iamachilles

schoolnight:

The Beatles
Jeff Hiller
Fizz Co
PaDe
Mindy Raf
Sean Hart
Paul Downs
Ali Waller
Sean Crespo
Abbi Jacobson

THE BEATLES!

A while ago, Gethard wrote this in my Improv Wiki entry:

For roughly three years, he was the first person in line every single week at both Harold Night and Asssscat. He was known to sprint to his favorite front row seat before New Team Harold each week, where he would stay until the final Harold was done. This dedication impressed everyone who came to know the legend of Achilles, although it is fair to say that there was also early concern over whether or not he was insane.

Most of it that is true.  (My rebuttal to that entry can be found here.)  But what, you ask, drove me to stand in line for hours?  Was it the love of improv?  Maybe.  Actually, no, probably not. 

I just wanted a good seat.

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For my first year or so of taking classes, I took notes in my classes.  A lot of what I jotted down were literally the “rules” of improv that many of us know — “Don’t be coy,” “Explore your environment,” “Justify unusual behavior,” etc. 

Other notes, however, were phrased in such a manner that they illuminated specific concepts in cool ways.  Here are some of those early demystifying notes.

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NOTE: I’ll post 3 entries today because I haven’t post one in a couple of days.

Part of the fun of Harold Night is seeing a group of eight people who, for the most part, don’t have much in common aside from their love of improv, create something together on stage.  Sometimes, you’ll get just the right combination of eight people and the team will be magical and unique every time you see them.  Other times, it just won’t work.

Here are some good memories of the Harold teams I’ve been on.  Third: Penthouse Riot.

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NOTE: I’ll post 3 entries today because I haven’t post one in a couple of days.

Part of the fun of Harold Night is seeing a group of eight people who, for the most part, don’t have much in common aside from their love of improv, create something together on stage.  Sometimes, you’ll get just the right combination of eight people and the team will be magical and unique every time you see them.  Other times, it just won’t work.

Here are some good memories of the Harold teams I’ve been on.  Second: Whorenado.

Read More →

NOTE: I’ll post 3 entries today because I haven’t post one in a couple of days.

Part of the fun of Harold Night is seeing a group of eight people who, for the most part, don’t have much in common aside from their love of improv, create something together on stage.  Sometimes, you’ll get just the right combination of eight people and the team will be magical and unique every time you see them.  Other times, it just won’t work.

Here are some good memories of the Harold teams I’ve been on.  First: T.R.U.C.K.S.

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NOTE: I’ll post 2 entries today because I didn’t post one yesterday.

Like a good team name, a good intro/outro song should fit the personality of the team like a glove.  Here’s some information on music for the teams I’ve been on.

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NOTE: I’ll post 2 entries today because I didn’t post one yesterday.

I’m going to be sending out some congratulatory e-mails this week.  Here are a few ego-inflating e-mails I received a few years ago.

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NOTE: I’ll post 2 entries today because I didn’t post one yesterday.

After good shows or bad shows, I think all teams participate in something called “Team Time,” a term I made up a millisecond ago.

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NOTE: I’ll post 2 entries today because I didn’t post one yesterday.

Here’s a rundown of pre-show traditions for some of the teams I’ve been on.

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Last night, my agent asked me to audition for a pilot at 11:45 AM this morning.  There were 8 pages of sides and 3 scenes to learn.  I nearly crapped my pants with anxiety — not literally, but you get it — trying to memorize my lines.

At the audition, still nervous about flubbing lines, the super-nice casting person said it would totally be okay to have the sides handy in case I forgot my lines.  In fact, he insisted that I had it on-hand because he knew it was a lot of stuff to memorize.  He wasn’t judging me; we wanted me to succeed. 

I didn’t end up needing the sides after all, but the unexpected “help” really eased my nerves.

The moral of the story:

Your audition is going to go better than you expect.  Someone will be on your side.  Do well.  Play with joy.  And, if it goes badly: it’s a really nice day outside.

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This is part of my March 2010 Challenge.  More information here.