
{"id":8251,"date":"2009-12-03T10:25:21","date_gmt":"2009-12-03T18:25:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/?p=8251"},"modified":"2009-12-03T10:32:55","modified_gmt":"2009-12-03T18:32:55","slug":"lessons-in-improv-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-jokes-that-bomb","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/2009\/12\/03\/lessons-in-improv-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-jokes-that-bomb\/","title":{"rendered":"Lessons in improv or: How I learned to stop worrying and love the jokes that bomb"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Charlie Tyson, Staff Writer<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I am not Jerry Seinfeld.<\/p>\n<p>I am not even Larry the Cable Guy, who recently topped Newsweek\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s list of the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s least-funny comedians.<\/p>\n<p>While I will often venture onstage against the dull brick wall of a comedy theater, I am far from a professional comic. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m simply an enthusiastic conversationalist.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Improv is the skill of having a conversation,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d improvisational comedy performer and teacher Kit FitzSimons said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The core of improv is really what gets us through the day in normal life \u00e2\u20ac\u201d supporting the people we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re around, getting ideas out faster, moving plans forward.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>I am one of many local high school students dallying in this craft of onstage conversation. The mere existence of high school improv \u00e2\u20ac\u201d a rarity in other regions of North Carolina \u00e2\u20ac\u201d may be surprising to some. However, improv is firmly entrenched in the cultural history of our area, and high school improv is at the heart of it all.<\/p>\n<p>Many know Zach Ward as the owner of Carrboro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s DSI Comedy Theater. DSI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s influence over the cultural scene of Carrboro is undeniable; yet Ward\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s forays into improv began during his time as a student at Chapel Hill High when, in 1993, he founded Chapel Hill High Improv.<\/p>\n<p>Chapel Hill\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s improv team had existed in prior years as a faculty-run organization, but Ward\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s revival of the troupe as a student-run group sparked a chain reaction. In a series of events affirming improv\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s cardinal maxim of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Yes-And,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d teams also bloomed at East and Cedar Ridge.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to improv groups based at individual high schools, teenage comedy has also blossomed at \u00e2\u20ac\u201d where else? \u00e2\u20ac\u201d DSI.<\/p>\n<p>FitzSimons, resident instructor and theater manager at DSI, coaches Giuseppe, a DSI-based high school improv team. Giuseppe is comprised of 14 students from local high schools, as well as one home-schooled student.<\/p>\n<p>The goal of the team, according to Ward, is to \u00e2\u20ac\u0153produce a professional improv group that just happens to be comprised of high school students.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Whether performing with Giuseppe or with a troupe based at a high school, professionalism is a universal goal. DSI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s proximity helps to achieve this aim, as the theater serves as the central beehive for all these groups, providing a stage for high school improvisers.<\/p>\n<p> \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The resources our local high school students have at DSI are incredible,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Ward said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You have the unique opportunity to intern, study and work with a professional comedy theater.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>More important than improv\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s impact on the town is its impact on the students. In addition to performance experience, improv teaches communication skills and creative problem solving.<\/p>\n<p>FitzSimons likened improv to the skill of having a conversation.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153It opens up new ways of thinking about things,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It makes people listen to you, and it makes you listen to them.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Ward\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s assessment of improv\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s benefits reads like a shopping list of favorable results.<\/p>\n<p> \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Self-confidence, strategy, listening skills, empathy \u00e2\u20ac\u201d all things that might help make your personal relationships better,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It gives a specific demographic of student something to be proud of.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>East sophomore Max Huffman seconded Ward\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sentiment.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153What we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing is not just a club, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s teaching communication skills and preparing people to be better-communicating, funnier people in adult life,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Huffman said.<\/p>\n<p>Huffman said his comedic experience taught him how to connect with others.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Before I started doing improv, I was an awkward kid who talked too much,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Now I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m an awkward kid who gets onstage and talks too much. People like you better if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re onstage and talking as opposed to just talking.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Huffman is a second-year member of Giuseppe and a first-year member of East\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s improv troupe, Randomax.<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Giuseppe is great because we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re right there in DSI, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in the epicenter learning directly from DSI professionals,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Randomax is great in a totally different way, because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all your peers and you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re learning from each other. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a totally different learning experience.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>East junior and second-year Randomax member Emma Lo described improv as an \u00e2\u20ac\u0153outlet.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153[Improv] has definitely broadened my sense of humor and made me more outgoing and interesting in conversations,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It has also taught me about supporting other people in all aspects of life.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>High school comedy is a source of pride to more than just the players onstage. Improv captures Carrboro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s spirit of inventiveness, originality and bold initiation; the fact that these are high school students performing further reflects our area\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s cultural vitality.<\/p>\n<p>An oft-ignored mine of captivating creativity and comedic cultivation, high school improv merits more support than it receives. An integral part of our town\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s history, high school improv has far-reaching effects as Carrboro\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s improv reputation continues to grow. Even more important are the applicable life skills that improv teaches.<\/p>\n<p>I humbly entreat you to support teenage comedians by seeing a high school improv show. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not all Seinfelds, but we take \u00e2\u20ac\u0153conversation\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to hilarious heights.<\/p>\n<p><em>Charlie Tyson is the director of Randomax Improv at East Chapel Hill High School.<br \/>\n<\/em><br \/>\n<figure id=\"attachment_8254\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-8254\" style=\"width: 150px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/12\/improv-150x112.jpg\"  width=\"150\" height=\"112\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-8254\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/12\/improv-150x112.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/12\/improv-113x84.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/12\/improv.jpg 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-8254\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Local high school students trying improv<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Charlie Tyson, Staff Writer I am not Jerry Seinfeld. I am not even Larry the Cable Guy, who recently topped Newsweek\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s list of the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s least-funny comedians. While I will often venture onstage against the dull brick wall of a comedy theater, I am far from a professional comic. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m simply an enthusiastic conversationalist.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8251","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8251","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8251"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8251\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8259,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8251\/revisions\/8259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8251"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8251"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8251"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}