Improv artists and comedians will cruise into town this weekend for a show unlike anything Gainesville has seen before.
The Upright Citizens Brigade Touring Co. will perform at the High Dive at 8 p.m. Sunday. The company, composed of performers from New York and Los Angeles, has toured around the country, and its performances are fueled by audience suggestions.
“Let Gainesville know that we’ll probably end up in Midtown wearing coconut bras and grass skirts after the show,” said Mike Kelton, one of the actors in the troupe.
Improvisation, or improv, is a form of live theater with actors who perform on the spot without any prior rehearsal.
“I’m just the mom in the front driving the minivan right now,” the 27-year-old said.
The plot is typically created from something that audience members suggest, which is why every improv performance is unique.
“We pick up on absurdities in everyday life and take them to the next level,” he said. “It’s relatable, and that’s what makes it so funny.”
Jenny St. Angelo, another 27-year-old actor in the group, graduated from Southern Methodist University in Texas with a degree in theater. When she joined the Upright Citizens Brigade Touring Co., she realized she loved being an improv actor.
“It allows me to make people laugh, which I love to do,” she said.
When it comes to characters, the sky’s the limit for improv actors because they can be whomever or whatever they want, as long as it works with the scene, St. Angelo explained.
“I played a chicken once,” she said. “Now that was interesting.”
Tickets for the show can be purchased from the High Dive website. General admission tickets are $16 online and $18 at the door. VIP seating tickets are $25 online and $30 at the door.
For more information on the show, visit the High Dive website or the event’s Facebook page at on.fb.me/1uXBrpD.
[A version of this story ran on page 7 on 11/13/2014]
