ABOUT THE SHOW
Significant Others is a comedy about couples in and outside of marriage counseling; a hysterically honest look at marriage and the rewards — and costs — that come with being in a committed relationship. More real than traditional comedies and more imaginative than reality shows, this six-episode series features a talented ensemble of improvisational actors and comedians who, quite literally, script themselves.
The series was created by comedy director Robert Roy Thomas, who first saw the potential for an improvised comedy while shooting commercials. "The cameras would stop and the actors would be goofing around, saying things in character and it would be funny and everyone would leap on it," said Thomas. "I would then say, why is that an accident? Why don't we do that on purpose?" Thomas, himself happily married, then produced an improvised short about couples in therapy.
The film caught the attention of former CBS entertainment president and producer Peter Tortorici. "The film felt so real, so raw and so funny," said Tortorici. "For me, great comedy starts from a really relatable, understandable place. I think in terms of what defines you as a human being, intimate relationships are probably the best and worst expressions of who you are, and that's a great place to tell stories." Tortorici teamed with Thomas to develop the short into the series.
Thomas, Casting Director Francene Selkirk-Ackerman, and Associate Producer Allison Kingsley saw roughly 500 actors and comedians to cast couples with the right combination of inventiveness, training and chemistry needed to pull off the on-the-spot performances required of the series. Each episode starts with a storyline that takes its shape from the creative give-and-take between the actors, Thomas (who serves as both therapist and director), Co-Producer Jordana Arkin and Tortorici.
Brian Palermo (Daddy Day Care) is all-business James — a financial analyst who has it all except the confidence to believe it, something his more spirited and free-loving wife Chelsea, played by Andrea Savage (The West Wing) finds endearing...sometimes. Faith Salie (Sex and the City) is the scholarly Eleanor, whose pregnancy and the pressure of impending fatherhood prove too much too soon for husband Ethan (Herschel Bleefeld, Six Feet Under). Jane Edith Wilson (Curb Your Enthusiasm) plays the organized and seemingly predictable Constance, who finds her world unraveling when her husband Bill (Fred Goss, South Park) loses his job in full midlife freefall. Chris Spencer (Vibe) and Nicole Randall Johnson (Miss Match) are Devon and Alex — two parents doing their best to balance the demands of work and their 9 year old son; they are fairly sure that they don't have "issues" but are checking in just in case.
|
