Charm Scene: Improvised Musicals
Join Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Music Director Sam Scheidler, and drummer Chris Ditton as they create brand new musicals — completely on the fly — alongside some of Chicago’s most charming music improvisers and performers. Welcome to the scene!
Podcast Description
Join Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Music Director Sam Scheidler, and drummer Chris Ditton as they create brand new musicals — completely on the fly — alongside some of Chicago’s most charming music improvisers and performers. Welcome to the scene!

Who is Charm Scene?
Collectively, the Charm Scene team can be seen across Chicago and beyond as members of Baby Wants Candy and Shamilton at The Second City, Phony Award Winning Improvised Musicals at iO Theater, ANARCHY: The Improvised Rock Opera and Tuesday Musical Improv at Annoyance Theatre, Lost Realms: Improvised Musicals From Beyond, RIFF, and more. Members of Charm Scene have performed on tour with Off Book: The Improvised Musical, the Second City Touring Company, and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Episodes

Jun 2, 2026
Jun 2, 2026
1hr 4 min
It's Christmas in June as charming guest Rob Grabowski (Clued In, Hitch*Cocktails) joins us for a merry murder mystery. Was it the sinister son? The revengeful rabbit? The horrible head of HR? Everyone has a motive on this week's fully improvised cluesical.
Rob Grabowski is a Michigan native but has called Chicago home for over 15 years. He performs regularly with Hitch*Cocktails: an improved thriller; Clued In: an improvised murder mystery; Comedy Sportz Chicago; and Kohl's Cash, an iO house team. Follow him on instagram @robgrabo. He recommends visiting your local independent bookstore.
Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Rob GrabowskiMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris Ditton
Charm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

May 26, 2026
#90: "Undercat" with Amber Linde!
May 26, 2026
May 26, 2026
1hr 4 min
Cat's out of the bag - and we're breaking out of the pound with the very beautiful Amber Linde! It's an all new improvised musical, this time inspired by Amber's real life love of cats. Feathered friends, Vegas vaudeville, and good old fashioned train travels on this week's Charm Scene!Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Amber LindeMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

May 19, 2026
#89: "Frog Gigging" with Ben Auxier!
May 19, 2026
May 19, 2026
1hr 2 min
Get ready to work as FIVE TIME charming guest Ben Auxier returns! It's another fully improvised musical, inspired by Ben's real life experience gig working in comedy. A frivolous fair, corporate costumes, a deep nuanced look at America's military recruitment efforts and more on this week's Charm Scene!Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Ben AuxierMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

May 12, 2026
#88: "Red Eyes" with Max Lazerine!
May 12, 2026
May 12, 2026
58 min
Who's that ominous figure in the back of your childhood pics? It's charming guest Max Lazerine in a fully improvised musical! Flip through for fateful photos, prescient peepers, risque relatives and more. We've seen the future, and it's Charm Scene.Max Lazerine (He Him) Is a performer from Minneapolis Minnesota. Max is a member of the Second City National Touring company and can also be seen performing at the annoyance as part of Holy Fuck Comedy Hour.Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Max LazerineMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

May 5, 2026
May 5, 2026
58 min
Welcome to the wild! Charming guest Landree Fleming joins us for an all natural improvised musical much better than Shakespeare's original, complete with shrewd shrews, sick scientists, and a ravenous revolution. La la la!Landree Fleming (She/Her) is a Chicago-based actor, director, and improviser. Catch her most Tuesdays in TMI at the Annoyance Theatre. She's performed at the Paramount Theatre, American Theater Company, Marriott Theatre, Drury Lane Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Griffin Theatre, and Theatre at the Center. She's directed at Paramount Theatre, Marriott Theatre, Metropolis Theatre, Theo Ubique, Roosevelt University, and North Central College! She stars in the Dungeons & Dragons TV show Encounter Party from Hasbro, Wizards of the Coast, and eOne, currently streaming on Plex, Freevee, and Roku, an adaptation of her podcast with the same name. She's appeared on Chicago P.D. and Chicago Med, and recently directed Modern Gentleman at About Face Theatre. Rep: Stewart Talent IG: @landreerflemingCast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Landree FlemingMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

Apr 28, 2026
#86: "More Like Maura" with Maura Chappelle!
Apr 28, 2026
Apr 28, 2026
58 min
No, you're not dreaming. It's charming guest Maura Chappelle in a fully improvised musical straight from the subconscious. Concocted coffees, made up mariachis, pictured performances and so much more on this week's Charm Scene. Sweet dreams!Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Maura ChappelleMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

Apr 21, 2026
#85: "Brian Hebeaux" with Ben Hebert!
Apr 21, 2026
Apr 21, 2026
1hr 3 min
Gather round, Charm Family, as we welcome back charming guest Ben Hebert! We look back at one fascinating, fictional life in this fully improvised musical, complete with back row banjoes, scuffling siblings, ragtime romances, and more. Who will win Ben's love? Find out this week on Charm Scene!Ben Hebert is a Canadian curler, 2010 Winter Olympics and 2026 Winter Olympics gold medallist, 2008 and 2016 World Champion, and Five time Brier Champion from Chestermere, Alberta. In 2019, Hebert was named the greatest Canadian male lead in history in a TSN poll of broadcasters, reporters and top curlers.Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Ben HebertMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!

Apr 14, 2026
#84: "Mime Your Business" with Annie Farwell!
Apr 14, 2026
Apr 14, 2026
1hr 2 min
Tired of words in your podcast? Not enough mimes? Have we got the episode for you. Charming guest Annie Farwell joins us for our most descriptive improvised musical yet, complete with corporate clowns, mermaid minxes, objectional object work, and more. You're trapped in a box - with Charm Scene!Annie Farwell is a Chicago-based writer and performer, known for breaking in improv scenes and dancing whenever possible. She's Midwest as hell. To celebrate St. Paddy's a couple weeks ago, she drank a frozen Irish coffee before taking a stroll in 65 degree weather and had to go home due to heat exhaustion. Her family is her rock, as she's the proud auntie to three little rascals and the annoying little sister to two patient, much smarter sisters. Last year, Annie made her parents be the monologists in her self-produced improv show called Loveseat, where her parents told the story of how they met and how her mom is really good at basketball. You can catch her on Voila! The Improvised Musical (at various locations) or catch her in Marquee at the iO Theater!Cast: Lily Ludwig, Austin Packard, Annie FarwellMusic Director: Sam ScheidlerDrums: Chris DittonCharm Scene is performed entirely by humans in sunny Chicago, IL. For more on the podcast, follow us @CharmScenePod on Instagram, visit us online at charmscenepod.podbean.com, or email us at CharmScenePod@gmail.com. In listening to this show, we hope you continue to support live human art wherever you find it. Stay charming!






