My weekends usually have a very exciting theme of staying up too late, sleeping in, and doing homework. The exception to this usually falls on weeks where I have shows with the Peapod Squad. Starting on the Monday before our shows, we begin working on planning the games and events for our shows, making Facebook events and painting a sign and making fliers for the University Center. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday usually consist of practicing games, working on opening sketches, and getting generally worked up and excited about our shows on Friday and Saturday. It’s very difficult to get excited about doing anything other than improv.
Peapod Squad lovin’ – we had such an incredible weekend of shows!
Our shows this weekend were especially exciting; this was the last set of shows our seniors would have in the Little Center, which Clark’s blackbox theater and is basically the motherland of the squad. All of our practices are in the Little Center, along with all of our shows. We play, laugh, cry and spend a lot of late in the Little Center, and it’s come to be near and dear to our little improvisationsal hearts. Additionally, an old squad member, Tony, came back to improvise with us for our shows. It was great to work with someone who I had never worked with before, because I got to learn a lot of new techniques and see a lot of different styles and ideas. It was like a breath of fresh air!
Adding to the excitement was that Friday was an Admitted Student Open House day! It was so lovely to get to improvise for some of you lovely prospective students, and you all definitely made our show so very enjoyable.
Before our show on Friday, I got the chance to head over to a different improvisation-themed event; the Clark University Jazz Ensemble concert. Although I’m a music performance minor, there is nothing that I detest more than playing jazz. Maybe it’s because of my fear of musical improvisation, or maybe the demand for jazz clarinets isn’t as big as it used to be (Sorry, Benny Goodman). Either way, because I stick to classical music and showtunes, I don’t really have a finger on the pulse of Clark’s jazz scene.
But after attending that concert on Friday, I really wish I did. Clark’s jazz ensembles are incredible. The concert featured three different ensembles; one brand spanking new jazz choir, which was, by the way, pioneered by first year students and amazingly impressive, and two ensembles consisting of a classic piano-guitar-bass-drums sest up. One of the instrumental groups featured a singer, who had a beautiful voice and the other
Improv time – these guys were seriously impressive (photo snagged from Matt, the trombone player, who snagged the photo from a girl who attended the concert)
group featured a tenor saxophone and a trombone player, who played some of the most amazing improvisational solos I’ve ever heard. I had the absolute time of my life, and I can’t wait to go see more performances by Clark’s jazz ensembles, whichever of the three it may be.
What a weekend, right? It was so lovely to have a nice, improvisational break from the regular Netflix/homework/studying routine. There’s only one more Peapod Squad show left, I can’t wait!
(If you want to get in contact with me with any questions about improv [whether it be comedic or musical] or anything else, feel free to contact me at melmiller@clarku.edu I’d love to hear from you!)