Dublin High Improv Night: Fun and Games Take Center Stage

The unscripted laughter of Dublin High's Improv Night still rings in my ears. My stomach still aches from the hilarious Improv Games, which ranged from the "Dating Game" to "Blank in a Minute". I dreaded the end of the show, knowing that the witty improvisations would soon be over. Unlike most theatrical performances, I was a part of the show the entire time and was able to come up with scenarios, objects and famous people that the performers would use in their skits. Overall, Improv Night proved to be a great combination of comedy and cleverness.

The show started before anyone took the stage. As theater-goers entered the atrium of the Dublin High Little Theater, they were given the option of filling out a questionnaire to be used during the Improv Show. This questionnaire included blanks for a famous person of your choice, a setting, a single line that you like and other options. These questionnaires were then put into a basket which the performers randomly shuffled through during the show.

Finally, the anticipation was over, the lights went out and the show began. The show was made up of a series of fast pace Improv Games. The "Dating Game" included senior Rhiannon Kay as the host of a dating competition with contestants senior Ashley Mason, junior Chris Harral, and senior Oleg Harte. As chosen by the audience, Mason (as she prefers to be called) was given an imaginary friend, Chris was chosen to be Justin Bieber and Oleg was given the role of a broken stapler. Rhiannon, unaware of their characters, spent the game asking them questions as if in a dating game while trying to guess their roles.

Perhaps the silliest was the "Marshmallow Game". Junior Corinne Wolter, sophomore Ryan McRee and Oleg were given a scenario chosen by the audience and a bag of marshmallows. Whenever they were able to get the audience to laugh, they had to take a marshmallow and stuff it into their mouth without swallowing. By the end, the audience was on the edge of their seats excited to see how many more marshmallows they could cram into their mouths. Although they all looked ridiculous, Corinne's chipmunk cheeks caused me to laugh the most.

Of the many Improv Games, my favorite was "Blank in a Minute". The audience was asked to choose a childhood story, and of the many options called out, Cinderella was proclaimed the winner. The performers were given only one minute to act out the entire story. If that wasn't hectic enough, the time was cut in half to thirty seconds, and then cut in half again and again until they had only one second. Watching the stars scramble around the stage and ram into each other was great entertainment.

The Improvers' enthusiasm and energy onstage makes it evident that they love what they do. Improver Ryan said that he loved Dublin High Improv because "you have the freedom to do whatever you want and everything that you do on stage, all the laughs you get, and all the success that you have is a product of your work alone".

This was my first and definitely not last Dublin High Improv Show. Luckily, for everyone who missed it, the Improv Team will be returning to the stage again this school year. 

A majority of the Dublin High Improv Team are cast members of the Dublin High fall play "Hide and Shriek" opening Thursday, Oct. 28th.