The Elderly and Dessert
Occaissionally the Unexpected Guests Improv Comedy Troupe does weekday evening shows at the Tropicana Room in the beautiful Desilu Playhouse. Tonight was just such an event. A lot of tiimes the Lucille Ball - Desi Arnaz Center brings in tour groups, shows them the Lucy Museum, feeds them, and then needs someone to entertain them. That's when they call us to perform. Sometimes it's 60 people, sometimes it's 10. You never know going in to one of these shows. Sometimes these folks are ready for bed. Sometimes they exhibit more energy than we do. Like I said... you just never know.
Tonight's group was 60 to 75ish. They looked happy and fed as we strode out to meet them. They were really quite cool after warming up a little. We had a good string of scenes. They laughed, it was cool.
Then we went into one of our step up games. "Back In My Day..." is a game in which each of the players takes on the voice of an elderly person and descibes why things were better "Back In My Day..."
We take an audience suggestion like "Computer" and then the players take turns stepping up to deliver a short explanation. I'm never afraid to do this game in front of old people... but, I will say that there have been times when it has not been received well by older adults. (clears throat).
This group liked the game. We riffed on "Computer" for few minutes and then Tim Smeal, one of our players, delivered the most brilliant "Back In My Day..." line I think I have ever heard. (Don't tell him I said that... I don't want it to go to his head).
Tim steps up proudly, looks out into the crowd and says, "Back in my day, we didn't have computers because. " indignance rises in his voice," we didn't need them, because we could all write legibly and could do our own arithmetic."
The crowd exploded. I thought they were going to stand up at one point. Tim Smeal played that crowd like a cheap harmonica, and they ate it all... just like their desserts.
Also... I am turning over a big new leaf... tune in next time for details.
Tonight's group was 60 to 75ish. They looked happy and fed as we strode out to meet them. They were really quite cool after warming up a little. We had a good string of scenes. They laughed, it was cool.
Then we went into one of our step up games. "Back In My Day..." is a game in which each of the players takes on the voice of an elderly person and descibes why things were better "Back In My Day..."
We take an audience suggestion like "Computer" and then the players take turns stepping up to deliver a short explanation. I'm never afraid to do this game in front of old people... but, I will say that there have been times when it has not been received well by older adults. (clears throat).
This group liked the game. We riffed on "Computer" for few minutes and then Tim Smeal, one of our players, delivered the most brilliant "Back In My Day..." line I think I have ever heard. (Don't tell him I said that... I don't want it to go to his head).
Tim steps up proudly, looks out into the crowd and says, "Back in my day, we didn't have computers because. " indignance rises in his voice," we didn't need them, because we could all write legibly and could do our own arithmetic."
The crowd exploded. I thought they were going to stand up at one point. Tim Smeal played that crowd like a cheap harmonica, and they ate it all... just like their desserts.
Also... I am turning over a big new leaf... tune in next time for details.
Labels: Back In My Day, Comedy, Desi, Improv, Jamestown, Lucy, Unexpected Guests
posted by Mr. Social at
6:50 PM
4 Comments:
Cajones.. that's for sure. I'd be worried about pissing off the 60+ year olds with "Back In My Day"
Big new leaf... not "the" leaf as in vine (Adma & Eve)?!??!!!
no silly stinky... that would be a leaf of modest proportions.
We were actually asked to stay away from elderly characters when playing Chautauqua. This, coming from a person that works at Chautauqua, not for Chautauqua.
Of course Smeal was working the crowd. That age group will be his dating demographic in a few years.
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