A Weekend of Awesomeness

This past weekend was a pinnacle of improv goodness for me.

Saturday began with Day 1 of a new Level 1 Improv class at the Hideout. It was a great group–much larger than I expected. With fun, energetic and with-it people.

Then Sat at 8pm was the last GGG show for the Boys of Summer run. It was the best GGG show in the past year, probably since our last show at Out of Bounds. We got the suggestion of The Underworld and I got to play a upbeat and modest middle age woman who went on a road trip with a friend to Vermont and ended up staying at a Bed and Breakfast that was also a portal to hell. I also got to play a second role as the devil himself. Here are some great pictures, courtesy of Kareem Badr, of me singing “If the devil ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy” and me torturing Kacey, who was an underproducing Minion.



Then Whirled News was really fun. My standout moment for the show came when we read and article with the headline “Tiny Airline has Mechanical Problems.” I used my hand as a puppet with a tiny voice named Guadalupe. She had many adventures: buying a ticket for the plane, auditioning for the ballet, and eventually being seduced by a full size man.

The Sunday capped it off with the first day of the improvised singing class. I tried out some new curriculum and made some great discoveries. The class is full of wonderful people. My only worry is that we’ll have enough time to get through all the material I have. Andrea Young also was wonderful to have as a TA, and led some great breathing exercises.

After 3 hours of singing, it was off to GGG rehearsal, where we re-choreographed our opening number. Now it has more movement and energy. And ends with a kick line–so what could be better than that?

About Shana Merlin

Merlin Works is the brainchild of Shana Merlin: improviser, teacher, and performer. Since 1996, she’s been leading classes that stretch people’s imaginations, push them out of their comfort zones, and make them laugh out loud for hours at a time.
Replies: 1

One comment

  1. Dano said:

    Holy Kazowee! Shana’s on FIRE!

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