Western Courier

Issue date: 10/7/09 Section: The Edge

The improv performance highlighted the two main stars, but the audience had an active role as well. Nimitta Tamrakar/courier staff

The Bureau of Cultural Affairs presented two of the most successful improv comics of our time, Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood, last Friday.

These artists, most widely known from the TV show "Whose Line Is It Anyway?," create a system of games to challenge their lightning-fast wit in which the subject matter relies completely on the audience's suggestions.

"As improvisers we sort of make them (the audience) part of the show, so everyone's working together," Sherwood said.

This was quickly put into action, where two audience members were coerced onstage to control the duo's every movement, while the crowd was called upon for the structure of the scene.

The majority of the comedy came from the inexperience of the audience members onstage, but it was easy to empathize with them.

This unity of performer and viewer was best exemplified by the game "Sound Effects," where the duo performed a scene with sound effects provided by the audience. One brave soul was brought onstage, while one microphone was passed around the crowd to spout poor attempts at impersonating fart noises and car engines.

In contrast to "Whose Line," their games progressed for about 10 to 15 minutes a piece. Mochrie claims one of the greatest benefits of touring "is you can take time and really milk a game for all it's worth." Sherwood added, "We have more time to let scenes build. In this show we have some scenes that last 15 minutes, and the funny stuff that happens in the second half of the scene, you would never even get there on TV. It's just a couple of quick jokes and you're out."

During the show, they made their talent abundantly clear. In "The Torture Game," they compiled their five most hated games from "Whose Line," and then performed them back-to-back while maintaining Shakespearian vernacular.

"The fun for us is being in trouble for the entire night, so we're constantly trying to find new ways to get ourselves into trouble." Mochrie said. These games that proved to be problematic on TV provided little friction to the comedy duo.

How do you top "The Torture Game?" Simple, they played "The Most Dangerous Game in Improv." The game certainly lived up to its title, where the blindfolded and barefoot duo sang opera about building a rocket while walking over 100 mousetraps. While singing, each sentence had to begin with the succeeding letter of the alphabet. They agreed it is "the stupidest game we've ever done," but to the crowd, it may have also been the most impressive.

This review doesn't do their performance justice. The comedy isn't necessarily thought provoking, and it doesn't speak to any specific demographic. It really is "you had to be there" comedy. Luckily for those who attended, the BCA brought Western one of the most interactive and hilarious comedy shows imaginable.

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