Sitting in with USS Rock N Roll

ImageI have been invited to sit in with USS Rock N Roll, one of the top Harold teams at iO West. USS is well known for their dynamic group work and ability to consistently produce inspired, thematically connected shows. They won the 2009 iO West Harold Tournament and were named “Best Harold Team” at the 2009 and 2010 Del Close Awards. USS is a popular team in the community — they’re great about going to watch other teams, and they do cool things like invite a novice performer from a recently cut Harold team to play with them for two weeks. While I’m a little nervous to guest perform with a team with such a strong sense of group mind, I love how well they support each other and I’m anxious to experience first-hand how they attack the Harold.

I am also excited to work with Jason Pardo, the team’s coach, a well regarded guru in the iO West community (and a fellow TSF alum). He’s been working with USS to take a different approach to scene work and character work, and if you’ve watched them lately, you’ve probably seen how funny they can be in scenes (very).

My two shows with USS will be Tuesday, Feb. 21 and 28, at 10:30 pm on the iO West Mainstage. The first one is tonight. If you’d like to come, let me know, and I’ll see about getting you comped. If I can’t, it’s only $5, or free for iO students and alumni.

Watch USS do an opening:

Splitsider: SNL Recap: Maya Rudolph and the Magic of Breaking

For this week’s SNL recap for Splitsider, I discuss how an unusual amount of cracking up during sketches only helped the already magnificent performance of Maya Rudolph, as well as that by returning guests Amy Poehler and Justin Timberlake.

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Splitsider: SNL Recap: Zooey Deschanel Gets Quirky

For this week’s SNL recap on Splitsider, I discuss how the episode became a sort of portrait of Zooey Deschanel and her signature quirky charm.

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Splitsider: SNL Recap: Channing Tatum Endures a Night of Catcalls

For this week’s SNL recap for Splitsider, I discuss the difficulties SNL faces by using a live studio audience, and how the strip club atmosphere of last weekend’s episode contributed to a frequently uncooperative crowd.

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USS: Harold Openings ala David Fincher

I wrote a guest blog for USS Rock N Roll’s website about Harold openings, why we fear them, and an analogy that I found helpful.

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February Show Schedule

I have a bunch of improv shows scheduled for February 2012, and I’ve listed them below. If you’d like to come to any of them, just let me know and there’s a very good chance I can get you in free. The shows marked in **asterisks** are ones I really need an audience for, so if you can, I’d really appreciate it if you could come.

 

**Natural 20**
Harold Show
Wednesday, Feb 1, 8:30 pm on the iO West Mainstage

Ranger Kamp
Bobby Does the Loft
Friday, Feb. 3, 8 pm in the iO West Loft

UCB 201 Grad Show
Student Final Show
Saturday, Feb. 4, 2:30 pm at the UCB Theater

Local Wizard
Dandy Night
Saturday, Feb. 4, 10:30 pm in the iO West DCT

Local Wizard
Danger Snack’s 2-Year Anniversary Show
Monday, Feb. 6, 10:30 pm in the iO West Loft

Local Wizard
Triggerfinger’s “Save the DCT” 24-Hour Improv Marathon
Sunday, Feb. 12, noon in the DCT

**Natural 20**
Harold Show
Wednesday, Feb. 15, 8:30 pm on the iO West Mainstage

Local Wizard
Bobby Does the Loft
Friday, Feb. 17, 8 pm in the iO West Loft

USS Rock N Roll (Sitting in)
Harold Show
Tuesday, Feb. 21, 10:30 pm on the iO West Mainstage

USS Rock N Roll (Sitting in)
Harold Show
Tuesday, Feb. 28, 10:30 pm on the iO West Mainstage

**Natural 20**
Harold Show
Wednesday, Feb. 29, 8:30 pm on the iO West Mainstage

Splitsider: SNL Recap: Daniel Radcliffe, Timid Host on a Ballsy Night

For this week’s SNL recap on Splitsider, I discuss how the boy wizard’s uneven performance was overshadowed by a series of surprising creative choices in the lineup, including one that hit me and probably anyone reading this blog (or any blog) like a slap in the face.

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New Low

Here’s a clip from New Low, a hilarious film by my buddy Adam Bowers. He shot it in the summer of 2008, it screened at Sundance in 2010, and now it’s set to be released. For more info, check out the film’s website. In this scene, Bowers and I share some crass banter about a mutual lady friend.

Fair warning: this clip has some pretty adult language in it.

Turning the Page

I worked as a CBS page for about a year (October 2010 through October 2011), and now that I’ve been officially hired in a new job, my page days are over. So as a farewell to my friends in the page program I made this video, which includes me trying to play piano and sing, which I can hardly do one at a time, let alone together. If you aren’t a page, some of the references may be a little confusing. But here it is anyway.

I will sorely miss being a page, and I will look back fondly on my time in the red blazer. I included some pictures and another video after the jump.

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Splitsider: SNL Recap: Charles Barkley Hosts Sports Night

For the first Splitsider SNL recap of the new year, I discuss how Charles Barkley’s lack of comedic chops had little effect on the quality of the episode, and how we typically hold hosts to far too high of a standard.

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