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<p>Entries in Improv (73)</p>
<p>Thursday Jul 29 2010  DEL CLOSE MARATHON XII CHEAT SHEET</p>
<p>Thursday, July 29, 2010 at 11:29AM</p>

<p>Neil Casey, Kat Toledo and Bobby Moynihan at DCM X | Photo: Eric Appel Here's probably the best tip for anyone attending DCM XII: There will always be something funnier happening on some other stage. You simply can't see it all, so there's no point kvetching about it in line. Like a great improv scene, true DCM enjoyment comes from discovering and witnessing an awesome improv moment when you least expect it. Yes, there are shows worth sitting "criss-cross-applesauce" for three hours and suffering deep-vein thrombosis, but there are also random shows at random hours that will rock your face off. My favorite example is the Death by Roo Roo show at 6AM Sunday, probably seven years ago, when the boys burst forth from backstage, screaming at the audience to wake up before launching into scenes involving a "Guido Greedo," serial-killer roommates and a plumber who gets sexually harassed by a series of residents, each of whom takes a turn sitting in one chair. I cackled punch-drunkenly at Neil Casey, getting tagged to get up from the seat: "Yeah, yeah, I'll get up. If only so it'll move things along!" -- Keith Huang and Lucas Hazlett</p>

<p>*  Best Ironic Use of an OSCAR NOMINEE'S NAME</p>
<p>*  The BEST OF THE BEST from UCB East to UCB West</p>
<p>* Fifteen Minutes STUCK INSIDE A WHALE, What More Need Be Said?</p>
<p>* CHICAGO'S FINEST IMPROVISERS Show Why the Second City Might Still Be First</p>
<p>* Best Show to Help Nurse Your WEEKEND HANGOVER</p>
<p>*</p>
<p>* Click to read more ...</p>

<p>keithhuang | 6 Comments | 3 References tagged Del Close Marathon 12 in Improv Wednesday Jul 28 2010  DEL CLOSE MARATHON XII IS UPON US...</p>
<p>Wednesday, July 28, 2010 at 10:00AM  Design by Dyna Moe and Steve Dressler</p>

<p>The Del Close Marathon XII descends upon Metropolis once again this weekend. Starting at 4:30PM on Friday, improvisers from around the world will feel like King Théoden in The Two Towers, muttering: "And so it begins..."</p>

<p>Although the stats are the same -- more than 150 shows in one weekend -- this year's festival feels bigger, faster, funnier and sweatier than years past. I'm not sure how that works, I just know that it does. To kick things off, I found a Random Time/Date Generator on the Web, plugged in the festival's start and finish time and came up with the following date and time slots. I asked a representative from these shows to answer the following question:</p>

<p>Why should I come to your show?</p>

<p>31-Jul-2010 22:27:14 - "We're giving out free champagne (not a bit) and we're one of the only groups that will be doing a Harold." --Winston Noel, RAGNARÖCK</p>

<p>31-Jul-2010 19:28:37 - "You should come to our show because you will never see bongos used this fast and this way again." --Clay Foltz, Loser Josh</p>

<p>31-Jul-2010 14:34:23 - "The first thing you notice about Donut Video is that no two members are alike; physically or in their comedy stylings. Though all trained in improv at UCBLA and iO West, they have also ventured out into the worlds of stand up, sketch and physical comedy/clowning. If you hate awesomeness, good times, laughter and fun, please do not come see our show. Instead, use that half hour to reevaluate your life. " --Sonny Dominguez, Donut Video</p>

<p>31-Jul-2010 10:26:52 - "Daddy is filled with veteran UCB improvisers who are probably going to get naked, and that is what you want to see early Sunday morning." --Zhubin Parang, Daddy</p>

<p>01-Aug-2010 00:19:27 - "Belmont Transfer is High-Quality, Deep-Dish, Fast-Paced, Weird Improv from Chicago that'll satisfy you sexually or at least make you giggle." --Peter Robards, The Belmont Transfer</p>

<p>31-Jul-2010 07:13:42 - "Never shying away from the absurd, lewd, or awkward-these Fish take a swim through your subconscious and leave you dying to sleep with them." --Stefanie Grassley, Fish Is Fish</p>

<p>...more to come</p>

<p>keithhuang | Post a Comment | 1 Reference tagged Del Close Marathon 12 in Improv Tuesday Jul 27 2010  Inside With: John Lutz and Peter Grosz</p>
<p>Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 5:16PM</p>

<p>By: Paul Gale</p>

<p>In honor of the the last performance of "2 Square" at The UCBT-NY, before Peter Grosz moves to the Sunset Strip--or somewhere near there--I spoke with former Colbert Report writer Grosz and his "2 Square," partner in crime, 30 Rock's John Lutz, about their beginnings, their motivations, and, for a brief moment, pizza. The interview was conducted individually through email, so keep in mind that John didn't have the opportunity to retort. Enjoy!</p>

<p>When and where did you each start performing comedy?</p>

<p>John Lutz: I did a few plays in high school. The first big part I had was in "The Foreigner." For my audition, I had to tell the story of "The Three Little Pigs," in gibberish. It was really fun and I didn't have to memorize any lines.</p>

<p>Peter Grosz: I started in college. Took classes at iO starting in April of 1995, then that fall I was cast in the Mee-Ow show, Northwestern’s sketch and improv show. From that point on, no other career option had a chance. Also, I had stopped paying attention in class.</p>

<p>What were you looking for when you began studying improvisation?</p>

<p>Lutz: I saw an improv set at Second City and it looked like the most fun you could ever have. I wanted to learn how to be that funny right off the top of my head. Once I started, I thought I would be great at it right away. I was wrong. I found it very hard at first. I had to learn to do good improv and let the funny come, rather than trying for a quick laugh. Charna stopped me five or six times in my first scene because it was going so poorly.</p>

<p>Grosz: Attention. I really just wanted to be funny in front of an audience and had no idea what it took. I liked making jokes with my friends, and figured there wasn’t much of a difference. But I failed three times at my Mee-Ow auditions, so I asked someone how I could learn how to improvise. He told me to go to iO, and I realized there was way more to it than I thought.</p>

<p>When did you two first meet?</p>

<p>Lutz: I'm not 100% sure, but I think it was when I had to miss one of my level 3 classes and I sat in on the class Pete was in. I think Seth Meyers was also in that class.</p>

<p>Grosz: John (as he so rarely is) is right about that. It was in that class. Wow. I still can’t believe he got that right. I need to take a minute.</p>

<p>Did it take a while for you to hit it off creatively?</p>

<p>Lutz: We really didn't work together until "JTS Brown," which I joined after the group was already formed. What was that… 1998? 1999? I was also Pete's replacement in Greenco., a Second City Touring Company, and his understudy for his Second City ETC shows. The universe just kept throwing us together. Pete weighs less than me, so I think the universe kept throwing him a little farther ahead.</p>

<p>Grosz: I remember liking him a lot in that class, and liking what he did onstage with Valhalla, but JTS was the first place that we really got a chance to work together. And the reason John can’t remember when the show ran is because we started rehearsing in the fall of 1998, and didn’t put up shows until the spring of 2000 for only 6 months. Yeah. 18 months for a 6 month run. It was a little ridiculous, but I think the results were worth it.</p>

<p>I know you were both in "JTS Brown." Do you think that "2 Square" was more successful than "4 Square" and "JTS Brown" because of numbers, or experience? Does the intimacy of two players make it easier to stay on the same wavelength?</p>

<p>Lutz: Personally, "4 Square" was more successful than any of them. "JTS Brown" had twelve or thirteen people in it, which was too many, in my opinion (all great performers, but just too many!). "2 Square," keeps you on your toes because it's just the two of you. But when all four of the squares are together, there is nothing like it. We all bring something a little different. It really balances out the shows. All four of us got together in LA a few months back and put a show up at the Second City space out there. It was like we never stopped performing together. The only thing that was different was that we all got a little winded doing our warm up. We are old.</p>

<p>Grosz: "4 Square" is the most successful. "2 Square" is the most difficult and JTS was the most unpredictable. It was madness and genius, sometimes within the same show. But "4 Square" has the best chance of being really great and often was. A really tight, focused version of JTS – which was the reason for creating "4 Square" in the first place.</p>

<p>Click to read more ...</p>

<p>The Apiary | Post a Comment | 5 References tagged 30 Rock , Colbert Report , John Lutz , Peter Grosz in EXCLUSIVELY at The Apiary , Improv , Interviews Monday Jul 26 2010  Ask For It By Name: John Swist for JetBlue</p>
<p>Monday, July 26, 2010 at 11:13PM  John Swist | Photo courtesy of JetBlue</p>

<p>> "When people come into an improv class, they're reminded of what recess is like. That feeling of running with reckless abandon, only we don't do that physically. We do that here, with our imaginations."</p>

<p>I know John Swist as a regular denizen of New York's improv ghetto: I've seen him roll up on his bike to catch Super Free Wednesday, have spotted him in the standby line on 28th Street and seen him work out his improv muscles in the Drop-In classes at The Magnet and Simple Studios. At heart, he's just another improv geek. But what's more is that he has been studying and teaching improv for well over two decades. And like all the best improvisers, he'll readily admit that he's still learning. Just watch this JetBlue advertisement, in which he succinctly describes improv and its enduring appeal. --Keith Huang</p>

<p>RELATED</p>

<p>* John Swist was recently named a Favorite Improv Class/Teacher in Backstage's NYC Readers' Choice Awards.</p>

<p>keithhuang | 1 Comment | 7 References tagged JetBlue , John Swist , QuickThinking! Improv in Ask For It By Name , Improv Tuesday Jul 20 2010  IMPROV TO GET EXCITED ABOUT</p>
<p>Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 2:00PM</p>

<p>Nicole Byer, Keisha Zollar and Sasheer Zamata are Doppleganger | Photo: Keith Huang</p>

<p>By: Lucas Hazlett</p>

<p>Every year the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre hosts Cagematch, a long-running improv competition where UCB Harold teams and indie groups compete head-to-head with the winner determined by audience votes. So far this season, a triumvirate of ladies (Nicole Byer, Sasheer Zamata and Keisha Zollar) called Doppelganger have made a name for themselves by defeating a pair of UCB Harold teams and accumulating the fourth highest "Votes Per Show" margin in the tournament's history. I spoke with the ladies about their Cagematch experience and what it's like to be a black women in the predominantly white, male New York City-improv scene.</p>

<p>How did you guys meet and form Doppelganger?</p>
<p>SASHEER: We met last year through the [UCB] diversity program. Nicole and I had the same mentor [Christine Nangle]. I met Keisha through the diversity meetings as well. After Harold team auditions we were all texting each other, "Did you make it? Did you make it?" [ed's note: They didn't]. We started talking about getting more active and doing more shows.</p>

<p>What's the origin of your name?</p>
<p>KEISHA: Originally our name was "Rainy Boots." I think what happened is we each had a story about being mistaken for each other. I thought it would be funny to call ourselves Doppelganger because the only reason we were mistaken for each other is we're black girls who do improv!</p>

<p>Most teams in the UCB community perform the Harold or whatever form is en vogue, which lately seems to be monoscenes. What do you guys do in your shows?</p>
<p>SASHEER: We do a Deconstruction with organic transitions. [Our coach] Ashley Ward saw us do [an improv exercise called "Follow the Follower"] and she was like, "Why don't you just do that in your show?"</p>
<p>KEISHA: The most important thing for us is that we have fun and have fun with each other...organically.</p>

<p>What were your thoughts when you defeated a UCB house team in your first CageMatch appearance?</p>
<p>NICOLE (laughing): I was really excited because I don't think anyone anticipated us doing it. And I don't think anyone thought we were going to win by the amount we won by [Doppleganger def. Badman, 97-63]. It meant a lot to me personally because three of the team members were my coaches for a long time. It was nice to show them that they did teach me well.</p>
<p>KEISHA: Someone actually said to me, "When I first saw you three black girls step on stage I thought you could never be funny, and then when you killed it, I had nothing but respect for you."</p>

<p>How has being black and female helped, hurt or frustrated your experiences in classes and performing?</p>
<p>SASHEER: It has hindered people from saying certain things to me as a character, or they will say it but they won't realize what they're saying. I was in a scene where a Hitler class president was classifying people in groups, "We'll put the blacks over there and the Jews over here." As soon as he said that everybody in the front row looked at me. I was like, "I'm not even in the scene! Calm down!"</p>
<p>NICOLE: I don't think being black or a woman has hindered me, or helped me, only because I'm so aggressive I make myself the man most of the time. I play dudes most of the time and I very rarely play black people. Except for once in 101, someone named me Bo'quetha but then I was like "Hey Buffonda," so we were both black people. [Everyone laughs].</p>
<p>KEISHA: Being a part of a female group of strong black women has really helped me to see that my voice is just as valid. If there can be all male groups, why can't I be in an all black female group?</p>

<p>What would your ideal community look like if it were perfectly diverse?</p>
<p>NICOLE: Like a bag of Special Edition M&Ms.</p>

<p>* THE PLUG: Don't miss Doppleganger defending their Cagematch title THURS, JULY 22 @ 11PM at The UCBT-NY.</p>
<p>* Official Web site</p>

<p>-- Lucas is a comedy geek who improvises with anyone he can. He can be seen Sat, July 24, with Nobody's Token at The UCBT-NY.</p>

<p>keithhuang | Post a Comment | 3 References tagged Cagematch , Doppleganger , Improv , UCBT-NY in Improv Tuesday Jul 13 2010  Diamond Lion @ UCBT-NY - 7.12.10</p>
<p>Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 10:18AM  Eliza Skinner & Mike Still (and "Beeper" the Moustache) | Photo: Keith Huang</p>

<p>By: Lucas Hazlett</p>

<p>Last night's Diamond Lion show at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre was a hilarious sampling of unusual worlds as explored by improvisers who perform regularly with legendary musical troupe Baby Wants Candy.</p>

<p>Somewhere between Eliza Skinner's mastery of the musical form and Thomas Middleditch's inspired lunacy exist a recently shaved mustache in search of adventure, Seinfeld porn, calendars blocked off for "Sandwich Week," and rapping bar patrons reminiscing about the weird accoutrements (nipple tassles and monkey feet!) left behind by their erstwhile fathers. All set to song. Amazing.</p>

<p>-- Lucas is a comedy geek who improvises with anyone he can. He can be seen Fri, July 16, guesting with Centralia at The Peoples Improv Theatre, and also performing with Nobody's Token at The UCBT-NY on July 24.</p>

<p>keithhuang | Post a Comment | 9 References tagged Diamond Lion , Improv , UCBT-NY in Improv Thursday Apr 29 2010  IMPROV TO GET EXCITED ABOUT</p>
<p>Thursday, April 29, 2010 at 11:01AM  Smirk will be among the 96 teams performing at Up the Creek Improv Camp | Photo: James Robilotta</p>

<p>GIVE ME BACK MY SON! For New York's indiest improv nerds, this weekend commemorates the third bi-annual "Up the Creek Improv Camp," also known as The Longest Three-Day Stretch of Driving Imaginary Cars and Digging Imaginary Holes With Imaginary Shovels. Hosted by The Creek and The Cave, the sweetest little duplex bar-performance space in Long Island City, the improv romp will feature 96 of New York's best and brightest indie teams (the generic term for an improv group that isn't affiliated with or hosted by any particular theater). As far as the festival goes -- think SXSW for long-form improv.</p>

<p>* Weekend Lineups: Friday | Saturday | Sunday</p>

<p>keithhuang | Post a Comment tagged Improv , The Creek in Improv Monday Mar 01 2010  Del Close Marathon 12 Announced</p>
<p>Monday, March 1, 2010 at 6:07PM  The 12th Annual Del Close Marathon is on for July 30th through August 1st and will once again feature hundreds of performers and special shows and workshops across multiple stages with the UCB Theatre and New York City as its backdrop.</p>

<p>The emailbox is now open for group and show submissions to this premier comedy megaevent. For complete guidelines and an application, go to www.delclosemarathon.com. The deadline for consideration is May 3.</p>

<p>The Apiary | Post a Comment | 3 References tagged Del Close Marathon 12 in Improv Page 1 2 3 4 5 ... 10 Next 8 Entries » Copyright © 2011, [theapiary.org]. All rights reserved.</p>