Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Meg Chizek. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Meg , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

My first love in the arts was dance. I started dancing when I was 8 years old. I am from a small town in Iowa and spent every summer in NYC training with the Rockettes or the Joffrey Ballet. I even went to college for dance! Needless to say it was a very important facet of my life and my identity.

After a few years of auditioning in NYC and a couple of regional shows, I acknowledged the void I was feeling as a creative artist. Dance was not fulfilling me the way I anticipated and it was frustrating because I spent my whole life doing it! Despite myself, I decided to trust my instinct and try something new. I signed up for a stand-up class thinking, “wow this must be rock bottom.”

I fell in love with writing and saying words. I felt like doing comedy allowed me to become the best version of myself. And while I appreciated all dance gave me, I knew it was time to walk away. And so I wrote a solo show called How To Give Up on Your Dreams. I told my story about transitioning paths in life and not letting your career define you as a human. It is very funny and has a lot of deep cut musical theater references. I’ve been able to perform How To Give Up on Your Dreams in NYC, Texas and even the Edinburgh Fringe Festival! And I will be performing How To Give Up on Your Dreams this April for the New York City Fringe at Under Saint Marks Theater.

Meg , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am a NYC based comedian, producer and crazy cat lady. I primarily do stand-up, sketch, character acting and writing throughout the city and abroad!

My first love in the performing arts was dance and musical theater. So when I started doing comedy I felt so overwhelmed being around soooo many straight men. I started a women and LGBTQ+ open mic every Wednesday 7pm called Comics Uncorked. I am very proud of creating safe spaces for women and queer performers in a primarily male dominated field/world. I also produce an all female variety show called The Cat’s Meow which features stand-up, singers and burlesque dancers. It is a bottomless brunch extravaganza for an audience that is looking for connection and whimsy. We include raffles from local small businesses and sometimes have temporary tattoo and glitter stations….because I try to live every day like a bachelorette party….I only drink out of pennis straws.

My comedy is very energetic and silly! I talk a lot about my personal life in a non-serious way that the audience finds enduring and relatable. I try my very best to be a genuine human being and as a result my artistic work is authentic and unique to my voice.

The show I am most proud of writing, performing and producing is my solo show How To Give Up on Your Dreams. It is about changing paths in life and trusting yourself during the process, with many hilarious stories and musical theater deep cuts along the way. I was able to take this show to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year which was so much fun! I loved connecting with an audience abroad and being a part of an innovative incubator. I will be performing this show in April here in NYC as part of the NYCF Festival at Under Saint Marks Theater on April 6, 11,13 and 20. For more information visit www.megchizek.com.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I talk about this a bit in my solo show, but in my college dance program they weighed us. It was a part of our grade and determined if we were allowed to graduate. Overall it was a very toxic environment and very mentally and physical degrading.

I love performing with my whole heart and knew it was what I was born to do. So I found a registered nutritionist and got my personal training certification. I built a healthy relationship with my body and continue to advocate for women in the arts, most of which have been told they need to be a certain size in order to succeed.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I think a lot of creatives have to deal with being put in a box. For me personally, I come from a dance and theater background were I was told what my “type” was and what roles I am suited for. It was something as a young artist I never had the agency to choose for myself, I was always told what I needed to be. And because I was tall, I was always told I needed to be a Rockette or a chorus girl, and for so long I never questioned it. Once I found comedy I was able to unleash a fuller version of myself that was silly and more authentic.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.megchizek.com
• Instagram: Megsi_Lee
• Linkedin: Meg Chizek
• Youtube: Meg Chizek

Image Credits

Benjamin Rivera Photography
Zoe Knowles Photography
Morgan White
Rachel Niswander
Sabrina Rothaar and Sarah Catenac