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Armando Diaz' Evente (Chicago)
CIF Showcase - Atheneum Theater
Friday, April 5, 10:30 pm
Reviewed by Jonathan Bender
When you take a cast of improvisational all-stars from Chicago and put them on one stage, it is easy to see that city still holds arguably the greatest collection of improv talent in the world. I have seen very few shows in which the group manages to negotiate cuts and scene work with equal skill, but the players of Armando Diaz' Evente were dedicated to creating a tight performance.
The group received the suggestion of "retirement party" and revolved their scenes around a family getting ready to celebrate the matriarch's retirement as CEO of Kraft Foods. The group employed flashbacks, asides, and callbacks to further the plot and introduce new characters; however, they avoided the use of gimmicks and only inserted these devices when it seemed a natural point to introduce a relationship or to further explain the dynamics of a character.
The true strength of this group was how well they listened. They nailed everything from entrances and exits to the names of characters in callbacks. A player arriving from offstage provided whatever was required for a scene immediately. Moreover, the players were adept at getting each other in trouble and recognizing those moments. The husband's lap-dancing performance at the retirement party was seen by his father, an army general, several scenes after the son had reluctantly agreed to the dance. Meanwhile it was noted how disappointed his dad would be if he knew that his son was lap dancing again.
Armando Diaz' Evente provided an example of how longform can be extraordinarily successful in the hands of improvisers who are working together to create interesting scenarios and characters.