“You are not going to give my mother a Rose of Death.”
philip vukelich | rawr
Rob Gibson II, left, and Miles Hendrix, actors in the White Tie Improv comedy troupe on campus, fight during a practice scene Oct. 11 in the Arena Theater in Shoupe Hall. The group performed their second public show of the fall semester Saturday in the Kiva Theater.
“That’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
Overhearing this conversation, you may think that you have wandered into a work of science fiction or fantasy. Which may be true, but odds are more likely you have wandered into a practice for the White Tie Improv Group at the University of Idaho.
White Tie Improv has been a club at UI for three years.
“Three years ago when we were getting together to start an improv group, we were deciding what to call it,” said Quinn Hatch, the director and founder of White Tie Improv. “There was a lot of names being thrown around and someone said White Tie and no one else had a problem with it. So right after we agreed on White Tie Improv, we started calling ourselves the classiest improv group on the Palouse.”
Improv Comedy is a specific form of theater where actors use spontaneous acting techniques to perform skits that hone acting skills. Sometimes, the games are played in front of audiences for a comedic effect. Improvisational comedy was popularized by “Whose Line Is It Anyway?,” a TV show that performed comedic improve games for an audience that ran from 1988-1998 in Britain and from 1998-2004 in the U.S.
“The thing that makes you a good improviser is the thing that makes you a good friend,” Hatch said. “A good friend will sit down and look you in the eye, take in what you are saying, process it and respond to what is
being offered instead of waiting for their turn to talk. Usually, people that are good at improv realize that a scene or a conversation that you are building together is teamwork and not a one-sided effort.”
An example of an improv game is called “start.” Two performers stand in front
of the room and one performer starts a scene by saying some spontaneous dialogue. Every time the director says “start,” the performers must stop what they
are doing and begin a new scene. The premise may seem simple, but the results are hilarious. After watching several different performers’ improv scenarios involving everything from licking cats to turkey rodeos, the room was filled with laughter.
Those interested in joining White Tie Improv are welcome to attend weekly workshops from 5-7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Arena Theater on the first floor of Shoup Hall. Beginners are welcome, and the group is not all theater majors.
“I’m a big fan of ‘Whose Line Is It Anyway’ and ‘Saturday Night Live’ and stuff,” dance major Katie Barnes said. “I saw a White Tie show about a year ago and loved it. I started going this year because of my friend Youseff.”
White Tie Improv preformed a show on Oct. 13 at the Kiva Theater.
“My favorite moment in the show was when they made the best story ever,” Senior Jake Housley said. “Because watching their reactions made it even funnier.”
The game “best story ever” forces performers to fake dying if they mess up an improve story.
The next White Tie Improv show will be on Oct. 27 in the Kiva Theater and admission is $2.
Aleya Ericson can be reached at [email protected].