Midlands Improv

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Moving day

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http://midlandsimprov.com/

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Review - Knightmare Live: Level II

This performance contained wonderful moments of improvisation mixed in with an overall storyline that is the same from show to show.  A great joy.

The show is based on the TV series Knightmare, where contestants travelled through a dungeon meeting strange characters and solving puzzles.  In the theatre the contestants are pre-selected audience members and the stage is filled with new props and actors each time they solve a puzzle.  On stage, as with the TV show, the host is Treguard.  He knows all of the dungeon’s secrets and escorts both contestants and the audience smoothly through proceedings.

Using audience members on stage means the show has to change each time it is performed.  The solution to each puzzle is always the same, but the fun is in seeing how this group of adventurers go about solving it.  All the performers have to react to what’s really happening in front of them.  Their objective might be to help the dungeoneers or hinder them, but either way they can’t follow a pre-determined script.

The audience are involved in the show too.  Shouting out suggestions for what should happen on stage, helping to solve the puzzles, and even offering items to help the adventurers on their quest.  The dungeoneer Adele had to sing and draw to get her choice of a David-Bowie-inspired lighting bolt and a bright red beer hat.  The beer hat came in useful in the later room when she gave it as a gift to a floating head in order to get deeper into the dungeon.  

The flexibility in the performers and the engagement of the audience meant even the unintentional mistakes were a delight.  When a mandolin was left on stage and misinterpreted as a possible clue, Tregard whipped it away so he could play a little tune.  When a heartbeat sound effect wasn’t played over the speakers, the audience stamped their feet in rhythm to simulate the effect.  In another setting these mistakes would take us out of the show, reminding us that we were seeing a rehearsed piece that had gone wrong somehow.  In Knightmare Live, embracing these small failures made the experience unique and brought audience and performers closer together.

Knightmare Live will return for Level III at the Edinburgh Fringe

http://www.knightmarelive.com/

Keep up to date with all improvised theatre & comedy shows in the Midlands

https://www.facebook.com/midlandsimprov/         @midlands_improv 

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Review - Freewheelers - Jan 2016

When you go to a Freewheelers show you get a sneak peak into the future.  This is the place improvisers come to try out their ideas for the first time in public, polishing games and formats.  Anything that succeeds here will become a feature of paid shows at other venues.  But at Freewheelers you get to see the show for free.

The biggest experiment of the night was OneProv, where a performer takes to the stage and plays all the characters in a single scene.  The three improvisers on tonight had been developing this idea for a while and were now ready for audience feedback.  We saw Darth Vader chastising a German stormtrooper for calling the Death Star “groovy”, a relationship falling apart as the guy realised his girlfriend cared more about the cat, and a Carry-on-esque scene aboard a cruise ship.  Each scene was great fun, and surprisingly strong considering it was the first time in public.

The longest piece of the night was by the Kneejerks, a 20 minute piece with a variety of scenes all set in the same world.  Starting with two old timers in a pub having just been released from jail, we saw one of them land a successful publishing career while the other missed their company.  The publisher was trapped in a desperately empty relationship with a cactus-loving husband who had no idea how bored she was, horribly painful in real life but played out hilariously on stage.  Two brothers, one bold and the other timid, swapped roles as the piece developed, the former failing to win a big contract and the latter taking up parkour.  The wife of the free-runner was not happy with this change, suggesting perhaps he should start seeing other women on the side just to use up some of his energy.  When even that didn’t work, she went for a drink with her jailbird grandmother who we met in the very first scene.  And all of this came from the single audience suggestion of the word “pub”.

In between the exciting new work there were some classic improv games.  My favourite, pan left, involved four performers on stage playing two-person scenes back to back in quick succession.  These games are the reliable mortar holding the newly-formed improv bricks together, highlighting the skills of those on stage and providing light and easy fun for all involved. 

Lee Dempsey, organiser and MC of Freewheelers, has created a new type of improv show to help the art form grow in the Midlands.  Long may it continue.

Freewheelers runs the first Wednesday of every month, upstairs at Cherry Reds, John Bright Street, Birmingham city centre.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Freewheelersimprov/

[midlands-improv-blog]

Gig Guide February 2016

3rd - Freewheelers, Cherry Reds

Free comedy improv showcase where groups, pairs and solo performers try out new games and material.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Freewheelersimprov/

6th - Showstopper! The Improvised Musical, Lichfield Garrick

A brand new musical comedy is created from scratch at each performance of this award-winning show.  Time Out Critics Choice * * * * *

http://www.theshowstoppers.org/showstopper-the-improvised-musical/

7th - Fat Penguin, Pat Kavanagh

Come and see a group of new and experienced improvisers play daft games from Whose Line is it Anyway and beyond!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/301055633289083/

12th - Wow Impro, Esquires Coffee House

Free comedy night from Coventry-based improv troupe

https://twitter.com/wowimpro

15th - Box of Frogs, Blue Orange Theatre

All your favourite improv games, unrehearsed and improvised entirely live.  Absolutely free, with their usual cast iron guarantee – ‘laugh, or your money back!’

https://boxoffrogsimpro.wordpress.com/performances/toadally-free-shows/

25th - The Noise Next Door, Burton Brewhouse

A night of mind-blowing songs, jaw-dropping characters and side-splitting punchlines from the undisputed masters of off-the-cuff comedy.  “Comedy Gold” The Guardian

http://www.thenoisenextdoor.co.uk/events/

25th - Ministry of Improv, Old Joint Stock

Midlands Charity Improv Spectacular - A whole range of different improv styles from games to short plays - all fueled by your suggestions and our imaginations

http://ministryofimprov.co.uk/

26th - Austentatious, MAC

An entirely improvised comedy play in the style of the wondrous & witty Jane Austen, based on nothing more than a title from the audience.

http://austentatiousimpro.com/

27th - Frenzy, Mockingbird Theatre

More than 30 improvisers will do what they do best (improv) for your baying entertainment for more than 10 hours. Well, exactly 10 hours. It's going to be marathon of giggles.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1545715515745755/

[midlands-improv-blog]

Review - Box of Frogs - Toadally Free Comedy 

Box of Frogs produced a bumper Christmas show at the Blue Orange Theatre, pleasing a large audience with a collection of comedy sketches.  This is the best free night out in Birmingham by far.

The evening was compered by Jay, a professional stand up comedian who engaged with the audience so well that they were laughing before any of the sketches began.  He outlined the rules for each sketch - for example, we have an expert being interviewed - and then asked the audience to add in the details.  In this performance the audience suggested an expert in cabbages, and the interview revealed just how envious cabbages are of sprouts at Christmas.  

The great thing with any sketch show is variety, and there was a huge amount on offer in this show.  Wordplay, ridiculous situations, poetry, physical comedy, singing, unusual accents, comments on gender equality and silly dancing were all used to entertain a packed house.  This means there really is something for every audience member, and it would be a challenge to not laugh at some point in the two hour show.  

A significant section of the crowd had not seen any improvised comedy before.  Reviews posted on meetup.com show it went down well:

hilarious

superb night...great entertainment

FAB ! Also extremely talented. Thanks for the laughs xx :-) 

Box Of Frogs perform at the Blue Orange Theatre on the third Monday of every month.  

https://boxoffrogsimpro.wordpress.com/performances/toadally-free-shows/

[midlands-improv-blog]

Review - Foghorn Unscripted - What the Dickens?

Foghorn provide a great intro to improvised theatre.  Meeting the audience at the door, explaining at the start that they won’t pick on anybody to make the audience feel safe, and working hard as a team to put on a great show.  I laughed in every scene.

A young Charles Dickens introduced the show explaining he needed help with his next story, like where it should be set and which character he should focus on.  He did a great job of reminding the audience of the plot threads to be resolved, reinforcing the strong storytelling abilities of the group.

Particular highlights in this show were Gwendolyn, a wonderful character who whimpered her way through life hiding behind a veil, and the moment her fiance carelessly walked over her body when she eventually passed away from TB.  Baron McNaughtyness, the main character of the tale as selected by the audience, was also strong and his high status came out time and again when dealing with underlings.  I was also impressed by the variety displayed by the performers, being silly in some scenes and moving the plot forward in others.  I enjoyed watching the cast all have fun together, seeing them make each other laugh and stretching scenes to breaking point.  The best of example of this was at Gwendolyn’s wake, when the guests were much more interested in the food than the death that had occurred.

Foghorn are next performing at the MAC on 23 January.

http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/foghorn-dickens/

[midlands-improv-blog]

Gig guide Jan 2016

6th - Freewheelers, Cherry Reds

Free comedy improv showcase where groups, pairs and solo performers try out new games and material.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/Freewheelersimprov/

10th - Fat Penguin, Pat Kavanagh

Come and see a group of new and experienced improvisers play daft games from Whose Line is it Anyway and beyond!

https://www.facebook.com/groups/301055633289083/

14th & 15th - Knightmare Live, MAC

A live stage adaption of the cult kids TV show Knightmare, featuring teams guiding an audience member through the epic dungeon.  The Independent * * * *

http://www.knightmarelive.com/

15th - Wow Impro, Esquires Coffee House

Free comedy night from Coventry-based improv troupe

https://twitter.com/wowimpro

15th - Ministry of Improv, Old Joint Stock

Laugh yourself thin - sketches & games to help with your New Year resolutions

http://ministryofimprov.co.uk/

18th - Box of Frogs, Blue Orange Theatre

All your favourite improv games, unrehearsed and improvised entirely live.  Absolutely free, with their usual cast iron guarantee – ‘laugh, or your money back!’

https://boxoffrogsimpro.wordpress.com/performances/toadally-free-shows/

23rd - Foghorn Unscripted - What the Dickens, MAC

The World of Charles Dickens has never been more interactive and fun, than in this fast moving, audience lead, made up comedy romp. StageTalkMagazine * * * * * 

http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/foghorn-dickens/

29th - The Noise Next Door, Bromsgrove Artrix

A night of mind-blowing songs, jaw-dropping characters and side-splitting punchlines from the undisputed masters of off-the-cuff comedy.  “Comedy Gold” The Guardian

http://www.thenoisenextdoor.co.uk/events/

30th - Showstopper! The Improvised Musical, MAC

A brand new musical comedy is created from scratch at each performance of this award-winning show.  Time Out Critics Choice * * * * *

http://www.theshowstoppers.org/showstopper-the-improvised-musical/