To the left of a dimly lit stage crowds Renny Temple and his powerhouse improv group, OUT OF THIN AIR. They lean in, in a kind of confidential huddle before entering the light of the stage as enthusiasm fills the room. Audience members applaud as Temple introduces the group, who are quick to transform into alternative characters at a moment’s notice throughout the show.
With the help of audience feedback, the team is prompted by suggestions on scenes such as the location the scene is set in, or the activity the character is performing, and so on.
The audience begins choosing a character’s profession and the suggestions swiftly lead to an elaborate narrative. One scene involved a character who was of southern heritage, with a rodeo background, currently on vacation in New York City. This self-identified cowboy character was on his way to visit the MnM Store, alongside a sassy rodeo queen on his arm. As you may have guessed, anything peculiar is within reach and no oddity is off limits in the name of improvisational comedy.
Despite the fluidity of a craft that calls for random submissions, the players react willingly to every one, as if they had accepted the challenge ahead of time. They each rely on an instinct Temple and his group prove is within us all if we learn how to listen to it, or maybe more veraciously, if we learn how to let it listen to us. By allowing inner creativity to dominate the moment without hesitation; sans self-critic analyzing everything one says and does, an immense power is obtained by the player who experiences true freedom from their egoic mind. Scenes start flowing and comic timing is perfected with the group's shared allowance for space to make mistakes. All the while, games are quickly played by players consistently maintaining an interactive intimacy with a less than shy audience, eager to shout-out what the next scene entails... because when you come to a night of Improv with OUT OF THIN AIR, you are playing too.
OUT OF THIN AIR SCHEDULE August 16th, 30th
September 13th, 27th
October 11th, 25th
Doors 7:30PM Show 8PM
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