Duofest is born… and its twins!

Last week, members of the Philadelphia and NYC improv scenes announced that this fall we’ll be treated to DUOFEST, a festival dedicated to celebrating comedic pairs. Produced in association with the PHILLY IMPROV THEATER, it’s the first festival of its kind, paying tribute to the unique dynamic created when just two people alone share the stage.

For anyone who attends festivals regularly, and even more so for any duos who submit to them, it’s a sad fact that far too many comedic pairs get passed over for larger ensembles. Many times they are already members of larger groups submitting, other times they may not have the notoriety… but regardless of the reason – only a few make it front and center at national festivals. The producers of Duofest look to flip that reality on it’s head… showing us that there’s never an odd man out when you’ve got two people.

PHIT has long shown its love for duos, having played host to such noted visitors as BASSPROV, CODE DUELLO, TYBRUS, TIN SANDWICH and most recently ADSIT & GAUSUS… as well as regularly showcasing local talent like WHIPSUIT, AMIE & KRISTEN SHOW and CUBED.

Now they’ll be taking that love and spreading it out over 4 days, featuring comedic pairs from the far reaches of duo-dom. Duofest will run Sept. 3o – Oct. 3, 2010 at the Shubin Theater here in Philadelphia. If you have a duo you’d like to get involved, submissions are open until July 22nd with a $32 submission fee. If you hurry up and apply before July 2nd, they’ll knock $10 off the fee.

DUOFEST
TWO IMPROVISERS, ONE STAGE
SEPT. 30 – OCT. 3RD, 2010
SHUBIN THEATER | 407 BAINBRIDGE ST
SUBMIT NOW

Must See: Shubin Saturday

Today I’ll be kicking off a new department, Must See. These posts will feature shows that I personally recommend that you do not miss. While I will always recommend you seeing the awesomeness of my own shows, these are rather the shows that you’ll be likely to find me in the audience next to you pining for the comedy magic that’s about to happen. So without further ado, my first recommendation…

THIS SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE SHUBIN

Once a month PHIT puts together a week of shows at the Shubin Theatre. Most are consistently pretty good, but sometimes the stars align and a lineup comes into existence that will knock the socks off your feet and then proceed to knit you new socks spun with laughter, attitude and tangible awesomeness. This Saturday is one of those nights.

First up is the 8PM show. I can’t even adequately express how damn excited I am for this pairing.

- First off is CUBED, consisting of local improvisers Dan Stabb (DCT North, Troika, my old former PHIT classmate) and Mark Bringhurst (Makeout Clinic, DCT, PHIT Instructor). The duo debuted only a few short months ago, but are already garnering amazing praise. They tackle premise based situation improv (think Bassprov, Code Duello, BWP) as a pair of cubicle dwellers sharing a 4×5 walled partition. The audience provides the name of their company and corporate memos that the two use for inspiration. I guarantee cube farming has seldom been so much fun.

- Next up is DR FANTASTIC, visiting from WIT in DC. Dr Fantastic is, well, aptly named and nothing short of exactly that. The group features Michael Bass, Topher Bellavia, David Johnson, Tyler Korba, Zhubin Parang, Rory Scovel and Molly Woods. These folks are fast, they’re crazy and they’re damn funny. Consistently. I’ve seen them three times and been blown away each time. They aren’t afraid of anything and thrive on breaking convention… but every step of the way they do it together… a seamless group mind that sets the bar about 50 f**king feet in the sky. I’m not going to say any more about what they do so as I think you’ll be the better for not having a clue, but let me just say that they could be in the headlining block of my festival in heartbeat based on what I’ve seen before.

When those two sets are done you’ve got exactly enough time to scoop your gray matter off the Shubin walls, change your shorts and buy a ticket for the 10PM show (or if you’re smart, get an advanced ticket).

The late block kicks off with a set from BARK WHARF. I can’t actually speak for this three-person ensemble as I’ve never seen them perform as a group, but I can most certainly speak for these three people: Matt Klinman, Ali King and Jesse Paulsen. I’ve been around these fine folks in many a workshop and they’re a joy. They are also all alums of Haverford, which if you haven’t put 2 and 2 together yet, churns out batshit crazy good improvisers like it’s their job (Alexis Simpson, Scott Sheppard, the list goes on and on…).

Rounding out the evening is MEG & ROB. This much lauded sketch duo (Meg Favreau and Rob Baniewicz) has been on a quest of world domination, having recently played at Chicago Snubfest and will be touching down at the Shubin right before heading back out to play the Minnesota Fringe Festival. As much as we can see them pretty consistently at Die Actor Die, Bedtime Stories and a rare Troika appearance, their shows always seem to feel fleeting for some reason. It’s a rare treat for me to feel like that watching sketch, so I plan to take advantage of this and take in some fun times from the creators of Reviving the Lecture Circuit, Love Over the Phone and Dan Henkle, Relationship Expert.

PHIT @ THE SHUBIN
Saturday, July 11th
8 & 10PM
407 Bainbridge St
Tickets – $10

Fishing Wisdom

Last weekend, the Philly Improv Theater brought in BASSPROV, featuring Joe Bill and Mark Sutton of the Annoyance Theater. In addition to performances all weekend, there we some pretty incredible workshops offered. Mark taught Power Improv, while across town Joe taught students one of his signature forms, the Scramble. Then they combined for Motherload, an across-the-board intensive. There’s so much that they covered and there’s no way to every really do any of it justice here. But there are a few phrases that really stuck with me through the workshops…

- “It doesn’t matter what the hell you do… it’s how you do it.”

- “Every single thing in a scene is a tool for communication.”

- “Don’t just move objects around in a scene; let the objects in a scene move you.”

- “Laughter is a result of tension broken.”

- “Don’t play to the top of your intelligence; play to the top of your character’s integrity.”

- “Make whatever you do an observable aspect of your character.”

- “Don’t find the game. There’s always a fucking game. Decide what your shit is and use that to inspire instead of burden.”

And reiterated from a zen sarcasm poster in O’Neals Pub on Saturday night – “Never miss a good opportunity to shut the hell up.”