Pages

Monday, February 28, 2011

How Improv Stars Live

Sometimes even semi-famous-in-a-really-small-neighborhood-of-Long-Beach people have to do everyday household chores. No, really. We at H2G don't all have a staff to take care of things like vacuuming our floors, making our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or taking out our trash. Sorry to burst your bubbles, but we live just like regular people in spite of our meteoric rise to slightly increased recognizability among those we've already met a dozen or more times.

Which is just my way of complaining that today I have to clean my house. Do laundry. Vacuum. Even scrub the shower. It seems like quite a dull way to spend the day, in my oh so humble opinion. And whenever I have to spend a day in a manner I deem inappropriate, I reward myself. Oh, what? Don't even pretend that you don't bribe yourself with Girl Scout Cookies or a mani/pedi or a little gin and tonic.

My reward? Four straight days of Held2gether improv: Drop-in class for anyone who has completed Level 1 tomorrow night, Long Form class beginning on Wednesday night, rehearsal Thursday night and Lucky! Friday night.

Heck, for all that, I might even be willing to dust.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Girl On Girl Action at Hot Java

That can only mean Teri and Delilah... who knows if they'll make an appearance at Held2gether presents Last Laugh Saturday! tonight, so you better get there early and get a seat because you don't want to miss out.

Friday, February 25, 2011

DrinkingRehearsing

We're getting ready to rehearse for tomorrow night's improv comedy show at Hot Java. Rehearsing for an improv show is different from rehearsing for other kinds of shows. There are no lines to memorize, for one thing. We don't know what you, the audience members, are going to suggest for any given game, so we can't rehearse for that. We never know what our scene partners are going to say or do, so we can't rehearse for that, either. We don't know what order the scenes will be in, so we can't even rehearse for that.

So basically, if you wanna know the truth, "rehearsing" for an improv show means that the troupe gets together, plays some improv games and drinks some vodka. Which is pretty much what the troupe does on any given Friday night anyway. But it sounds so much better when you tell people you're "rehearsing." And if we're rehearsing, no one helpfully suggests that perhaps we might need a meeting...

Remember, Hot Java fills up quickly, so get there early!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Want Girl Scout Cookies? Try Improv!

Have you ever noticed that when you are in desperate need of inspiration, if you just sit still for a moment and be calm and patient and listen to the universe, you'll get what you need?

For example, I was just sitting here, unable to come up with anything to say. I had nothing. Nothing funny, nothing helpful, nothing about improv or life or chickens. And so I sat patiently and waited for a sign.

After about 15 seconds, there was a knock at my front door. I swear, I'm not making this up. I was hoping for opportunity, but it was even better: Girl Scouts! There's something so fantastic about ordering Girl Scout cookies from the Brownie down the street sometime in late January and not knowing when they'll arrive... and then, just when you need them most, there they are! It's so much more exciting than the instant gratification of going to Von's, purchasing Oreos and snarfing them down in the car on the way home.

And after my Thin Mint high had a chance to kick in, I realized that I learned to be patient in improv class. Sometimes a scene is going nowhere, and you're just standing there, unable to come up with anything to say. The natural instinct is to panic and babble on and throw out meaningless information and flap about randomly. But if you stay calm and patient instead, there will be a knock at the door and you'll see that just when you need it the most, your idea appears.

Of course, learning to stay calm and patient and in the moment takes training and practice. But we teach it to people all the time! So sign up for a Held2gether improv comedy class. If it can attract Girl Scout cookies, just think of all the other awesome things improv can bring into your life!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Crazy Uncles

I have an uncle that we refer to as "Uncle Missing Link." I could give you literally thousands of examples to explain why, but I suppose this one will have to suffice.

He used to work for the power company, doing something or other on the power lines. One day there was a squirrel hanging about and, since it happened to be lunchtime, Uncle Missing Link ambled over to his truck, got out his .22 and killed the squirrel. Then he skinned it, cooked it over a little fire he made there on the side of the road and had himself some bbq'd squirrel for lunch.

I'd love to be able to say this happened in the 1800s or in some podunk village miles from civilization, but no. Happened about 20 years ago on the central coast of California. Look, you can't choose your family, okay?

Anyway, tonight I'm heading up to Hollywood to see The Groundlings' version of Uncle Missing Link - their Crazy Uncle Joe show. It's two 40-minute long-form sets that are "oh-my-god-my-stomach-hurts-from-laughing-so-hard" funny. It's just in time to inspire me for Held2gether's long-form class, which starts one week from tonight!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Free Improv in Long Beach!

Hard to believe, but it's almost time for a show at Hot Java. This Saturday at 8 p.m., Held2gether presents "Last Laugh Saturday!"


For the uninitiated, Last Laugh Saturday! is our monthly extravaganza at Hot Java in the LBC. It's a totally uncensored, unscripted hour or so of hilarious improv comedy based on audience suggestions that range from clever to ridiculous to head-scratchingly obscure. But whatever you give us is all we get, and then we turn it into comedy right before your eyes!

Unlike our First Fridays shows, this one is NOT family-friendly. That is, unless you have a burning desire to teach your children some four letter words, interesting lifestyle choices involving barnyard animals and/or that zombies rule the world. That's really your call, and we don't judge people based on their parenting skills.

As always, Last Laugh Saturday! is free, just bring some friends, drink some coffee and practice your suggestions. Can't wait to see you all on Saturday!

Friday, February 18, 2011

Improv and Normal People

It just occurred to us that many of you might have the wrong idea about improv and improv classes. And we feel we'd be shirking our responsibilities if we didn't set you straight. You're welcome.

See, in LA improv is for capital-A Actors. Some of us have taken classes in lala land, and we've had a good time. But at Groundlings, et al, you're surrounded by young, beautiful people who always have an 8x10 glossy headshot in one hand and their iPhone on speed-dial to their agent in the other. These people can't go ten seconds without working the words "audition" or "agent" into the conversation. Don't get us wrong. They're mostly quite sweet, and we even have some auditions of the actor ilk, so we're not disparaging in the agent.

Anyway, as Los Angelenos will point out until the cows come home, Long Beach is NOT Los Angeles. To which we always pleasantly reply, "Thank god." The nice thing about Long Beach is it's so real. The people are friendly, down-to-earth and interested in the world around them. Yeah. Not Los Angeles.

And that's what different about Held2gether improv classes. We cater to real people, offering improv skills to help you if you're a teacher, artist, parent, engineer, doctor, lawyer, Indian chief (sorry, so un-PC), student or even an actor. The vast majority of Held2gether students are folks just like you! Come meet some of 'em and do something fun. Register at the website - the next round of classes starts mid-March, and they're already filling up. Space is limited.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

I'm Not Someone Else

Some people have been wondering who writes our blog posts, since Blogger just identifies us as Held2gether. The answer is, when they're funny, I wrote them. When they're lame, someone else wrote them.

Okay, okay. We're all equally funny and lame around here and the truth is, I write most of them. "I" in this instance refers to Sonnjea. "Someone else" refers to "someone else" and I can't disclose their identities for fear of enemy reprisals.

So now that we've established that I am who I am and someone else is who they are, I think everything is crystal clear and you can rest assured that either I or someone else will continue to write posts that are either funny or lame.

That is all.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Improv and Job Interviews

We’ve all been there before. You spend hours brainstorming questions that are likely to be asked during the interview. You scour the internet and read every book that tells you the best responses for each question. You even do the dreaded deed and ask your overly-critical father-in-law to help you rehearse your responses. Nothing that you do is ever acceptable to him, so you feel confident when he actually thinks your responses are good.

The big day comes. Dressed in your best, you are beyond prepared. It’s three-quarters of the way through the interview and you are on fire. You’re nailing every question and Ms. HR Manager is grinning at you like a Cheshire cat. Meow!

And then it happens. You’re asked a question you weren’t prepared to address. Something off-the-wall, like, “What will your headstone say once your six feet under?” Ms. HR Manager smiles at you, knowing she tossed you a doozy. You smile politely, buying more time to formulate a response. Thirty seconds later, you’re still smiling, hoping something clever comes to you. Ms. HR Manager is no longer smiling. Now she’s straight up creeped out and you’re turning red as a beet. Suddenly, the interview comes to a screeching halt. Ms. HR Manager gives you a handshake with her fingertips, shows you to the door, and you never hear from the organization again. Not even a rejection letter.

Yeah, painful, we know.

Now, to be fair to Ms. HR Manager, she was in your court all along. She threw a wrench into your well oiled machine to see how quickly you think on your feet, how well you can adapt to the unexpected. And you, my friend, failed. But don’t beat yourself up, it’s a common problem. And we’re here to help.

A simple way to prevent this from happening again is to learn adaptability – the art of going with the flow. Think Gumbi. Not so much being green and cruising around with a horse, but being flexible. Situations will never go exactly how we hope. Learning to be comfortable with the unexpected will certainly help you deal with ‘em. And while we’re big fans of public schools, this ain’t a lesson you’ll find in a textbook. It only comes with practice, and that’s where Held2gether can help.

Flexibility and adaptability are basic lessons learned in improv. Nothing in improv is scripted. Yes, you read that right – zip, zero, zilch, nada. That means everytime you come to improv class, you’ll be given a new situation and you’ll learn to deal with it. In effect, you’re creating your own reality. And unlike a job interview, the stakes in improv class do not impact your career. Held2gether offers a safe space for you to learn and grow.

Just so that there’s no misunderstanding, we’re not suggesting that you do not prepare for the interview by anticipating questions and formulating killer responses. What we are suggesting is that improv be a part of your preparation process. Then you’ll be ready for the expected and the unexpected, too.

So sign up for an improv class with Held2gether. All you’ve got to lose is the awkward silence when you get a stumper interview question.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Improv and Karaoke

It turns out, we can be bought.

I always suspected we were easy, and now there's proof. We performed at a church last weekend, wrapping up their day-long relationship workshops in honor of Valentine's day with a show focused on, what else, relationships. The audience was terrific and gave us fab suggestions, and the show was a huge hit.

Afterwards, the church people gave us booze. Evidently when I was growing up, I frequented the wrong kinds of church because there sure as heck wasn't any alcohol flowing around my pews. Oh, right. Anyway, the church people were friendly and chatty, and some of us struck up conversations with some of them. One of the church people insisted it was impossible to make him laugh. He claimed not to have laughed at the performance at all, but he laughed a lot talking about how much he never laughs. Out of the blue, he asked me if we would play at his birthday party. There was never any doubt that I am easy, so I said yes.

His friend was extremely enthusiastic, suggesting we play for the entire evening so they could cancel the karaoke portion of the party. But my new friend insisted that, since it was his party, he could have improv AND karaoke. And then he laughed some more.

So we're doing a birthday party, and we get to stay and do karaoke. We do enjoy working parties - either performing at them, or hosting games and interactive activities for your guests - so if you need an excuse to 86 the karaoke, give us a call!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Lucky!

Here is the latest poster we created for our upcoming First Fridays show at Elise's Tea Room.


Pretty cool, eh? We get a lot of (positive, thank you very much) feedback on our awesome show posters, and people are always asking who designs them. The answer is, elves.

Oh, that's not right. Actually, we do. It's a collaborative process whereby we first scour the calendar for exciting holidays that occur in the same month as our show - ie, President's Day for our February show. I mean, is there a more exciting holiday than President's Day? If there is no holiday to be had, we typically go with some kind of alcoholic beverage, as with Jim Beam & a Hundred Dollars.

Once we have our theme narrowed down, Darren usually comes up with a title. Not always, of course. Sonnjea suggested the always-popular Mother of All Improv Shows, a class vote got us Overexposed! and Andy provided both Peeps of Long Beach and the aforementioned Jim Beam & a Hundred Dollars. But the rest are all Darren: Last Laugh Saturday; Spiked!; Over Easy Like Sunday Morning; Four Score & First Fridays and now Lucky!

Next, Darren finds images that could work. Sometimes he finds tons of different possibilities. Sometimes he finds one. Sometimes he calls Sonnjea and says there are simply no pictures of alcohol in the known universe that could possibly work for our poster. But usually he sends Sonnjea a big ol' batch of photos and then Sonnjea goes to work in Illustrator and Photoshop and tries to make a poster that says, "Hey! We're funny! Come see us!" Or at least, "Hey! We're not totally remedial! And the show is free anyway, so what have you got to lose?"

We hope that's what Lucky! says to you! You can get all the details from the awesome poster, our FB page or our equally nifty website.

Friday, February 11, 2011

Improv and Communication Skills for the Agreement-Impaired

That whole thing about improv and networking got us thinking about improv and other stuff. Big stuff. Like, you know, life and stuff. Because we here at H2G are nothing if not deep.

See, the thing about improv comedy is that, in every single scene, the most important thing is agreement. If your scene partner says, "You look beautiful today," you agree. And if they say, "You are a big fat jerk," well then, you agree with that. Because the only way to keep the scene moving forward is to agree; if they say "You look beautiful today," and you say, "No, I don't," the scene has just stopped making progress and now you both have to figure out another direction to go in. That's stressful for you and boring for the audience. Both of those are bad things, FYI.

Now we're not suggesting that you agree with people who call you a big fat jerk in real life because obviously you're not one! We know you're not because if you were, you wouldn't be reading this blog. Only beautiful, highly intelligent and sophisticated people read this blog. But I digress.

Anyway, we are suggesting that, in real life, learning to say "yes" and agree with folks is often the key to moving forward. It's so easy to shoot down ideas - for example when your spouse suggests going to Des Moines for vacation, or your colleague wants to try the door-to-door sales approach for high-end refrigerators - but if you can learn to react instantly in the affirmative, it opens the door to more dialogue and a free flow of ideas. Maybe you say, "Yeah, Des Moines is lovely this time of year. I love corn," or "Great idea! Let me get you that refrigerator dolly so you can wheel the sample around to people's homes."

See, the thing is, unless you've already determined that you are allergic to corn or you have tried selling Sub-Zero's door-to-door and failed, you can't really be sure that YOUR idea is any better. Giving up your attachment to your ideas is the key to open communication with others. Try it. Let us know how it goes!

And if you need a quick lesson, check out our 1/2-day Intro to Improv Intensive! We teach you how to be agreeable without being, you know, easy. Unless you just wanna be easy. That's your call, and we'll agree with it.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Improv and Networking

So you’re brand spanking new to your career and need to expand your professional associations. Or perhaps you’re in sales and would like to generate new leads. Or maybe the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence and you’re ready to give your current employer the old heave-ho.

Well then you darn well know the importance of networking – the art of building mutually beneficial relationships with others. Some call it schmoozing, others call it hobnobbing. Here at Held2gether, we call it brilliant. While technology has made networking easier, by far the strongest networks are built through in-person interactions. And that’s where brushing up on your improv skills can benefit you.

Don’t get us wrong, we love the internet. Facebook, Linkedin, and Myspace have made the world a smaller place. Keeping up with gossip and making quick connections can be as easy as clicking a link. But those are just short sound bites, not meaningful relationships. And they tend to involve entirely too many photos of your friends in drunken, compromising positions.

Good networking means learning the give-and-take that is fundamental to improv. It requires you to actively listen to others and provide appropriate responses. And yes, as painful as it is for all of us to do sometimes, it requires you to put aside your pre-conceived ideas and to organically respond to the relationship as it unfolds. Trust us, networks that are built on the fundamental of give-and-take are stronger and more interesting than networks built on the principle of gimme-gimme-gimme. We learned that one the hard way. Long story.

So put down your mouse, turn off your computer, and join us for a Held2gether class or two. Then watch as your network grows, both in the number of people you know and the quality of the relationships you develop. As we say at H2G, “Yay!”

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Go To Jail, Go Directly To Jail

You know how it is these days, with prison overcrowding and the like. So be careful because even if you only commit securities fraud (and really, who doesn't?), you could end up sharing a cell with Chuck the Carrot-Slicing Murderer. And that would be bad.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Held2gether on YouTube

For those of you who couldn't make it out to see Long Beach's best improv comedy at Hot Java a couple weeks ago, don't despair! We shot video of the whole thing and we are just the kind of people who are willing to share. So... here is an important infomercial for a product we know you simply cannot live without!

Friday, February 4, 2011

Improv Comedy at First Fridays Long Beach

Okay, I know I've mentioned that we at Held2gether LOVE Long Beach, and First Fridays is one reason why.

First Fridays is a free monthly artwalk in Bixby Knolls that takes place on the (surprise!) first Friday of every month. Most of the businesses along Atlantic Avenue participate by offering local artists venues to showcase their talents. There are paintings hanging all over, musicians of every sort, poets being poetic, tattoo demos, a strange man dressed as the "Knolls Ranger" and of course, improv! People from all around the city flock to Bixby Knolls to check out cool art, eat delish food and visit awesome shops.

This time around, the Held2gether Improv Comedy Level 2 class will be showing off what they've learned, creating hilarity out of audience suggestions in Held2gether Presents: Four Score & First Fridays at Elise's Tea Room. I predict someone will mangle the alphabet, several people will sing off key and everyone will have a great time! Check out what else is happening at February First Fridays.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Team Building With Improv Comedy

Team building is one of those current buzzwords (buzzphrases?) that gets bandied about by HR people in companies composed of more than one human being, for those of you who don't know. The concept is that, by doing "stuff" that helps your team learn to interact better, both with each other and with your customers and clients, your employees will become more productive, more pleasant to be around and better looking. Or, you know, at least a couple of those things.

Improv comedy is a great way to accomplish these goals, because at its heart improv is about trusting, listening to, agreeing with and supporting each other. If your employees can master these skills, pretty much any human interactions they undertake will be enhanced. Many of the interactions they have with non-humans will also improve, as illustrated by the well-known fact that improv people walk their dogs more often than non-improv people.

Held2gether taught an awesome improv comedy corporate workshop this week, helping an insurance company train agents in selling techniques. We spent several hours over a 2-day period teaching the agents improv skills designed, among other things, to help them overcome potential buyers' defenses to their sales pitches. Besides having loads of fun, the agents learned a lot about how listening can tremendously boost sales.

Listening. Sounds simple, right? Well, it is and it isn't. But like most other skills, listening can be learned. And playing improv games is a fun and effective way to do it! If you have any questions about how Held2gether can help your company, or if you'd like to schedule your own team building or other corporate or group workshop, check out Held2gether.com or send us an email at darren@held2gether.com.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

RIP Spike the Chicken

And so ends the great Chicken Experiment.

Despite being a rather hip urban environment, Long Beach has some rural aspects such as the City's rules on raising chickens. Depending on the size of your lot, you can have anywhere from 1 to 20 chickens pecking around the joint. My lot falls in the 20-chicken size range, but being a reasonable person I only got 3 chickens. I'm not a farmer, for pete's sake.

The original 3 chickens were named Buffy, Angel and Spike. Yes, I know. Anyway. They lived happily and each laid an egg a day for a year and a half. During that time, Spike got mauled by a dog and lived to tell the tale after a couple months of intensive care. Then one day a little over a year ago, a hawk came and killed Angel. Right before Christmas. Seriously, what kind of crappy Karma must that hawk have for killing an innocent chicken named Angel, of all things? A month or so later, Buffy met the same fate.

Chickens are flock creatures; they don't live alone. And Spike was sad without her pals, so we got her a new friend named Anya. The theme continues. Spike was the friendliest of all the chickens, to the point that she would stand on the window sill of the back porch and holler until someone came out to pet her. Then she would hop up on your shoulder, like a parrot on a pirate and go for a ride. Sometimes she'd hop up on your head. Look, she was a chicken, don't ask me to explain these things.

Anyway. Spike met the hawk on Sunday and it didn't end well for her. Yesterday, Anya went to live with the neighbors who have several chickens and more hiding places from hawks. And so almost exactly three years after it started, the chicken era has ended.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Lien On Me: Laughter, Sex and Mortgages

I may have mentioned this before, but in case you missed my rare moment of modesty, I'll say it again. It's not all about improv.

No. It's not. It is, however, all about laughter. Laughter is good for your health, your sanity and your sex life. Don't ask me to explain that last bit, you'll have to figure it out for yourself.

So, in the interest of promoting laughter (if not sex) far and wide, I wanted to share a brilliant comedy series with you. Cuz, you know, that's just how I roll. It's called Lien On Me, and it's the story of a down-on-his-luck realtor named Johnny Columbus and his family, friends (and I use that term very loosely) and coworkers. It stars my new friend David Beatty, and it is hilarious. The episodes are in the 5-minute range, so don't give me any excuses about not having enough time to watch them. Just shave 5 minutes off of your usual sexting schedule and you're good to go.

Check out the full episode guide. Being a rather linear thinker, I suggest starting with the pilot so you know what the heck is happening, but that's just me. Enjoy!