LAKEVIEW — If you've ever wanted to hear Disney's "Let It Go" sung in Klingon, VStheUniverse has made that strange dream a beautiful reality.
The Lakeview-based theater troupe has smashed together all types of fandoms in "The Geek Show," with sketches ranging from Mega Man singing "Part of Your World" to a '90s-style fake commercial advertising "Love Songs of the DC Universe."
It's the first Chicago variety show exclusively dedicated to geek culture like comic books and video games, said cast member Aaron Amendola, 29, one of three VStheUniverse co-founders. Since it opened at Stage 773 in September 2014, it's been a sell-out success, he added.
And it seems fans stand behind the show — it took barely three weeks for the troupe to raise the $3,000 needed for its second season. The Kickstarter campaign has three weeks left, and now the group is hoping it can raise enough for better camera equipment.
"I don't think it's really hit us yet that we've got the means to do what we want to do," Amendola said.
With funding secured, "The Geek Show" will kick off its second season at 8 p.m. Dec. 10 at Stage 773, 1225 W. Belmont Ave. Each show's theme is planned in advance, with the first show's "Star Wars" sketches fitting in perfectly with the Dec. 17 release of "Star Wars: Episode VII — The Force Awakens."
"We've been sitting on all these ideas for 'Star Wars' sketches and ideas for the better part of a year," Amendola said. "But we have to wait for the right time and the right people."
Shows centered on the "Harry Potter" series and British science fantasy epic "Doctor Who" are also planned, but often VStheUniverse gets its best ideas from the audience members themselves, he said.
"It happens a lot when people say 'It would be cool if you did XYZ in a show,' and we're like, 'You're totally right. We are going to do that,'" Amendola said. "It's nice because it's very much a communal effort to have something for everyone."
"The Geek Show" played at Stage 773 last year with free admission. The group wanted to include even fans for whom "a $10 ticket could keep them from going because it means they're that much closer to not making the rent," Amendola said.
But to keep the show free, VStheUniverse needed to raise enough to produce a second season.
Like other popular nerd-based comedy shows, "The Geek Show" reaches beyond its theater audience, posting clips and episodes on YouTube.
Its most popular video is a 2012 mini musical based on "Code Monkey," a song written by geek culture singer Jonathan Coulton. More recently, VStheUniverse shared "You Don't Need To Pick Me," a love ballad sung by Luigi to a certain princess.
With the support of fans securing the second season, Amendola said he hoped "The Geek Show" could continue to run for years.
"I don't think any of us expected to do what we're doing now. Nobody was doing geek-centric comedy, and Chicago's just welcomed us with open arms," he said. "So, I don't see us going anywhere any time soon."
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