the fact that we were making it up on the spot and did not pre-plan anything.

Q. How do you calm down or get pumped up before a big show?

A. It doesn’t take much to pump myself up. I bring a lot of energy to my work. If I didn’t like what I did, I would get my degree and go into a field that actually had job security. This may sound stupid, but Kelly Clarkson songs will have me bouncing off the walls in about 0.3 seconds. I calm down by drinking beer and occasionally making out with a woman who is stupid enough to want to kiss me. I don’t recommend that to anyone, but that’s what I do.

Q. Why do you like/dislike performing with your partner for this performance, Tony Amatuzio?

A. Tony is this short Italian guy from Delaware, who pretends he’s from “Philly.” We’re doing a show in KC because we’re in town to eat and party with my friends at the American Royal BBQ and watch the Chiefs/Eagles football game at Arrowhead. He’s an Eagles fan. I’m not sure what I like about him. I’m starting to regret doing this show.

Q. Explain the title of your current show?

A. The Kansas City Royals suck. Back when they were good, they used to wear powder blue uniforms. I have named the show “Powder Blue Uni’s” in protest of Allard Baird and David Glass for ruining the Royals organization. I’m pretty sure they’re going to resign after it and sell me the team for a penny and some Junior Mints. It’s improv. I have no idea what the show is going to be about. I could have named it “Crimson Girls Forever” and it would make no difference. I do actually have a show idea called “Kirk Hinrich,” but I won’t bore you with the details.

Q. What can people expect from this show?

A. We’ll ask for a simple suggestion up top like a word or a household object. Tony and I will use that suggestion to inspire a 30-40 minute longform piece. We’ll do several different scenes as different characters and try to tie them together or at least revisit them through out the show. Nothing is pre-planned. We do not plot out the scenes or pre-plan the characters. The great thing about improv is that it’s all made up on stage. It will be the funniest thing to see in Kansas City and Lawrence on October 1st. If it isn’t, I’m blaming Allard Baird.

Q. Why come back to Kansas City?

A. One of the reasons I’m doing the show is that I wanted to connect with the Kansas City improv scene. There are a lot of people from Kansas in Chicago doing not only improv but also theatre. There is no reason why we can’t take what we’ve learned in Chicago and bring it back to KC through shows, workshops or even starting an improv theatre. City 3 Improv is helping me produce this show and they and a few other groups are re-launching a Kansas City improv festival. There used to be a very popular one a few years ago. The fact that City 3 can rent out the Westport Coffee House for me on a Saturday night two weeks before the show speaks about how much room for growth there is for a KC/Lawrence theatre scene. Events like the new KC Fringe festival will only help build a dynamic theatre/improv community. Theatre is more than another Shaw production at the Missouri Rep or a touring production of “Cats.” Those productions are fine but it could be so much more.

Q. Where should KU theatre grads and people interested in improv go once they graduate?

A. First off, just because I’m a drop out, doesn’t mean I advocate it. It’s much easier to get a job to support your passion for theatre or music or art, if you have a degree. Chicago is widely regarded as the best theatre town in the country — better than New York. This is because of the wealth of talent and it’s really easy to form a theatre company and put up new work. It’s definitely the most vibrant theatre scene in the country. Everybody wants to go to New York or L.A. to “make it.” Those cities just chew you up and spit you out. Chicago allows you to grow as an artist and as an individual. It also allows you to develop your chops. It will also make you a bad ass, if you want to move back to KC to start your own theatre company. After a few years, you’ll actually know what you’re doing from an artistic and business standpoint.

Q. Who inspires you?

A. The people that inspire me are the people I have seen perform in Chicago. John Lutz, who writes for SNL, taught me at Improv Olympic. Dan Bakkedahl, performed at I.O. and Second City, and is the newest correspondent on The Daily Show. There are so many talented people in Chicago that it’s disgusting. They could replace the cast of SNL, 20 times over with people from Chicago and it you wouldn’t know the difference and they should probably do that.

Q. Who is that someone famous you aspire to be like or meet?

A. Bill Murray and Steve Martin. They are intelligent, good actors, understated and go a mile just by raising an eyebrow. Martin’s a great writer. Pretty much 90% of all improvisers would love to have Bill Murray’s career. He may not know it, but he’s the unspoken icon in our field.