Improv Review ...Because Improv is Art, Dammit

Improv with karaoke songs. The format seems pretty simple except in the hands of these otherwise capable improvisors. After wasting a great deal of time telling us that they will be performing karaoke songs, and then riffing off of them, in way too many words, they finally cut to the chase and sang. The songs themselves portrayed everything that is bad about karaoke, and as they are just being used as set-up for a series of scenes might have been cut a bit shorter. Once the scenes got started, the audience became painfully aware of why so much time, energy and thought went into the set-up.

The four improvisors who performed had some obvious talent, and committed very well to the characters they created, but the scenes they formed were largely hit and miss. Opening with a very literal minded scene based on the song “Sweet Home Alabama,” they didn’t instill too much confidence. That scene was followed by a scene about a man running for governor that displayed some great wit, and fine cooperation. When the constituency insisted that the man could not run against Jesus (no matter how much cake he had), they took up the cry of “Give us Barabbas!” It was a wise and funny scene.

Some scenes moved quickly and organically while some plodded along, and those that were less successful fell due to the players letting their egos get in the way. Many lines were stepped on, and strong offers became muddy. Because of the fine sense of comedy these improvisors had, they would probably have been much better off dropping the gimmick, getting a song title, and starting from there. It also would have gotten the huge, obstructive TV off the stage.

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