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GoodTimes Charles Herrick December 16, 1999 The billing for Saturday night's show called it "a night of risky and risqué scenes" performed by the seven-member ScripTease improvisational comedy troupe. Limited to mature audiences only, it was to be a bawdy display of edgy comedy and striptease. The show was standing-room only as 70 or so people crowded into the main room at the Art League's Broadway Playhouse. There were, in fact, more than a dozen people turned away. As the show began, and the young performers made their way onto the stage, the crowd was expectant and ready to provide the feedback necessary to make this format work. The introduction offered a glimpse of what was in store when troupe member Sara Lovelady began the show with, "There is no scripting, but there will be stripping." This was readily evident when she described what would be a continual source of enjoyment for the audience throughout the night. During the show, there were going to be "strip scenes," scenes where the performers would strip off a piece of clothing, striptease style, if they broke on of their own rules. Designed to be an interactive experience, the show involved audience participation at all levels. By asking the audience questions, the performers would gain ideas and themes for upcoming scenes. The audience also played a vital role in determining the amount of clothes the performers wore from scene to scene, by judging whether or not the performers had followed the "rules" that were set before each scene. If the audience caught a performer I error, a loud call of "Strip!" would resound throughout the hall, and the actor or actress would break into an impromptu strip routine and remove an article of clothing. In one scene, each performer was required to speak in a sentence with a specific number of words: one had to use one word, another three words, and one unlucky soul had to hit 10 words every time. The audience, with a razor-sharp eye for detail, was constantly on the lookout for mistakes. This level of audience involvement was exactly what Davis and Lovelady, the tow remaining original members of ScripTease, had in mind when they began the troupe two and a half years ago. New twists Johnny Davis and Sara Lovelady were members of another local improv group, Um...Gee...Um, when they got together to form their own troupe. They were determined to bring people who were not "theater-goers" to the theater. To do this, they conceived a crossover act that combined improvisational acting with the ever-popular act of taking one's clothes off in public. They formed ScripTease, what they believe is the only striptease-improv act around. Davis says that they wanted to have consequences for missing a line or a "rule," and that it was also a great way to get the audience involved and keep them involved. "They want to catch us," he laughs, as he knows that the closer the audience watches the act, the better the experience for everyone, with the greater chance of someone getting naked. There have been a couple of incidents...where there have been naked people," Davis casually mentions with a slight gleam in his eye. The troupe practices once a week in members' houses or at a stage where members can get a greater sense of space. How does one practice improvisation? "It's a bit of an oxymoron," Davis says. "We try to get to the point where we can read each others' minds, where we know what is coming." This way they can steadily play off of each other while maintaining the energy in a scene. Working a theme On Saturday, the troupe would begin with a very basic structure, ask a question or two of the audience, and jump into a scene - the outcome of which was unknown to both the troupe and the audience. This led to situations where the improvisation was lively and genuinely funny. It also led, due to the nature of the show, to some bizarre interaction between the performers and a couple of noticeably quiet moments as the actors would attempt to catch up on the unexpected turns a fellow member had thrown into the scene. This was truly a live show, with little or no room for indecision. The instincts of the members of ScripTease were generally right on, and the fact that they were enjoying themselves was evident. Some of the highlights of the two-set show were the switch scene, where the actors would switch rolls mid-scene, the game of statement only or question-only, where the performers were required to talk in statements or questions only, again switching mid-scene, and "firing line," where the troupe would perform a scene based on (approximately) two words picked by the audience. You have never seen "boisterous pubic hair," "yogic sanitarium" or "blank eggbeater" so expertly done, I can assure you. The scene that involved the most stripping had to be the "impossible scene." The performers had to complete a scene without using the words, "I," "me" or "my," could not use questions and could not discuss the activity in which they were currently involved. Due to a paucity of stripping up to that point, the flesh-hungry crowd mercilessly yelled out "Strip!" at every hint of a mistake. The performers, to their credit, enthusiastically paid their fine, whether or not they had actually screwed up. ScripTease is planning on taking its act on the road, going to venues in San Francisco and Monterey, and Davis says they are looking toward entering improv festivals in Seattle and Arizona. The ScripTease improv comedy troupe will be performing a Valentine's show at the Art League's Playhouse, 526 Broadway, on Feb. 12, 2000. Call 429-1136 or visit them online at: http://www.scripteaseimprov.com for details. |