One of my personal goals for the year was to attend an improv.  Dear god why, you ask?  Well, a new actor friend touted it as the best thing for me, given how much I feel the need to be in control of a situation.  And improv is the very antithesis of control.

So, while we were perusing http://sacramento365.com for things to do one weekend, the Improv Night at Studio 24 jumped out of the screen at my friend.  I tried to scroll quickly through and deflect his attention, but once his sights are locked, it is almost impossible to get out of his missile-like focus.

“We are going to this.” he said.
“No, we are not,” said I.
“Yes.  You’ll love it.  It will be good for you,” he said.
“No, HELL no, I won’t, and no, it will not be good for me,” said I.

So we went.  And I was a ball of nerves as we walked into the studio. It helped that my  confident actor friend couldn’t open the front door.  He kept pushing on it, and the secretary finally had to motion him to pull the door open.  (That boosted my self-confidence to no end, let me tell you!)  Once inside, we joined several people milling about in the large waiting area, making idle conversation, until we were directed to go upstairs to the little theatre, where we sat facing a brightly lit stage.

Cody, the main guy, walked us through what to expect: basically, an opening ice-breaker session where we would all HAVE to participate, and then a series of little vignettes that we could volunteer to participate in.  I felt like I had taken a plunge in ice water…I was that nervous.

The ice breaker went well (again, it helped that my actor friend got eliminated well before I did), and then I sat back to enjoy the rest of the two hours.  And it was enjoyable: got to see actors and wannabe actors of all different ages, sizes, and levels of attractiveness get up on the stage, make fools of themselves, show moments of brilliance, bore us silly, make us laugh….

It was a good introduction to improv.  Cody and his staff did a great job of keeping the momentum going, and engaging the audience.  Will I go back?  Maybe, with a group of friends, so we can all look silly together!

Studio 24
2220 K St
Sacramento, CA 95816
(916) 442-8262