The UCB Theatre Announces New Harold Teams

Well, big announcements from the old UCB HQ today, New Harold Teams have been announced. There are quite a few surprises, new faces, and quite a few familiar performers.

The biggest news is the reshuffling of 1985 and the remaining members of fwänd into two separate groups - The Law Firm and Amazon Tusk. I think it also bears pointing out that UCB has granted one of our biggest requests of a mostly female group Sensual Ha, which from outward appearances looks pretty incredible. Sensual Ha also features Pat Baer, the longtime tech and dude in charge for keeping things running at the Theater. Returning faces of Eddie Dunn, Nate Lang, Brian Berrebbi, and the incomparable Jeff Hiller are a welcome addition back. Bastian and Decoster are the only two teams unaffected by the reshuffling.

Congratulations to all the new performers making their Harold debuts. We can’t wait to see what they bring to the Harold Night.

Lastly, our condolences to the talented performers who were not added onto the teams this round — you guys rock.

ALIEN MELODY (starter name)

  • EMILY AXFORD
  • PATRICK CLAIR
  • ERIK DIES
  • JILL DONNELLY
  • BRIAN GLIDEWELL
  • MORGAN JARRETT
  • WINSTON NOEL
  • BEN RAMEAKA

AMAZON TUSK (starter name)

  • EDDIE DUNN
  • Birch Harms
  • Jeff Hiller
  • Kevin Hines
  • Porter Mason
  • Risa Sang-urai
  • Betsy Stover
  • Erik Tanouye

BASTIAN

  • Brian Barrett
  • Maggie Carey
  • Adam Frucci
  • Brandon Gardner
  • Lydia Hensler
  • Molly Lloyd
  • Oscar Magallanes
  • John Murray

DECOSTER

  • Eric Bernat
  • Kirk Damato
  • Matt DeCoster
  • Ryan Karels
  • Pam Murphy
  • Megan Neuringer
  • DC Pierson
  • Ari Voukydis

HUNKY RABIES (starter name)

  • BRIAN BERREBBI
  • Sean Clements
  • Devlyn Corrigan
  • Brian Faas
  • John Frusciante
  • Jon Gutierrez
  • Ben Schwartz
  • Nate Smith

THE LAW FIRM

  • Dominic Dierkes
  • Jon Gabrus
  • Sue Galloway
  • NATE LANG
  • Gil Ozeri
  • Adam Pally
  • Ben Rodgers
  • Gavin Speiller

SENSUAL HA (starter name)

  • Jenn Bartels
  • PAT BAER
  • Chelsea Clarke
  • Fran Gillespie
  • Tricia McAlpin
  • Amber Petty
  • Craig Rowin
  • Mike Still

SIR THERMOS (starter name)

  • COREY BROWN
  • PAUL DOWNS
  • Matt Fisher
  • DAN GUREWITCH
  • Violet Krumbein
  • Aubrey Plaza
  • Dave Siegel
  • Achilles Stamatelaky

10th Annual Del Close Marathon August 8-10 2008

So, it’s been a rough week with UCB Harold auditions consuming most of my attention this week, but I thought I would point out that UCB Theatre New York has announced this years Del Close Marathon on August 8-10. For anyone who’s never attended or knows nothing about the DCM marathon, it’s the 3 day improv festival dedicated to the memory of Del Close and longform improvisation. It happens across multiple theaters in New York, with most of the action happening at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre.

The event is huge. There are special shows leading up to the marathon by groups like Baby Wants Candy and Weirdass, special intensive improv classes both for resident and visiting improvisers, as well as special ASSSSCATs on the last day of the marathon


It’s sick.

If you’d like to submit your group to be a part of DCM10 check out www.delclosemarathon.com. Deadline for submission is May 12.

See you there.

Del Close’s Notes

From Del Close’s Notes

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

  1. You are all supporting actors
  2. Always check your impulses
  3. Never enter a scene unless you are needed
  4. Save your fellow actor, don’t worry about the piece
  5. Your prime responsibility is to support
  6. Work at the top of your brains at all times
  7. Never underestimate or condescend to your audience
  8. No jokes (unless it is tipped in front that it is a joke.)
  9. Trust…trust your fellow actors to support you; trust them to come through if you lay something heavy on them; trust yourself
  10. Avoid judging what is going down in terms of whether it needs help (either by entering or cutting), what can best follow, or how you can support it imaginatively if your support is called for
  11. LISTEN
  • IF THE WHOLE IS TO BE ART, THE PARTS MUST NOT TRY TO BE
  • HAROLD IS LIKE A DOCUMENTARY FILM- PART AUTOBIOGRAPHY, PART BIOGRAPHY, PART SIMPLE FACT
  • THE TOTAL MAY RESEMBLE A “PLAY” (a dramatic work of fiction) BUT IT ISN’T FICTION ANY MORE THAN A THEORETICAL SCIENCE PAPER IS FICTION
  • NOTICE HOW “YOU” ARE A PART OF A HAROLD. HOW YOU FIT. THEN SIMPLY ENTER-JOIN
  • HAROLD IS GREATER THAN ALL OF YOUR ABILITIES-OR YOUR INTELLIGENCE
  • HAROLD NEEDS ALL OF YOU-YOUR BEHAVIOR, NOT YOUR DESCRIPTION OF YOUR BEHAVIOR

Lessons Learned from Musical Improv

My Musical Improv class at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade, taught by the incredibly talented Eliza Skinner, ended the other week. It was undoubtedly the most fun I’ve had in an improv class to date. Learning to sing improvised songs was a liberating experience, not only because singing is so much fun, but because it’s a class that you truly feel on the same level as everyone else.

I haven’t felt this free since 101

The mechanics of musical improv are undoubtedly different than that of scenic improv, but at their core it’s the same stuff. You agree, support, and play games in the same way, however because you are operating within a song, there is an added level of structure that overrides it all. Where a two person scene was once king, you now had to do all by yourself in song. It sounds far more difficult than it acctually is.

The song structure is Musical improv is fairly simple. You have two basic structures a Tagline song or a Verse Chorus Song. What I found so interesting is that previously, in 2 person scenes, I would be a very “one note” player. Rarely did I “if this is true, what else is true.” But in a song, the verse structure cannot move forward if you aren’t actively heightening your subject choices. You also are doing this, on the most part, on your own.

Additionally in a Verse Chorus Structure you need to pick a Chorus at the start to be the engine which will power your song. This Chorus has to be simple, memorable, and universal, but it also has to in some way represent what you are about to sing. So, where I once found myself trying to create and find games in scenes, now I knew the entire game in the beginning.

Wax On, Wax Off teaching

Interestingly, at the end of the class all my scenic improv skills, which I was using in practice and performance, had improved. The stuff that seemed unrelated were in fact improving by the lessons I was learning in musical improv. I was making bold choices up top. I was defining my characters wants and making those wants important. I was supporting everything strongly. I was listening to myself up top to find game. I was keeping it simple. I was having fun.

This made me think, maybe this idea of classes, much like the raw harold class focussed on support, that look at a particular facet of improv are actually just as important as Harold workshops. These classes show us something universal about the skills of improv. They strengthen in the way that lifting weights strengthen, by targeting distinct improv muscles that you can use in your everyday work. Sure you can still jump into the ring and train by throwing punches, but sometimes jumping rope can be just as useful.

Lessons Learned from Musical Improv:

  • Make strong choices up top
  • Be specific in what you’re talking about
  • Have strong and important wants for your characters
  • Game is like a song - Keep your view consistent, Expand your views (if this is true what else is true), explore patterns, get out before it gets repetitive
  • Set up your environment
  • Use the stage, remember stage picture, and keep action on stage active
  • Keep your songs, wants, and initiations simple and memorable - Think about the universality of your themes
  • Backline should never pull focus from stage
  • Support everything unconditionally - Enough support can make all the difference
  • Look like you know what’s going on
  • Remember that tragedy can be just as powerful as comedy
  • Follow the fun - Play

What is Game?

I’ve been working on this series of articles for a few months on Game and I wanted to start with a seemingly simple question to all of you, what is game to you?

I’m looking for anything you find useful; quotes, thoughts, or experiences.

UCB Theatre Announces Harold Team Open Auditions

Ah, spring is in the air and UCB, contrary to previous rumors to the contrary, is once again holding open auditions. Complete information after the jump

The only question we have is, when the sign up process end? We are assuming the sign ups are from Wednesday April 16th to Sunday April 20th. This is purely an educated guess, please don’t rely on us. We will let you know if we hear any different.

(Cue Rocky Theme)

If you’re thinking about taking your time to sign up, just to let you know, it’s already been a madhouse at UCB. 50 people waiting on line at 5:30 on Wednesday. After I had signed up at 7, the sign in sheets were 3/4 filled. Get thee to the training center.
photo.jpg

Read More »