It’s Thursday night with 15 minutes until show time, and the
members of
college improvisational team are huddled together in a small alcove above the
National Comedy Theater’s stage. They shout in comedic tongues as they play
“Zoom Schwartz Pafigliano” and “Zip Zap Zop,” preshow rituals intended to
harness their collective energy. As the modest, yet loyal, audience begins to
fill the auditorium, the NCT College
Team plans to uphold the theater’s motto — “bring a change of pants.”
While the NCT has served as a local source of improv for
over two decades, the NCT College Team, N(CT)2, is a year-old offshoot to the
theater’s weekly lineup, featuring some of UCSD’s most promising improv
comedians along with a sample of comedic talent from other local colleges. Each
of the current 18 members, five of whom hail from UCSD, underwent a rigorous
audition process consisting of a six-week workshop period before they made the
team. The result was a “silly, witty, sarcastic and dirty” group unlike any
other, according to N(CT)2 member and
“This team creates a whole new dynamic,” said N(CT)2 coach
and UCSD alumna Marina Mastros. “They have an unparalleled amount of energy,
but it’s a totally different kind of energy.”
Because N(CT)2 shows are similar in style to the popular
television series “Whose Line is it Anyway?,” improvisers like Revelle College
senior Geoffrey Lapid must think on their feet for the most effective way to
communicate their chosen characters — such as the Feb. 14 show’s Catwoman and
K.I.S.S. roles — to their teammates.
“[Improv] is great because it gives us the opportunity to be
silly in a controlled environment,” Lapid said. “I really got into it when I
realized that improv is a lot of fun with a lot of layers involved in the
performance. There are a few basic structures that a scene needs, like
C.R.O.W., which stands for character, relationships, objects and where.”
To an outsider, preparation for improvisation may seem
futile, but members agree that it is necessary to learn these basic structures
to perform a successful scene. To facilitate this, the team has free access to
workshops, priced over $100 for nonmembers. To make sure their creative energy
isn’t misguided on stage, N(CT)2 meets every Sunday to perform exercises like
“Big Booty,” “Electric Company” and “Go.”
“Besides being taught by professionals, you get to perform
regularly for an audience,” said Mastros, whom the team affectionately refers
to as Marina Mastros-and-Defender because she regulates the quality of comedy
as the team’s referee.
N(CT)2 and other on-campus improv teams, like UCSD’s
Muir-based FOOSH and SDSU’s I H Pi, collaborate often through performances like
N(CT)2’s “Represent Your School Night.” Every last Thursday of the month,
N(CT)2 challenges a local college team to an improv match at its theater.
February’s night was against FOOSH. The three members of N(CT)2 who also belong to FOOSH — Lapid, Revelle
College sophomore Sam Hunter and Eleanor Roosevelt College senior Nam Nguyen —
played with N(CT)2 as standard home-game practice.
“You get to know your teammates’ humor and it’s just
exciting when you throw new people into the mix,” Willert said. “When you work
with someone from a different team, you’re exposed to their whole different
philosophy of comedy. Even things like pacing can be different.”
Members’ experiences with N(CT)2 prove valuable in other
aspects of life. According to Mastros, improv is a great way to boost self
confidence and public speaking skills. Willert believes improv will help her
acting endeavors. Improv comedy for Lapid, aside from being a relaxing
alternative to academic pressures, is enticing for other reasons.
“I’m in it for the fabulous prizes and the beautiful women,”
Lapid said. “Actually, I’ve seen Comedy Sportz shows before and I was like,
‘Yay! I can be a part of this.’”
As much as they get out of performing, N(CT)2 members also
like to give back to the
community. Following the example set by the NCT’s main team, who have
entertained troops in
several times, the N(CT)2 collaborated with FOOSH and I H Pi to aid San Diegans
displaced by the 2007 California Wildfires.
“It was one of the coolest things I’ve ever done not only as
an improviser, but just as a person. It was nice just to be able to make them
laugh and the kids were really into it,” Willert said.
Their crowd at Qualcomm Stadium began small, but grew in size
to about 100 people according to Lapid.
“It felt really good to see that [the audience] made some
sort of connection with us and that they enjoyed having us around,” Lapid said.
Whether they are using improv to aid a needy community or to
make college kids laugh on Thursday nights, N(CT)2 members continue to hone
their art with a unique outlook on life.
“The world is a really funny place and with improv we have a
venue to point out how ridiculous life can be,” Lapid said. “We don’t always
have to be all frowny-pantsed. Finding the silliness and fun there is in life
is a good message to spread. It’s a good philosophy of life.”
