Next warm-up, showcase opportunity

The next warm-up is scheduled for this Saturday from 1 to 5 PM at the Firehouse.

I got a call from a former actor's parent tonight, telling me a little about a neighborhood festival called Eaglemania. It's hosted by St. Jude Church, next to Parkview, and occurs on June 13th.

(Those in the know may say, "DUH! That's your church!" Bear with me.)

Apparently there will be a talent show at the festival, but the organizers are a little light on acts. So, I was asked, would I be interested in helping to provide a little something?

So, improv'ers: would you be interested in providing a sample of Improvysteria? Please let me know.

Upcoming dates

If you get your email, you could skip this entry... but then you might worry you missed something, so you'd better read it anyway.

Time for a warm-up! Jeannette says the Firehouse will be available Sunday afternoon 4/27... how does 1 - 4 PM sound? We could easily push it back to 2 - 5 or 3 - 6. We could shorten it if necessary, but I think the group will benefit from a nice long practice after so many short ones. Please let me know which time seems best.

"The Spoiled Baloney Man" opens May 3rd; Improvysteria will provide an opening act. Only a portion of the group will be needed for each show; I would appreciate knowing what dates you'd like to perform. Shows are May 3 and May 10 at 7 PM, and May 4 and May 11 at 3 PM.

Friday May 23rd is the tentative date for the next show. How's that date look for everyone?

Nice work

Improv'ers, nicely done at the last show... I heard many compliments from people who attended.

One gentleman told us he'd like to join up, so I invited him to the next warm-up. He was our contestant in the Dating Game and did improv in college, so the games are all familiar to him. He said he looks forward to working with us... I'd tell you his name, but then I'd have to kill you.

Will Sunday afternoon work for everyone? I know at least one person it will not, but please post a reply to let us know.

4/19 show

I think that post-show credentials and congratulations have become my department. Ashley gets the creativity department, Scott gets the business department, and I get the encouragement one! Ha.

Anyways, all that to say, the people who showed up to the show yesterday did great. Those people would be Tyler, Candace, Rebekah, Paul, Dennis, and myself. We also had a special guest during Good News, Bad News: Red Chaos herself! Unfortunately, she injured herself, and wasn't able to participate in the show. She was still a good sport, though, and we look forward to the next show she can be a part of.

For those of you who missed the show, we had a good round of What Are You Doing?; the finalists for that were Emily, Paul, and Dennis. New Choice, What Could Go Wrong?, Genre, and Eulogy all went well, also. Props was as memorable as always... however, I can't tell you what the prop was, since I still haven't figured out what that would be yet. >.> Our victor was me (Courtney), with Paul being a VERY close second. Everyone put forth a valiant effort!

We also played Superheroes. Ahh, the joys it brings. We had two rounds, the first one being quite funny, with Paul being our evil villain. Bubble Woman (me), Mispronunciation Man (Tyler), and Crepe Lady (Emily) were able to defeat the devious Nutritious Breakfast Man, and bring eggs back into our lives.
In round two, I started out as Stinky Janitor Woman. I called upon the help of the Pregnant Man (Paul), who in turn called on Whale Lady (Emily). Whale Lady brought forth Tyler; however, he did NOT play a villain, but a superhero! Who was our true villain, then? They united to turn the tables around, which forced me to reveal my true evil intentions. It was entirely unexpected, but still highly enjoyable.

As a closer, Ashley brought up Scott, Tyler, Joey D., Paul, and myself to do a few games with Evolution Improv. Among the games played were Moving People, the Dating Game (which featured Andy, who later complimented the group), Press Conference, and as a special treat, Three-Headed Oracle. That segment went very well, and there were tons of laughs.

All in all, we had a great show, and I wish more of you could've been a part of it. As for the ones who were there, keep up the good work, and I can't wait to see you all at the next warm-up.

P.S., Sorry for posting this a little late; I had it in draft for a while. Well.....voila!

-Courtney

In regards to April 19th show....

Hi everyone,

Sorry this came late. This is being sent by e-mail, blogger, myspace, and whatever else I can use to reach you all. Joey D has just informed me that he is going to be recording the April 19th show. Not just his set, but all of ours. This taping of the show is going to be seen by some very important people that can get Joey D a big break. But this can also get us some recognition as well. But he has also expressed some concerns in regards to idle people on stage not playing any of the games being a bit unprofessional. What does that mean? It means doing commentary during the games about the performers, challenging the host's decision, and interrupting the host. This is a chance for a cross-promotional opportunity that can prove beneficial for both him and us. He is counting on you guys to be professional and behave.

If you guys do your best to behave I will make it up to you. On my mother's good name, I will. Please don't act up during the show. This not only goes for you guys, but for everyone else involved.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns please call myself or Scott.

Getting ready...

Those of you planning to perform at the next show, please arrive at the Firehouse this coming Saturday evening by 5 PM so we can do a quick warm-up. Confirm with us as soon as you can if you're coming, please; it will be useful for Ashley and me to know who to expect to show up.

Last warm-up was sparsely attended; I was unable to reach some of you by phone, and some have conflicts I know about. Please check the blog regularly for the next warm-up!!

Though attendance was small, we did some good work: we played a few rounds of Press Conference, ran through some oldies but goodies and even tried out Good/Bad/Worst for the first time in a while. Also our newest improv'er got roasted in Good News/Bad News.

The schedule for Saturday: meet at 5 PM, work for a while, break to eat, then prep the theater for the show. At 7, Joey D will open the show and perform some magic, then Improvysteria performs. Lastly, depending on the atmosphere, Evolution may play a couple of games. (Yay!)

Okay? Those of you who don't email, if you haven't gotten a phone message, call me or Ashley and we'll fill you in. I look forward to seeing you Saturday!

Guidelines for next show

Okay, a few things you should know from Ashley and me:

One, the Three Warm-up Rule™ is in effect, except that we won't have three warm-ups before the next show; so please attend the next two warm-ups.

Warm-ups are next Sunday, April 13, 12:30 - 2:00 PM and a week from Saturday, April 19 at 5 PM (right before the show -- Ashley will not be there at 5 PM, I will run a few games until Ashley arrives).

Another item: idle improv'ers should not be chatting on stage while other improv'ers are performing!! This is unprofessional and does not help the group as a whole look good.

Finally: if the group continues to grow, it is entirely possible that not all improv'ers will perform. We want everyone to get as much stage time as possible, but that sometimes means that people do not get enough time to satisfy them. I don't think this is an issue for the coming show, but it MAY BE. Stay posted for updates!

Please tell Ash & me (here OR via email) what you think about these items, make suggestions if desired and/or criticize, we can take it.

(Well... actually I haven't been feeling very... strong, lately... :::sniff:::)

Oh, and one last note: would anyone's parents be willing to contribute a little time, in the way of helping us setup for the show, run snack bar etc.?

Theater games tonight

As most of you are aware, one of the local newspapers mistakenly wrote that there would be a performance of The Wizard of Oz at the Firehouse tonight. Jeannette would like to put on a show of theater games, and asked Ashley and I to organize it.

I called around to Improvysteria members, to see who can attend: the only definite no's are Tyfry and Tim. If you're coming, please arrive by 6 PM (if you can) so we can prep.

I recommended to Ash and JJ that we should not advertise this as an "official" Improvysteria show, although I think it should be mentioned that members of the group are taking part.

Hope to see you tonight!

Next show

Folks,

I scheduled the group to perform at the Firehouse on the evening of Saturday, April 19. Any problems with that date? Please let me or Ashley know.

Performance on 3/29

Hey peeps!-

First of all, congratulations on a job well done yesterday! By the end of the night, my throat hurt from laughing so hard! Everyone has really improved from when we first started.
Also, there was no drama that occurred. If memory serves me correctly...that's the first show we've been able to accomplish that. I'm glad that people have been able to mature! (Yes, I know, I'm not always the most mature, either. Bear with me.)

Superheroes went fantastic both times. Putting Merillyn, Tyler, Tim, and Dennis on the stage together...that was priceless. ^_^ Everyone did a great job with that!
I've heard a few people say they enjoyed 'Good News, Bad News'. Is that going to become a regular game? I hope so!

Congratulations to Emily, who won 'What Are You Doing?'; and to Merillyn, who won 'Props'. You guys did great with that!

Kudos to Joey D. for a great opening act! Will he be joining us again in the future?

This is all I really have to say for now. In a nutshell.... that was the best performance I've seen from Improvysteria. Let's keep up the good work.

-Courtney

Next show date

Jeannette worked out the issue with her schedule, and our show goes on as planned. Yay!

The email is going out shortly, but meanwhile I'll tell you:

JJ is changing the schedule for her next show at the Firehouse, and she asked whether we might consider moving our show (now scheduled at 7 PM, Saturday March 29) to Friday, March 28.

I told her it depends on the participants. I dislike having to change, but it's her venue and her decision.

So: would Friday, March 28 at 7 PM work for you all? PLMK (please let me know).

March 29th Show

Well this is the opportunity we need to get on the ball with trying to do more shows. Now here's the thing I want to throw out there. I know there was talk of a show on March 21st, but that got shot down.

1. The show date is March 29th. It will probably be 7:00 p.m. like most shows that we've done.
2. Depending on the size of available people would there be a split of people performing the first and second half? Who all would be available? I will e-mail this to you all and see. Plus, we will be having a meeting sometime soon I'm sure.
3. Would you also like to share the stage with Joey D again as a special guest?

I also has some other things to share with you all, but I will need to e-mail them to you all. Also I will see about making an improv archive to put games in that we can play, but don't need any explaining. Bye.

Kudos

Well done folks! Some of the stuff I saw last night was as good as any show I've seen.

Briefly, I appreciate the fact that, though the show was rated "PG," no one went too far. (Although how did transvestism become a gag? Someone explain that to me!!)

It's a lot of fun playing on the edge, though, isn't it?

I look forward to our next warm-up.

Show date!

Okay folks, good work this past Sunday! I especially appreciate how well everyone worked together, not only to perform scenes but also to help clean up at the end.

As you know, you are scheduled to appear at the Firehouse this Friday. I distributed posters via email, and on this blog (look to your left under "Upcoming Show"); stacks of papers will follow ASAP.

Get the word out please! I'd suuure like to see this show make money. (Not like I'll see any of it, but...)