Sometimes, all it needs to be is done

[prusik]

Tonight was my Harold level 1 grad show. On balance, it was decent. We managed a few good scenes. People laughed. Unlike our last rehearsals, this Harold was even paced about right. (Our last class was Sunday. We did two Harolds. The first ran way overtime. The second ran just under.)

We can count the number of complete Harolds we've done on one hand. This was our first Harold in front of an actual audience. All things considered, that we got through the Harold with a minimum of flailing is a good thing.

What will be interesting is that we're all taking Harold II. The good bit about a Harold with so many people is that it seriously lowers the pressure because everyone gets to do a small piece. The bad bit about a Harold with so many people is that everyone only gets to do a small piece. On balance, this has been a fun group to improv with. It'll be interesting to do more improv work with them.

I hope we get to work on doing some of the more organic stuff the experienced groups do. I don't know if I want a grad show at the end of it or not. (There wasn't supposed to be one after Harold I, but the guy who taught Harold I also schedules Harold Night. Voila.)

I invariably never look forward to performance. OTOH, I wouldn't mind doing a really good Harold some time. There's something incredibly satisfying about improvising a scene which just plain works. Likewise, there's something incredibly satisfying about improvising a coherent large form structure. (Well, I assume there is. The coherent bit is tough. You try to tie everything up at the end, and sometimes it, like tonight, doesn't happen. Oh well. That's why it's improv.)

So, I'm going to take Harold II. In March, they'll be auditioning for more Harold players, and I will almost surely audition. Mostly, the audition will be good experience for me. I invariably do my best work when no one is watching. Doing good work while people are watching is a hump that need to get over. Should the unlikely happen and I am recruited for a Harold team... well, I'll worry about that bridge should they build it.

[ETA: My Harold I instructor just sent us email about last night's performance. He had lots of great things to say about it, and only two small notes that we can improve on. Whether it was funny or not (I have no idea), it was definitely a technically sound Harold. I'm also thrilled that his favorite scene was the one that I improvised to end the Harold. However, the reason that scene worked as well as it did was because of the twist my scene partner, Sheila, put on it. In any case, go us.]

Comments

[bogwitch64.livejournal.com]

Ok, I have to ask...what's a Harold?

[prusik.livejournal.com]

A Harold is a kind of improvised long form comedy. You get a suggestion from the audience, then, on the spot, you create a half-hour show based on themes inspired by the suggestion. We did a highly structured "training wheel Harold," three beats of three scenes each with a group game between beats. Ideally, at the end, you tied everything up at the end back to the original suggestion. I've never actually seen a Harold where that's actually worked out though.

(Eventually, the training wheels come off. The whole thing gets much more malleable and organic. A compare and contrast of the Harold we did and the Harold the group after us did would prove illuminating.)

The name "Harold" is a joke that didn't work out. In retrospect, Del Close wished he'd chosen a better name.