jose wrote:Unless you're advertising something as family-friendly, though, I think that improv implies (if not jumps right out and says) anything could happen. That, I think, includes dealing frankly with real things that happen in real life (which happens to include sex and intimacy) as much as it includes weird, abstract scenes and scenes with ninjas and robots and dragons and stuffy British judges and whatnot.
Exactly. There's a
sign up near the entrance of the theater at BATS that reads "This is not family theatre. Improvisational theatre is sexy, violent, profane, erotic, funny, terrifying, painful, mind-altering, and includes all forms of extreme behavior. You have been warned." I love that not only because it sets certain expectations for the audience - this isn't just Uncle Buck's Chuckle Hut, but an actual theater with some real shit going down inside here - but I think it also sets up a challenge for the performers, as well. It sets the bar to not only make people laugh, but to bring a wide range of expression to the stage as well, including all of that up there, and more. As an actor who improvises, I want to do all of those things - get people laughing, scared, turned on, choked up, thoughtful, awe-struck, or outraged.
Comedy is awesome, and I most certainly do love me some funny, but there's a huge palette of tones and emotions to play with on stage as an improviser, and I'd love to see more of them used, across the board. And if some of them aren't necessarily safe for your average viewer, or are too explicit to bring the kids to, well, sweet. That's how life goes, and in my opinion, that's how some of the best shows go. And I'm ready to go there with whoever wants to take that trip with me.