HAPPY HAPPY Happy New Year to everybody. Special thanks to Doug Diefenbach for having all us crazy hungover improvisers over at his place on the 1st. It's nice to have family, you know? PHASE 1 of the Playground stage renovation is complete. The stage is still a piece of shit and it still is noisy to walk on, but I no longer fear my teammate Bill Lavin falling through center stage. We even had him jump around on it last night and it still held up great. Many thanks to Jim Jarvis, Josh Bruck and Mark Henderson for coming out last week for an afternoon of power tools and plywood. I like my job at the Playground. I like fixing things. Always have. While all the other little girls I knew growing up were playing with Barbie dolls, I had Legos. I loved Legos, and oddly, I still do. Mark's nephew got a set of them at Christmas and I had to muster up every ounce of self control not to go rip 'em out of his hands and start building. I wasn't the girliest of girls and I'm still not... ...which sometimes makes it really hard for me on stage to play characters a certain way. I don't have the background knowledge. This is especially true for the "sister" characters. I'm an only child. I don't know what that dynamic is at all - and honestly, it fascinates me to watch it go on in real life. VACATION I took a much needed vacation from performing last month. I feel better about what I'm doing on stage, and for the first time in a long time, I feel smart. I'm playing with the intelligence and confidence I had in Level One over at IO, before I knew what was "wrong" and "right" about improv. Last night at rehearsal, I pulled two very rich characters out on stage and did some really nice and dramatic stuff with 'em. Perhaps I need the focus of one team to put myself in motion as a performer - I'm not good when I'm spread too thin. Like I've said before, it seems that everyone's in such a hurry to make something of themselves that they often forget how much fun this stuff is supposed to be. FUTURE Kissing George has lots of stuff coming up - Playground shows and Big Bowl of... and outside gigs if we can find 'em. The next big goal though... is Playground membership. We're not going to apply for a few more months - we need to sit it out and establish ourselves a little more - but we're planning on applying by the summer. We'll have been together for one whole year by then. There's such a huge difference in playing with the same group of people for that long. You improve on an individual and group level the longer you're a unit. To those IO teams who've been split up - If you enjoyed working together, try to stick together outside of the structure of the Cabaret. You'll be amazed at the work you can do if you stay together. PHREEPH Next week is busy. I'll have more coherent things to say then, I guess. WHAT I LEARNED TODAY 1. You can make alcohol by straining cologne through layers of bread. True that it's wood alcohol and if you drink it you'll go blind, but it's alcohol nonetheless. 2. It's more plausible to impregnate a teenage girl with a turkey baster than it is to conceive of two teens arming themselves to the teeth and blowing up their high school. 3. You cannot erase the legacy of a ferret. Required viewing: Big Bowl of Chaos, an alternative night of improv That's all I have to say about that. THE FIRST SHOW OF THE MILLENNIUM Kissing George was the first team up on Thursday night, marking the first Playground show of the millennium. I'm sure we'll get a historical note somewhere if anyone every writes the history of the theater... Patrick and I were the "main" characters of the piece. I ended up playing a kindergarten teacher. It's odd how when you're sitting in the chairs in front of the audience, your brain tends to pick the least likely person for you to be. I have never, in all my existence, wanted to be a kindergarten teacher or understood how any sane person could stand to be around five year olds that much. I just don't feel that I possess that mushy love for kids that so many women seem to. Bill and Emily pulled off the satellite characters of the show - two snotty, vapid parents of one of the kids in my class. It was a pretty good show, all in all. I've noticed with this form that I really don't like being one of the interviewed characters. There's extra pressure to synthesize what the audience is giving to you in the form of a question while creating a character on the spot. You remain that person throughout the show, and there's a lot less freedom in it. The only time I've enjoyed playing this position was the other night in rehearsal - when I ended up playing an only child with a screwed up family. But that's not really acting, you see... that's just me. And playing yourself, while uncomfortable at times, is pretty easy - because nobody knows you better, right? GENDER ROLES After the show, I was approached by an undergrad from Florida who is writing her senior thesis on gender equality in improv. It's a subject I haven't really given a lot of serious thought about, other than the occasional entry in this journal. Mark also sat in on the questions; it was interesting to see how a man answered the questions as well. I left the session thinking a few things: 1. No matter how much society and the improv community place roles upon women improvisers, we really have the power to do anything we want on stage. It's true that we often find ourselves in "bitchy" or "passive" or "sexpot" characters, but does that mean that we have to play the stereotype out? Nope. You can be a sexpot and a brilliant inventor, you can be passive and still be the dictator of a third world country. The quirk makes the character interesting and funny. Every scene you are a part of, you are responsible for 50%. Even if there's no dialog, you can only get steamrolled if you don't do your job as a player. 2. It's true that women are a minority group in the improv world, but that doesn't mean we have to act like one. We shouldn't bitch about our "lack" of opportunities. We should just take the initiative to make more for ourselves. 3. A woman's body is a powerful tool. Think about it. We've got some pretty huge social taboos placed on us as far as our bodies are concerned. Even if we don't like it, there's still a lot of 1950's kickback floating around out there. I'm not suggesting that women strip on stage or anything... but we should understand that our body language is much louder than that of a man. And, we're tons more comfortable with touch. A mother and daughter will hold hands, a group of women who are friends will embrace one another - there's no problems. Men have difficulty getting past a handshake. 4. Comedy can be vulgar sometimes. So can women, we're just less likely to be. I'm always interested to hear what people think about stuff like this. If you've got any thoughts on the subject, feel free to drop me a note and I'll post everything on a separate page. It'll be a discussion or something grown up like that... GONE AND WENT Call for Backup kind of fell apart. Lack of coach, lack of direction, too much beer, and busy schedules are mostly to blame. We're on hiatus, pending the reorganization of the group. I'm afraid I'm too busy for that right now... BIG BOWL OF CHAOS is next week. My very first show as a producer. Fuzzy and I have been working on things a lot these past few days, and I'm hoping that all goes well. The goal of the show was to give people a chance to see improv that's different than the usual prime time/Cabaret fare. I really hope that improvisers will come and see it - to see new, interesting ways of performing or old ways that will inspire new creations. I want to give the three teams a great audience to play for; I want them to have fun and enjoy themselves. Stress is starting to slowly creep into my shoulders and make my teeth grind a little bit, so I'll have to remember that there's only so much control I have over my little bowl of chaos... THINGS I LEARNED TODAY 1. I really like playing on the stage I helped fix. 2. I like this site a lot and I'm glad that people read it. 3. Simone Silverstein is a great teammate. Even though she wasn't able to make our show last night, she still stopped by the Playground to listen to notes and find out how the performance went. I know that she loves playing with the group and at the Playground, and it really shows. Every team should be so lucky to have someone on it like Simone. Required viewing: Big Bowl of Chaos, an alternative night of improv That's all I've got to say about that. "My life began again today at IO (note from Megan - I had been in LA and had been reading a heavy dose of Kerouac). I'm suddenly wishing I had a job parking cars or was poor and riding cross-country on a few bucks. It began again with improv and chocolate cake, taking deep breaths through the haze of Camel Light vapors in the Cabaret... Feeling much braver in class, but I don't like so much talking about doing, just want to do and try and figure it out. Never have time to connect with what I'm doing... I discovered how wonderful laughter is tonight - it crept up on me slowly, but I see how it is so beautiful watching the lips curve into crescents that fill with shining open teeth. That squinched up face - how laughter feels tight in your gut - the sound. The explanation has been lost to the confines of words." "What Meg Learned about Improv from Mick Napier (from the Inside the Improviser's Studio): 1. Shut the fuck up and listen. BAA BAA Black Sheep had a great show on Friday night. With the exception of a few lagging scenes towards the end, they were high energy and high quality. From the suggestion "Fun House", they launched into a rather dark comic piece about death, alcoholics and the misplaced love of parents. The Sheep do twisted and mean very, very well and in a way that gives the audience permission to laugh, even at their darkest moments. It was nice to see Tim Sniffen back with the group - he's been on hiatus for the past few shows - and always very cool to watch Simone and Mark play. THINGS I LEARNED TODAY 1. The Playground's lights need to be fixed very badly. I refocused them, but they don't work properly. Time to call in the professionals... *sigh* 2. A scene can be brilliant when one person is talking about caskets and the other is talking about Cadillacs. Sometimes, miscommunication can be your friend. 3. Jason Chin's site has all but vanished. What's up with this? Anybody know what's going on? Required viewing: Big Bowl of Chaos, an alternative night of improv That's all I've got to say about that. BIG BOWL OF GOODNESS Yep. I'm proud of my creation. Fuzzy and I put on a really good show last night, with great groups and a nice full house. For those of you that missed it - First up, Mission:Improvable did their original form, "The Trip". I didn't catch their suggestion for the piece since I was up front working box office, but it had something to do with babies, I think. A Trip is their group exploration of a subject - it's really a 15 minute long amorphous scene/game in which all the team stays onstage and explores. Sometimes monologues pop out of the mix, sometimes games, sometimes just sounds and repeated phrases. It works for them especially well because as a team they are a group mind - while each performer in the group has particular strengths as an actor, they work together in a way that blends all of their individual talents. I liken it to looking into a telescope - there's lots of pretty colors and shapes, but it's the combination of them all that's really breathtaking. The guys, through this form, create a living being out of an abstract idea or concept. They are enjoyable to watch in any form that they do, but this is really where they excel as a team. Can't say enough good things. Second - The Monologue Ponies. Unfortunately, there were a lot of people walking in for the show at this point in time, so I didn't get to enjoy as much of their show as I did with M:I. Jim Jarvis and Rob Mello (the Ponies) tell excellent stories. The first time I saw the Ponies play, Jim really had me convinced that he had been an undercover DEA agent... what made me more impressed was learning that his entire monologue - approximately 15 minutes worth of material - had all been completely improvised. It's more than just the monologues - Jim and Rob have a really odd balance to their piece in their personalities on stage. You've got Jim, from the South Side of Chicago breezing into the theater in his black leather motorcycle jacket and boots, talking about drugs and prison, guns and felonies he's committed. Then there's Rob - the guy everybody thinks is gay (except for his girlfriend, of course), sometimes singing, talking about his failed attempts at trying to be a "real" man around his friends. An odd, quirky little balance. Lovely. It's hard to really describe what they do on stage, but it's always very captivating. I'm really glad that they were a part of Big Bowl of... Finally - Kissing George with "First Impressions". We had a great show. Bill and Fuzzy took the chairs and ended up playing father and son. Bill's character turned out to be a blowhard high school football coach, Fuzzy was his adult son who worked in e-commerce and disappointed his parents at every turn. The audience, after an initial moment or two of hesitation with the question period, really got into finding out who they were. It was great - and they asked some really intelligent, thoughtful questions. Simone came out as the mother figure - a wonderfully evil little passive aggressive woman - and managed to bookend the show with two breakfast scenes with Fuzzy. We got laughs and we had the audience from the start. It was a blast. Perhaps it's just because this was my show, but I really felt that we put on a great night of improv. The performers seemed to have a good time, we got a lot of positive feedback from the audience. That's all I wanted. The chance to treat a group of improvisers to a full house was just icing on the cake. GIFTS While I felt we had a great show last night, I was still a little less than excited about my performance. I got stuck on stage at one point for which I'm still kicking myself... BUT... I discovered that last night, even if I wasn't the focus of the scene, I was still giving some really excellent gifts to my teammates. In my first scene with Patrick, I gave him the gift that his character, Bert the janitor, had been the previous football coach before Bill's character had come along. His coaching had always won the state championships while Bill's records were less than stellar. After that scene, Bert was well on his way to being fully realized while Delilah disappeared. That's okay. I played a receptionist in a scene with Simone later on, where I was able to "slip" the news to the mother that her son was gay. Since she'd been hassling Fuzzy in earlier scenes about girlfriends, it really exploded in Mom's face to have her "beautiful" boy be "one of those people". My gifts. My characters were pretty mediocre, but my gifts were great. Does that make my performance a good one? Or just my gifts? "BACON IS GOOD, but being gay is bad." The opening line to one of my favorite scenes ever. Yep. Ever. In the final scene of our show, Simone's passive-aggressive mom confronts Fuzzy character about his secret. I'm not sure where Simone summoned up her quiet brand of evil from, but it was captivating. Fuzzy held his own against lines like - "I've loved you since the day you were born, and I'll love you 'til the day you die." - and had some of the best facial reactions I've seen in a long time. It was such a deliciously mean scene, I nearly fell down laughing. THINGS I LEARNED TODAY 1. If you missed Big Bowl of Chaos, you missed a damn good show. But don't worry, next month it's Big Bowl of Robots, and you'll know better than to sit at home and watch crappy sitcoms, now won't you? 2. Fuzzy Gerdes is a great business partner. I'm glad to be working with him. 3. This Friday marks the last Sidewalk Ends show. We've been together (sort of, on and off) for about eight months. It will be sad to let my first team go, but I'm glad that we got the chance to work together. We be crazy kiddies. 4. Always take chances on ideas. Some of them just might turn out to be pretty good. Required doing: Go howl at the moon. We all need a little howlin' from time to time. It frees up That's all I have to say about that. THE SIDEWALK'S END Friday was the farewell performance of my very first improv team, The Sidewalk Ends. We've thrown in the hat, as it were, for all the teammates are way busy with other projects and teams. I'd like to say, for the record that we survived without the guidance of the IO system for three months and set up our own gigs elsewhere. With any group, it's all about making your own opportunities - you can't wait for someone else to do it for you. I won't say we did our best work in those months outside the Cabaret, but we were free to play how we wanted. Jim Nemeth came down from Detroit for the show, we were short Dennis and Fred, but all the other members of the team were present. It was nice to see everyone again and do just one more bit with 'em all. This team did more for me than I think I give it credit for - it kept me involved in improv, it allowed me to work with some really great up-and-coming improvisers, it let me share stage time with my favorite naughty kitty, Ms. Allison Bills, it sparked an idea for scripted show, it let me develop my skills as a performer. It also inevitably freed me from a training center I wasn't comfortable at and allowed me to see what the rest of the community looked like. That's a lot. To Mike Bertrando, Allison Bills, Matt Chapman, Joel Gray, Jim Nemeth, Jamie Newland, Dennis O'Toole, Gus Richter, and Fred Warner - thanks for a fun time. You guys are the best. MELTDOWN An odd rehearsal last night for Kissing George. On the one hand, we had a member meltdown, not unlike my own during our brief excursion into Meisner. I understood exactly what was going through his head when it happened too... sometimes it's hard to turn off anger in your head. I know that I get into these "black moods" from time to time - irrational and unexplainable fury that consumes every pore of your body, and is without cause or culprit. We also worked on our upcoming Big Bowl of... contribution, "Flashlight Theater". There's not a concrete form as of yet, but I think that's probably for the best. It will be a trippy little experience that I'm really looking forward to. THE GOLDEN FLEECE I'm a little bit disturbed by the message I found on Jason Chin's Argos Agency website this morning. He's off doing some pretty major projects and won't be updating for a while, but that's not what got me. Listed, after his explanation of the departure, were "horrible things that have occurred because of this website". IO email and petty bickering aside, it bothers me that his opinions and writing have caused him problems, especially from theater management. I guess it's not a perfect world and our opinions aren't always going to be allowed the freedom that they deserve, but when these opinions are posted to a personal website unassociated with any theater... grrrrr. Jason's in a unique and high-pressure (I might add), position at the Improv Olympic - one that pisses as many people off as it helps. I can't say that I value everything I took from IO, but I'd never say that the time I spent working with Jason was a waste or that he deserves the crap he receives. Yes, he makes the Schedule. Yes, he plays on a popular team and coaches an equally popular team in the Cabaret. Yes, he works closely with Charna. But he is ruled by these factors just as much as any of us in this community. And he works hard. And he tries his best to be fair and objective about the opinions he expresses. If Jason writes a less than glowing review of your latest half-assed creation or criticizes your long running improv showcase, it most likely has it's problems and could use improvement. Theater management and improv community alike need to BACK OFF. The Armando CAN suck. Second City CAN suck. Face it, people. This is a business that's worth is based on the quality of the performance - something which our peers and critics judge as good or bad, expressed as opinion. We have the right to say what we do. We have the right to criticize and we have the right to praise. That's because we have our own opinions, formed in our own minds, that aren't the rhetoric of any theater or teacher or training center. If you disagree with Jason or me or anyone who voices their opinion - stand on the soapbox yourself and make your own voice heard. Hiding behind an institution and name calling is well within your rights, but it makes you look like the fools that you genuinely are. Even though I never met the man, I can't believe that Del would approve of your actions. I understand that I can be an opinionated, loudmouth bitch. I understand that to many of you, I've joined the ranks of "those Playground assholes". I embrace all of it - for I have a freedom of expression that a lot of our community does not. Then again, I'm not trying to get myself on SNL or Conan O'Brien... Jason - I offer you my pages to post anything you like, even if it's an article berating me for my outspoken bashing of the Improv Olympic or how much this site sucks. Your thoughts are welcome here. WHAT I LEARNED TODAY 1. Hey, Charna... you told me you were putting me on a team. In fact, you made a point of calling me out in the middle of a rehearsal I was involved with to announce your plans to me. Then when I mysteriously was left off the schedule you went out of your way to call me at work and blow some more smoke up my ass. You told me I'd be sitting in with Pick 'n Roll and playing on a new team in the Cabaret. What ever happened with that? Oh, that's right. People should never believe what you say because you are always lying. It's not just me, gentle readers, that feels this way. There's as many negative Charna stories out there as there are anecdotes about Del doing something crazy while he's stoned. Don't believe one word this woman says, ladies and gentlemen. I'd as soon follow Gracie than her, and Gracie's pretty much blind. 2. There's no need to buy "Truth in Comedy". The public library has several copies that you can check out and read. Required viewing: The Armando Diaz Theatrical Experience & Hootenanny Sorry so antagonistic, kids. I find censorship, in any form, really repugnant. And that's probably not all I have to say about that. THE SIDEWALK'S END, PART TWO Heard back from the Playground productions committee today on the Shel show. They passed. I guess it doesn't surprise me, but it's a little disappointing, especially since I don't have the money right now to produce it myself. I just have to look at the positives of the situation - it was my first attempt at adapting text for stage and I learned about the pressures of working with deadlines for projects in the future. Logistically, the show probably would have been a nightmare - having to get permission to use all of the poems and songs, finding rehearsal time, working on a fingernail of a budget. Ah, who am I kidding. I'm sure it would have been fine... I'm just finding excuses to make myself feel better. FAME, FORTUNE, AND THE ART Mark and I had a long discussion the other night about why people do improv and where it takes them after years and years of work. It seems that people do this thing called improv under the influence of three things: 1. The desire to be famous. Fame, of course, is a relative thing. In our tight-knit, in-bred community, we have our legends. But does the name Del Close really have meaning outside of our little insulated world? Think of the current Chicago improv gurus - Mick Napier, Charna Halpern, Joe Bill, Susan Messing, etc. - and improv gods - Rich Talarico, Stephanie Weir, TJ Jagodowski, Kevin Dorff, etc... how bright does their star shine outside the walls of IO, Second City or the Annoyance? Gaining noteriety in our community is easy, but becoming famous from improv is pretty much impossible. 2. The desire to be rich. Very few people actually see a dime from performing improv. I'd say on the average, we pay more in classes, coaching and rehearsal space than we could ever recoup doing shows. Improvisers will play for free, and usually do. Even the folks on TourCo and Mainstage at Second City aren't making big bucks. Very few of us make it to SNL or Mainstage or "Bigger and Better Things". Most of us stay in Chicago and play, eventually moving upward to coaching or teaching. The bullet train to fame and fortune screeches to a halt about there. So why do this thing called improv? 3. The desire to create The Art. It's what we forget in our rush for glory and fortune, but yet, it's the reason we are up on stage and the reason that audiences come to see us. The Art is really the only thing we'll take away with us. The question we must ask ourselves is, "Is it worth it?" Improv is an intangible, fleeting thing. It is entertaining and it is thought provoking, but it is by no means indelible. I am mystified by the number of vetern improvisers that still remain in the game, considering that The Art is all they have to show for it. But, then again, that's how it's supposed to be. WHAT I LEARNED TODAY I learned that I'm tired, drained and that medical students are not as self-reliant and responsible as they should be. The only thing scarier is that doctors are even less reliant and responsible. Required reading: The Del Close Resource - I'm not a huge fan of the fact that IO seems to be marketing Del (even more than usual), but it is a good start to keeping Del's memory alive. An even BETTER Del Close page, and one that I highly recommend everyone reading and contributing their Del stories to is found on the now on-hiatus Argos Agency website. Enter the Wasteland... That's all I have to say about that. TEAM VS. INDIVIDUAL Got to thinking about this at the last Playground board meeting. We were discussing the various successes and failings of the Incubator program, as well as teams applying for member status. There seem to be two types of teams in improv, based mainly on the philosophies of the forming agents - those made to benefit the individual and those that benefit the group. I realize that statement seems odd, but there is an emphasis one way or the other. I've been a part of teams that are mainly set up to benefit the individual - and due to their nature, sadly, remain a group of individuals. Improv Olympic's Cabaret and the Incubator program at the Playground are good examples of this type of team. These teams are excellent opportunities to gain some stage time and some additional instruction from coaches or directors. The problems, however - they are pieced together from complete strangers of varying levels of expertise, are led by coaches that may lack experience or desire, and have no goals as a group. Not that there aren't exceptions to these rules... of course. I learned a lot from my time in the Sidewalk Ends, but the team was doomed from the start due to a lack of leadership, vision and determination. The inability to see beyond the box (or the next Schedule) is what killed us, and other new improv groups. Teams formed this way seem to suffer from overbooked players as well - with members on multiple teams, taking multiple classes, etc. Not that there's anything wrong with playing on more than one team... the problem is, however, that your team may not rank at the top of your teammate's priorities. Teams that benefit the group share a common goal and reek of determination. It's a Three Musketeers mentality - all for one, one for all. Not everyone can be Mission:Improvable, but they're one of the best examples I can think of. And they're successful. These teams have a lot to their credit - because they stick together, the quality of their shows is higher and more consistent than the team of individuals. They take risks with form and scenework that other teams, due to time and outside factors (read theater owners/marketability) don't get an opportunity to try. They delegate work above and beyond performing and rehearsing (like marketing) amidst the membership. If a member is gone or sick, they can still play well at a show. Problems with these teams - they narrow the individual player's opportunities, as they are really only playing with one group and associated with one group. Individual members don't get the opportunity to work with other improvisers, unless in classes or workshops. Which is better? It depends on where you're at in your career. The Cabaret or the Incubator are excellent starting points for an improviser. After a few rounds of classes or teams, the group mind is probably the better way to go. I lucked out that my Incubator team found the gray zone between these extremes and that we've had a chance to see both sides of the coin. PUSHY I worry that I push to hard with Kissing George, mainly because this is the only group I'm working with right now and because there are things I want from the team that I'm afraid no one else is looking for. Everyone has their own thing going, and it's not my business to get in the way. That's the worst thing I could do, stretching the team's patience too thin... For whatever reason, though, I feel that this group of improvisers I play with have tremendous potential. And we're friends, which is more than can be said for a lot of "veteran" teams out there. I'm not sure where the line is drawn, but I hope I'll find out soon. ROBOT MONSTER Big Bowl of Robots is finally up and running - we've got our three groups, we're starting to stockpile flashlights and I'm starting to get fidgety that I'm forgetting something. This show brings on that nauseous feeling you get in your stomach when you ride a roller coaster for me. I like it, but I'm queasy nonetheless. TO MR. LEONARD - I'd like to extend my apologies for any ill will created from my previous journal entry. Now that I've got the full story, I agree with you regarding the Argos Agency posting. Reporting rumor as fact is never the right way to go. Please understand that my anger was directed at problems deriving from Jason's opinions about improv, the various theaters, and the community at large - nothing else. WHAT I LEARNED TODAY 1. One or two evenings a month I turn into a complete raving psycho bitch. I'm not sure if it has anything to do with the full moon or lack thereof, but you werewolves better fucking watch out. 2. Mi piacciono molto le mele, my Italian phrase-a-day calendar informs me, means I like apples a lot. And I do. 3. Sweeping makes Jen Shepard feel like a fertile, feminine woman. Required viewing: Go check out O.C.Y.C.'s volume series. It starts on Monday, the 31st and runs every night for two weeks... that's a lot of comedy. A moment of Zen: I LOVE MY KISSING GEORGE CREW. OR, WELL, LOVE IS
1/4/00
Wow. That's a strange looking date, don't you think? We all survived the "apocolypse" intact, much to Mark's dismay. He was really looking forward to the domination of the neighborhood. A little killing, a little looting... *sigh*
Wednesday, January 12th @ The Playground, 8pm
Admission: $5
Featuring: Mission Improvable, The Monologue Ponies & Kissing George
Special Guests - the Big Bowl of... Dancers
1/7/00
I've been having a really shitty week, so I went online and bought myself some toys to keep myself happy. Seeing that it is my shitty week, the folks at MacWarehouse failed to ship anything out because of problems with their Y2K compliance software for their purchase orders. Go figure. A computer company with Y2K problems. *sigh* I'll have to wait 'til next week to be technologically superior.
@The Playground (3341 N. Lincoln), 8pm
Admission: $5
Featuring: Mission:Improvable, The Monologue Ponies & Kissing George
1/10/00
Found an old journal of mine from last February mixed in with a bunch of stuff I hadn't quite unpacked from my move six months ago...
2. If you're a woman, quit bitching about it.
3. Live life in the moment and to the fullest. If you want to fuck men, fuck men.
4. Don't close your mind to the rest of the world. Read - watch - listen.
5. There is no God and nothing after this life. Always remember that.
6. Learn to audition and then go out and do it."
Wednesday, January 12th
@The Playground (3341 N. Lincoln), 8pm
Admission: $5
Featuring: Mission:Improvable, The Monologue Ponies & Kissing George
1/13/00
The show came and went. And it was good...
all the bad gunk in your head and lets you think. And, there's the extra added bonus that your neighbors will think you a little crazy. Keep 'em on their toes...
1/17/00
A relatively light improv weekend for me. I managed to completely disappear off the map on Saturday and enjoy some much deserved improv-free time with Mark. It's difficult for it not to creep in from time to time, but I assure you, it's possible to have a relationship with another improviser and not talk/see/do improv all the time.
Mondays at 8:30pm, in the Del Close Theater
Improv Olympic (3541 N. Clark)
See for yourself if it sucks.
1/21/00
Ack. My day job drives me nuts. Just when we've got everything under control, something breaks or somebody doesn't show up. They should teach a course in Improv for Business, really.
1/28/00
I'm trying to make the site more useful for everybody. It's not nearly as helpful as Fuzzy's site or the old Argos Agency page, but I figure since people are reading it...
STRONG. BUT HEY, SO ARE MY ARMS. WHAT DID THAT MEAN?
I DON'T KNOW. - Simone Silverstein, on our upcoming Incubator show
