Improv Masala – performed by Guanny Liu-Prosee, Mark Grimes, Nik Edwards, Anand Patel, Yoong Ru Heng and Ambika GK – was an absolute treat, like a refreshing scoop of sesame ice-cream. 

At the beginning of the show, characters are introduced to us through an improvised monologue: an ice cream obsessed auntie, a rich girl and a homeless man, all living in Wellington. I think homeless characters are often avoided in improv, with some (reasonable) fear of presenting a caricature, or ultimately making fun of people in a bad situation. Anand’s ‘Raj’, however, feels like he avoids a lot of these pitfalls by being composed of many layers: often jovial, tragically separated from his identity, but also highly skilled in Microsoft Excel. A particular moment of genuine spread-sheet jargon-spewing is a true delight.

The range of characters on display is wide, with just enough nuance to avoid broad and harmful stereotypes, while still giving us archetypes that we could cling to. Characters feel specific but familiar, right from the get-go. The show strikes a really good balance here.

It’s not long before the fairly grounded characters are flung into the kind of high stakes Bollywood-inspired action and grand romance I have been hoping for, as an ice-cream truck ploughs into a prison cell to rescue hopeful and naive Rina’s (Guanny) falsely imprisoned love.

Moments of high emotion are punctuated with singing from offstage, led by Ambika, and by dance sequences involving the full cast and making great use of the saris draped over chairs at the side of stage. I think these moments could perhaps have been made more of, in order to really capture the Bollywood tone, but that would likely have required significantly more practice time.

As about half the cast have come from a workshop earlier in the week, the shared vision and tone are really impressive, as is the collective attention to building a shared narrative. The cast’s long-form improv experience is definitely on show here. The navigation of each character’s journey and role in the story is very strong, leading to a satisfying conclusion of just desserts and redemptions.

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