CHEKHOV'S PROP
BATS Theatre, The Random Stage, 1 Kent Tce, Wellington
07/10/2020 - 07/10/2020
NZ Improv Festival 2020: Close To Home
Production Details
Chekhov’s Prop is a high stakes, high drama, long form improv show brought to you by Alumni of Dunedin’s best (and only) improvised theatre troupe, Improsaurus.
In the show, the cast are all given props by members of the audience, and these must be used during the telling of the story. What kind of story will be told? No one knows, but we can be sure it will be a drama filled night of backstabbing, relationships, and gossip. The stakes have never been higher.
The Random Stage at BATS Theatre, 1 Kent Terrace, Wellington (map)
Wednesday, October 7, 2020
6:30pm
BOOK
About Improsaurus:
Improsaurus is Dunedin’s own critically acclaimed improvised comedy troupe. Beginning in 2009 as a group of Otago University students looking for a creative outlet, Improsaurus has since grown and developed, gaining a great reputation within the Dunedin community. The players in the Wellington Chapter are all alumni of the troupe who have migrated to the big lights of Wellington, but love to remain true to the Improsaurus creed of narrative based long form.
“Flawless execution… Excellent show” — Theatreview, Mild Wild West 2019
NZ Improv Fest invites lovers of improvised theatre everywhere to join us in celebrating the art form we all know and love this 3-11 October, from wherever you are and wherever you’re at. Join us in Wellington, or connect with us online, in a celebration of world class, local talent!
NZ Improv Fest: Close To Home takes place at BATS Theatre
Performance programme 6-10 October 2020
Workshops 3, 4, 10 October 2020
Don’t miss a moment!
Theatre , Improv ,
50 mins
Chekhov would have been pleased
Review by Margaret Austin 08th Oct 2020
‘Chekhov’s prop’, for those of us not enrolled in Theatre 101, refers to the celebrated Russian playwright’s stipulation that if a gun appears onstage in Act 1, it has to be fired before the play ends. [See Wiki] Such is the premise for Improsaurus, a troupe originating in Dunedin whose members have one by one drifted north and then regrouped – to appear on BATS Random stage on day two of the NZ Improvisation Festival.
All six must be furnished with an imaginary prop – this to be supplied by the audience. And the only requirement of the action is that all props are brought into play (if you’ll excuse the pun). Prop suggestions include hair gel, fish, a telephone and a locket. The setting is a conservatory.
Partway into the ensuing action, I’m finding this long form improvisation more satisfactory than much shorter pieces. Players have just under an hour to establish character, develop plot and embroider themes. Before our eyes, a family is established with much of the humour originating from the inevitable squabbles and ensuing complications.
As well as a conservatory, preferred hang out for Dad – who insists he’s not about explaining things but finds he’s always doing it – we have a coal mine, a seven year old who speaks Pig Latin, twin brothers who turn into triplets and a mother who turns out to be an alien. To top it all, the family inheritance is up for grabs.
The story, effectively lit and accompanied on the keyboard, unfolds as only an improvised one can – well oiled with mental agility, alive with sub plots and stuffed with surprises. We reach a happy ending with all props appropriately incorporated.
Chekhov would have been pleased.
Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer
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