Scroll down for a Fringe Festival round up but first: recently I learned about the artistic movement called Process Art, and I’m honestly stunned we don’t talk about this more in improvisation.

“…the end product of art and craft, the objet d’art (work of art/found object), is not the principal focus; the process of its making is one of the most relevant aspects if not the most important one: the gathering, sorting, collating, associating, patterning, and moreover the initiation of actions and proceedings.”

Let me take that back one step - I think we do talk about this in improv but maybe not in these terms. I’ve long been curious about the question of whether we want an audience to “know” the work was improvised. How much attention do we draw to it? How many ask-fors is enough for “proof”, if that’s what you think you need? Is “wow that was like a real piece of theatre” a compliment or not? Are we too self-deprecating about the consistency of quality on stage? Not deprecating enough?

For me the most exciting moments are when you experience everyone in the room discovering a piece of information or truth at the same time - where the actor and the scene partner and the audience all gasp or laugh or pause and the moment is absolutely, electrically live. That moment requires full awareness on all of our parts that we are improvising, that we are experiencing creation and action together. The ‘product’ will not remain - instead the process will be refined and used in another collaborative combination another day.

(Is this anything? Welcome to my process.)

snippets

• Welcome, new subscribers! Most of you came from Rose’s Pōneke theatre listings referral, and I very much appreciate your interest in this wee subset of performance in Wellington :) This is a sporadic publication - I write when I am able between chasing after my kids and trying to get my own improv projects up and running - but I try to make the effort around festival times and bring your attention to all things improv within.
• I made my first improv zine! I’ve long wanted to write more about improv but honestly, I don’t think that’s something that will happen while my focus is so split. But a zine? That’s a bite-sized bit of creativity that I could FINISH. Print it double sided on A4, then follow the instructions on the back to turn it into a little book. Would love to hear what you think of it, or if there’s another lil perspective on improv you’d like me to share with you.
• Shout out to Vanessa Stacey, who had to step down from her role as Fringe Festival Director due to health reasons. She’s done an amazing job and will be sorely missed.
• Ginge & Minge are calling for submissions for REDEMPTION (show details below). Let your bad ideas see the light of day.
• I’ve ranted about this online, but it is really annoying that we can’t filter Fringe shows by ‘tag’ on the online programme. I worked out the below list by poring over the printed version - I apologise for all omissions or accidental inclusions.
• Three times now I’ve attempted to move away from Substack for this newsletter and failed. I think I’ve got a plan for a fourth try that will stick, so if your next email from me doesn’t come from Substack but from another mailing tool, please stick with me. Thank you!

coming up…

all the fringe shows with ‘improvisation’ tagged, ordered by opening night date/time

Night Ferals (Mog - Megan Connolly).v 17 Feb-21 Feb, 7pm at BATS Theatre, tix $20-30.
“A 50-minute surrealist sketch, clown and improv show that blends elements of weirdcore, experimental visceral comedy, and just good old fashion absurdity.”

Tune in a Bucket (Troubadette & The Black Rabbit). 18 Feb-22 Feb, 6pm at Whisky & Wood, tix $25. Note: Friday night show at Sweet Axe.
“Two teams of music lovers battle it out in musical comedian Troubadette’s brand new game show Tune in a Bucket.”

A Regular Show (Tama Alexander and Craig Westenberg). 18 Feb-19 Feb, 7pm at Circus Bar, tix $8-10.
“For two nights only, two of New Zealand’s top young rising comedy stars… join forces for a series of skits, gags, goofs, and laughs in this not-to-be-missed show.”

Spoon Show (Daniel Nodder). 18 Feb-21 Feb, 7:30 pm at The Gods Paramount, tix $28.
“Can a clown be a spoon? What actually IS a spoon, really? Does a spork count? Ponder these deep questions and more as Fumble the Clown explores the infinite comedic potential of cutlery.”

Early Midnight Circus (Bucket Hutt Entertainment). 18 Feb - 19 Feb, 9pm at The Gods Paramount, tix $20.
“Early Midnight Circus is a chaotic late-night talk show staged as a theatrical spectacle, hosted by a desperate showbiz clown, Aaron James Douglas, clinging to a dying format he’ll never control.”

The Bridie and Rebecca Variety Show (But It’s Just Rebecca and Bridie)”! (Comedy Culture NZ). 19 Feb, 8:30 pm at Circus Bar, tix $20.
“Bridie Thomson and Rebecca Mary Gwendolon are two outrageously silly, queer, multi-faceted performers who extend their funny bones from fast-paced improv to the delights of sketch comedy and beyond.”

100 Things (Comedy Culture NZ). 20 Feb-21 Feb, 7:00 pm at Circus Bar, tix $25.
“In 100 Things, the actors will write down -- you guessed it -- 100 things to incorporate into their show, with a little help from the audience.”

NYPDEEZ Nuts (Comedy Culture NZ). 20 Feb-21 Feb, 9:00 pm at Circus Bar, tix $20.
“Detective Constables Mike McNally & Hughie Rothman have eradicated crime in New York, and now they must go to the one place where corruption and crime reign terror upon every city... New Zealand.”

Tor de Force (Tor Snyder, Canada/Australia). 24 Feb-28 Feb, 8:30 pm at BATS Theatre, tix $25.
“Armed with wild stories, bad impressions and her favourite weapon of all, crowd work, Tor is a high-energy comic force unlike any other.”

New and Mmmproved (Mmmpop Improv). 25 Feb-26 Feb, 7:30pm at Welsh Dragon Bar, tix $10.
“This show is the culmination of improvizers from Mmmpop skill building workshops. All put together for a show with the theme of improving... things!”

Sadomusical (A Similar River: Lee Apsey & Jayda Fogel, UK). 25 Feb-28 Feb, 9:00pm at The Gods Paramount, tix $18.
“Two “definitely not masochistic” artists take on the challenge of a lifetime: to create musical comedy with feeling--while feeling the real pain of electrocution.”

Closer Than You Know (Cissy Rock). 26 Feb-28 Feb, 6:30pm at two/fiftyseven, tix $10.
“A social experiment. A conversation. A shared story. A live map of human connection.”

Jason Henderson Reads The Telephone Book (Jason Henderson). 3 Mar-5 Mar, 6:00pm at Welsh Dragon Bar, tix $15.
“Celebrate Jason’s literacy AND a lifetime’s investment in voice and speech training.”

Review Revue (Bethany Miller & Logan Hunt). 3 Mar-6 Mar, 5:30pm at The Gods Paramount, tix $15-25.
“What if the review was the show?”

Redemption (Ginge & Minge). 3 Mar-7 Mar, 6:30pm at BATS Theatre, tix $30.
“Local chaos magnets, Ginge & Minge (Nina Hogg & Megan Connolly) are here to give failed comedy ideas a second chance.”

SwapRox (PopRox). 3 Mar-7 Mar, 9:30pm at BATS Theatre, tix $25.
“The cast, the musician and even the tech operator swap roles with each other after just 7 minutes. It's a character based, high-speed romp pushing top improv comedians to the brink of their skills and their sanity. If you don't like what you see, you'll have the chance to change it up and swap it around.”

Just To Be Close To You (Cam Poter, USA). 4 Mar-7 Mar, 10:30pm at Fringe Bar, tix $25.
“Oh, hello there. Are you ready to get up close and personal with renowned lounge singer Carl Poteraychke? Join us for a night filled with sensational music, impeccable vibrations, and unforgettable memories... just for an hour.”

The Cuck Chair (Catfish Trifecta - Mo Munn, Ralph Hilaga, Joel Luscombe). 5 Mar-7 Mar, 8:45pm at Circus Bar, tix $25.
“So, you hate improv? Tell us why... then be forced to watch it.”

workshops

Improv Workouts (PopRox). Monthly-ish, various times and locations, tix $20 per session or get a season pass. Open Sessions for all experience levels, Heavy Lifters for those with a solid improv foundation, and Undisputed Champions for ‘highly skilled improvisers with strong performance experience’.

WIT Tuesdays (Wellington Improv Troupe). 6-8pm, Toi Poneke, various teachers. Drop in, koha. Check the most recent newsletter (at the link) for info on this week’s session.

Improv Essentials: Unified Chaos! (Basejump Comedy & LFC). 8 week course starting 14 Feb, 12pm-3pm, Toi Poneke, taught by Ralph Hilaga. Tix from $226. Intro improv course with a Chicago style background.

Creating Solo Characters! (Basejump Comedy & LFC). 8 week course starting 14 Feb, 3:30pm - 6:30pm, Toi Poneke. Tix from $240. A sketch writing course focused on solo character creation.

I’m honestly out of the loop - help me collate all the upcoming improv and improv-adjacent events and useful news - tell me about yours!

ka kite anō

That’s all for this issue; let me know what I missed in the comments, and stay safe and well xx