Lauren Lapkus

“Doing 'Comedy Bang! Bang!,' you have to play at the top of your abilities, so it is so fun to get that opportunity. I've grown a lot as a performer just working with those guys.”

“I've done 70 different characters on my podcast. But in terms of characters that I revisit a lot, I think there are 10 that I know more in-depth.”

“I love creating characters that are ridiculous and flawed. To me, the most important thing about comedy is the joy it can bring to the performers and the audience alike. I love making people laugh and not over-thinking things. Some of my favorite moments are when I am doing an improv scene with friends, and I can't stop laughing during it.”

“Society is really coming to a point where they're not asking if women can be funny anymore. We all know they obviously are.”

“I'm really thankful for my improv background.”

“I'm a huge 'Bachelor' fan!”

“I love watching 'The Real Housewives of New York.' That's my guilty pleasure. But I don't even feel guilty. I can just watch it, zone out, and forget about my problems.”

“I kind of see it as my personal therapy to get on stage and do characters.”

“The audition process for 'Are You There, Chelsea?' was overwhelming and exciting. It was my first pilot season and one of the first pilots I auditioned for.”

“The podcasts that keep my attention are those where I can feel the hosts and guests are enjoying themselves or are really passionate about the subject matter.”

“I had always done broader characters, but going to UCB and speaking to my own voice was important for auditioning for TV and film.”

“I had a teacher who recommended I take improv classes in Chicago - I'm from Evanston, Illinois - so I did improv classes at Improv Olympic, and that kind of opened me up.”

“I feel like that would be pretty strange to meet a voice actor as a kid.”

“You can't really get as much done when you're worried about looking gross.”

“It's really fun to play a character that fights back and say what she means.”

“I did a number of local children's theater plays growing up, but in 5th grade, I had some good times on stage making people laugh as a troll in 'The Hobbit.' That solidified my dream to be on 'Saturday Night Live,' which was hugely influential for me growing up.”

“The secret to podcast success is sticking with it and making it fun for yourself.”

“I think I was always a class clown growing up and a funny kid. I never really knew how to channel that until I got into high school.”

“Improv changed my life in the best way. I gained so much confidence and really learned how to use my sense of humor to do something other than make sarcastic comments to the TV, though that remains one of my best skills. I stayed in Chicago for college mainly to continue doing improv, which was an awesome decision for me.”

“I would really like to create my own show. And I really wanna meet Oprah.”