FARMINGTON – Every year, the Del Close Improv-a-Thon takes place in New York City featuring 72 hours straight of improv comedy.
The Mt. Blue Curtain Raisers have less lofty goals.
On Friday, April 10, the improv comedy troupe will do something it’s never done before: Beginning at 7 a.m. Friday through the end of the evening performance at 9 p.m., members of the Curtain Raisers will deliver 14 hours of improvisation to help raise awareness of their art as well as raise funds for their planned appearance at ImprovBoston.
Classes from Mt. Blue High School and Foster Regional Applied Technology Center have been invited to participate in a series of improv workshops during the day. Under the guidance of Curtain Raisers Artistic Director Dan Ryder, students and teachers will have the opportunity to learn how improvisation can aid in team building, group trust and understanding information.
They also will be treated to brief performances and demonstrations by the Curtain Raisers themselves.
Following the school day, the Curtain Raisers will hold a performance at 7:30 p.m. in the MBHS auditorium. Audiences are encouraged to stop in and see how interesting their original brand of improv comedy can become as the hours go on. Games such as those featured on the TV show “Whose Line Is It, Anyway?” and other audience-interaction activities will blend with impromptu storytelling and longer improvisations. A give-what-you-can full-on Curtain Raisers show rounds out the marathon.
All proceeds will go toward helping the Curtain Raisers continue their tradition of performing at ImprovBoston, a professional improvisation theater in Cambridge, Mass. The troupe plans to attend a personalized workshop and then appear as featured guest artists on the Sunday, May 17, evening show.
Curtain Raisers will circulate around the school and in the community to get sponsorships for their individual efforts in the April 10 Curtain Raise-a-Thon.
Admission to the evening show is free, but attendees are asked to give what they can to help support the troupe’s efforts.
For more information, contact Dan Ryder at dryder@msad9.org.
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