So there's this improv festival coming to Tampa Aug. 17-19.
Yes, and…
And it's unique in that it focuses on small improvisational groups (three people or fewer).
Yes, and…
And it's actually the inaugural 321 Improv Festival, featuring 27 performances from artists hailing from eight different states, and produced by the duo behind New York's Countdown Theater.
"It was basically a moment of complete insanity on our parts to decide to run a festival 1100 miles away from where we live," joked Justin Peters, who organized the event with creative partner Kelly Buttermore.
In reality, they spent so much time driving from festivals talking about how they could do things better that they decided to give it a try, he said. And since Florida has a supportive, vibrant improv scene, having it in the Sunshine State made sense. The pair performed in the area as part of the Tampa Improv Festival back in 2015.
Peters and Buttermore's own improv show, From Justin to Kelly, has endured far longer than the train-wreck film of the same name that was forced upon the world by American Idol producers.
It also includes segments that are pretty quiet by improv standards. Several minutes elapse in almost complete silence. Instead, the pair focuses on tension-building moments that emphasize eye contact, which would be harder to accomplish with more performers in the scene.
That format is just one variation on the improv theme that small groups try on a regular basis. The 321 Festival's headliner, T.J. Mannix, will perform an improvised one-man musical. Locals Josh Baldwin and Matt Rodriguez will present Power of Godt, which is improvisational comedy built around time-traveling Vikings.
Clearly, all improv is not the same.
"I feel that anyone who watches a lot of improv, or performs in a lot of improv, knows that there's an element of trust in small group performances that you don't see in the big ones, an element of intimacy that really comes through in those performances," Peters said. "You create some beautiful moments between the comedians and the crowd just by virtue of that strong trust that's everywhere in the room."
In addition to beautiful moments, fewer performers also means added pressure for the ones on stage, Peters explained. If something isn't working in a more-traditional improv group, there's always someone on the side of the stage waiting to jump in with new ideas and a different direction for the scene. But with just a couple of people, it's up to them — and only them — to make the scene work. There's nobody waiting to come in, no ducking a challenge and literally nowhere to run.
With patience, that pressure often results in some great improv material. But not always. Sometimes a scene doesn't take off, and the results are mixed at best.
Peters, who has been performing improv for about a decade, said there's a good chance of both outcomes at a festival where the artists are creating unique comedy on the fly. In fact, the unknown outcome of a performance (and an entire festival) is part of the appeal.
"If I wanted to play it safe, Kelly and I would have never left the theater that we started, that we performed at for five years in Manhattan. If it wanted to play it safe, I would have gone to law school," Peters said. "Improv is at its best, at its most potent, when you don't play it safe, and this festival and the act of putting it together is just another manifestation of that."
While performances will take place Thur.-Sat. evenings, the afternoons will be reserved for five separate workshops featuring many of the festival performers. Peters explained that improv is a little different from other forms of entertainment in that fans will often get the bug to try it themselves, making workshops a way to interact with experienced performers and let people see just how hard (and fun) it is for themselves.
But whether fans try out a workshop or just stay in the audience, Peters said that a festival dedicated to smaller groups will give them a radically different perspective of the format.
"For people who think they know what theatrical improv is or what comedic improv is, if they come to this festival, they will walk away with the equivalent of having taken an acid trip," he said. "It's going to completely expand their horizons."
This article appears in Aug 3-10, 2017.