All that was asked of the audience at The Workman's Club was to come up with one suggestion. Armed with that the four performers for the night, Dany Kehoe, Sharon Mannion, Charlie Kranz and Graeme Singleton from The Cardinals set off on their improvised theatre. All we had to do was sit back and enjoy. Which is exactly what we did. If you have 'Whose Line Is it Anyway?' in your head (showing my age now!), or even aspects of 'Mock the Week', well, this is a bit different; this is long form improvised theatre. It's not a succession of suggestions and short scenes, here one suggestion gives rise to a series of scenes based around whatever characters and events come up, and where responses take them. There is no small huddle to figure out what's happening next before starting, no scripts. Two performer's got the ball rolling and it was all systems go, as they tag themselves in and others out to keep it rolling along and the laughter coming. After a short interval, it all starts again, although to begin with it's more conversational, inspired by another suggestion from the audience, before the next wave begins.
That's the format, straight forward enough, but what the content is is anyone's guess, even the performers. Of course, that's part of the fun, being on the edge with them, knowing that it's all being created there and then. Watching them riffing off each other, even when they get things wrong, or get caught off guard by a response, makes things even funnier, as the crazy, madcap of it all joyfully infects everyone, and they do make it look so easy, clearly having a lot of fun themselves as well.
It really is a very entertaining night, not only because of a few great responses and lines, and the crazy characters and accents that crop up; the unexpectedness of it all adds to it. And of course, every night it's going to be different, and judging by the laughter all the way through, it's being really enjoyed as well.
There's not too much more to say, as I have no idea what you might be served up with next time by The Cardinals, and neither do they. What is great is the relaxed atmosphere of the venue and the performers themselves, not disappearing off after their set. While there was four from the troupe there the night I went, this changes as well, which adds variety to the mix.
It is well worth a visit for a relaxed, very entertaining and funny night out. Expect to laugh a lot.
Every Wednesday until 16 July (only one more left!) as well as at The Comedy Improv Jam
Photo courtesy of The Cardinals