“Hold your cue like you hold your woman ““ strong and
at the neck!”
These are the types of lines heard on any given night at
Ultimate Improv, where a fraternity initiation skit turns into a
lesson at billiards, then glides into three people trying to milk a
cow, then takes a suspenseful turn when a giant lizard begins
destroying humanity and can only be stopped if two people profess
their repressed love for each other. But they get into a passionate
argument instead while a middle school is decimated. Then back to
the fraternity house branding initiation.
These and other types of wacky antics courtesy of Ultimate
Improv can be found every Friday and Saturday night in its new
location on Gayley Avenue near the In-N-Out, where the troupe moved
after out-growing its former home, the Westwood Brewing Company.
Founded in 1999 by Justin Bowler and JD Walsh, an alumnus from UCLA
School of Theater, Film and Television, the troupe has been met
with an enormous response from UCLA students who crave the zany and
the absurd.
“The students are our favorite audience,” said
Walsh. “They’re smart and they know what’s going
on.”
Students who love watching the improv show will also get the
opportunity to join the ranks of Ultimate Improv as auditions are
being held Oct. 6 at 3 p.m. for the advanced workshop, part of
Ultimate Improv’s effort to develop new talent.
The show is divided into two parts. The first half is
improvisational game-playing based on audience participation, and
the second half is a longer skit in which the team of players
manage to incorporate audience suggestions, create vivid imaginary
scenes, and keep a comedic plot moving on the fly.
“If we’re having fun, then the audience is having
fun,” said Lauren Flans, a player and alumna of Northwestern
University. “Young people really enjoy the show a lot because
we don’t censor ourselves, and we toss some pop culture when
it comes up. And especially now that we have our own space,
there’s such a freedom to do whatever we want.”
Because of Ultimate Improv’s no-holds-barred approach to
humor, the subject matters remain entertaining as well as
provocative.
“If you’re not gonna tackle issues, if you’re
not going to do scenes about things that are uncomfortable, then
you’re just gonna do toothless theater that gums the audience
into boredom,” Walsh said.
The audience seemed to enjoy the show most when the players
performed sensitive subjects in an unsanctimonious manner. Laughter
roared when player Ryan Murphy posed as Grandmaster Flash at a
cancer marathon, rapping about a cancer victim, “We might as
well call this (expletive) a big black Cadillac hearse.”
But Walsh said that the purpose of the show is not to be
shocking or irreverent, it’s about doing the appropriate
thing for each scene.
According to Michael Orton-Toliver, a player who has been
involved with improv since high school, the troupe aims to maintain
a fun, risk-taking spirit.
“We’re kind of performing and we’re kind of
exploring,” said Orton-Toliver. “We’re here to
create and we’re here to make scenes and that will make the
audience laugh.”
The troupe’s readiness to take risks and explore is
displayed in the multi-dimensional scenes that evolve with
surprising twists, all of which couldn’t be accomplished
without the collective cooperation of the actors.
“It’s seamless to the audience because we’re
so used to helping each other,” said Walsh.
Flans stressed the importance of knowing her fellow team players
beyond the performance.
“Because we’re all friends, it helps a great
deal,” said Flans. “Because you’re making it up,
you can’t really allow yourself to filter things. When
you’re good friends with the people you’re performing
with, there’s an understanding that whatever happens on stage
happens on stage. It doesn’t have any bearing on your life
off stage.”
On Saturday night, the team’s improvised longer skit
consisted of themes from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book
“The Great Gatsby,” scenes in a bordello, and a visit
from Darth Vader. Perhaps because the performers had not read
Fitzgerald’s novel, or because they had forgotten about its
setting, the original idea was to create the skit on a plantation,
rather than the Eastern Seaboard.
One audience member corrected the cast, “It takes place on
the Eastern Seaboard!” So the group exploited their mistake
and made it more humorous, through Murphy’s continuous
repetition and carefully placed insertions of the words
“Eastern Seaboard” throughout the entire skit.
While it’s obvious the performers are having fun while on
stage, many of them stressed the therapeutic aspects of
improvisation.
“I love coming on stage,” said Orton-Toliver.
“It makes my day. If I’m having a bad day, then I want
to perform.”
While performing is personally beneficial to troupe members,
their ultimate dedication is to entertaining the UCLA
community.
“When I went to UCLA, I always loved Westwood, but on
weekends I didn’t have anything to do,” said Walsh.
“So I wanted to give UCLA students a place to go.”
Ultimate Improv is located at 954 Gayley Ave. in Westwood.
Performances are at 9 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. every Friday and
Saturday. Admission for students is $7 and Bruin cards are
accepted. For more information, visit www.ultimateimprov.com.