Audience members participated in a night of improv games and fun during Improv Jam II May 18 in the Little Theater. Directed by seniors Clare Donohoe and Andrew Hastings, Improv Jam II was Improv Club’s second show of the year.
The fun even began before the show. At the ticket stand before the show, members of the club handed out miniature jars of strawberry preserve—also known as ‘improv jam’—to the first 72 audience members.
The show started with a brief introduction from the directors and a game called Spin Offs. Members of the club acted out prompts given by Donohoe, which were based on the punchlines of the previous skits. The cast jumped into scenes at random, improvising lines on the spot with expertise.
“It’s just really fun being able to take the scene where you want it to go. I don’t know how to describe it but it’s really interesting to try and think of things on the spot,” said freshman club member Emma Bradshaw.
Another game called In the Manner of the Adverb consisted of Donohoe leaving the room and the audience giving two members of the club two adverbs to act out. After Donohoe came back, she had to guess what adverbs the audience gave by joining a scene with the members and observing their actions. Sophomore Joshua Lev said, “The idea that it’s different every time and you never get the same scene twice is amazing.”
The last game, which was all-inclusive to the audience and a crowd favorite was called Freeze. Donohoe described the game, “Two or three cast members go up and do an improv scene and an audience or member can clap them out and assume the position of an actor.” Then a new scene begins. After a few rounds, members of the audience began to clap and join the scene, ending the laughter-filled night on a lighthearted note.
According to freshman Talia Zalis, “Improv is exciting, entertaining and each time is unique. I just find it exciting because anything can happen.”