Comedy and Community

“A word from the audience, please.”

We shout, “chicken nuggets!”

And so the improv begins, using chicken nuggets to create scene after scene. We could have yelled shoelaces and the scenes would have been just as funny but utterly different. The actors took no time at all to think of the next interaction they would concoct. That type of confidence and fast planning was the first indicator that we were about to see some dynamic improv. That, and the fact that the theatre taught classes- if these folks were knowledgeable enough to not only do it themselves but encourage improv in others, then exciting things were in store. 

Improv trades on being Interactive; it feeds off its audience, whether that’s through laughter, requested prompts, or volunteers. The atmosphere in the Improv Comedy Copenhagen (ICC) theatre was eager and electric. Perhaps it was because it was a Friday night, or their cozy bar, but there was a vibrancy and warmth that I had never felt at an improv show before. The Second City improv troupe in Chicago, a training ground for stand up comedians and Saturday Night Live actors, builds a relationship between actors with each playful risk they take. For ICC that playful risk felt like it included more than just them- it involved the audience. It achieved this through its intimate setting of about 25 seats- all of which were filled. There was no room to not feel up close and personal with the actors. In addition, pictures of the actors in wacky poses adorned the wall like family photos, showcasing their different events and immortalizing funny moments. At the introduction they advertised a special program they do on Fridays, in which the audience gets to improvise on stage and play with the performers after the show.  And since the crowd knew right away that they’d be able to put themselves out there as much as the performers did, a supportive welcoming space was brewing. The actors were encouraging and kind, including convenient bathroom/drink purchasing interludes they built into the show so that audience members could meet each other and bond over what they had just seen. 

Within the audience were a mixture of people, some Danes and others students, some relatives and others newcomers. Since the troupe used English instead of Danish, it already had a inclusive vibe towards visitors but also to second language Danish speakers of all kinds. A recent immigrant to the country was telling me about how her husband joined the theatre to get to know people in Copenhagen. Another audience member, asked me whether I was taking classes at ICC. She told me that she had been taking lessons and was there to see her teachers perform. This really was an intimate gathering of family and friends. This is not to say that things did not fall flat in this environment. There were moments where I was left scratching my head or unable to laugh. The fact that they risked failure and vulnerability in front of people was the best part. One could watch them fail, learn, and try again, inspiring a resilience in the crowd as well. 

Now onto the performance itself. The first actress revealed her comradery with her sister during her parents divorce in a sad but funny opening monologue. And they just kept hitting on real problems throughout the show, from generational differences, depression, religious issues, to vegetarianism, and puberty. There was never a dull moment with vegan sons, apocalyptic dads and cult squatters in an Italian restaurant. This may sound nonsensical to people who weren’t at the performance but reoccurring inside jokes and subtle facial expressions are why this comedy was a success. They built a sense of shared experience from the ground up and during the breaks one couldn’t help but recite favorite lines like Mag-del-ena said in a slow drawn out fashion so that someone across from you knows to say it aloud with you despite not knowing the word. A particularly special moment was when two men started kissing on stage, but not in a way that was making fun of sexuality but in a way that it could have been any two people kissing, however after swirling imaginary drinks for weeks, romance was the funniest and most unexpected thing you’d suspect to take place. It was a wise choice to pick up the pace with short improv games in the second half of the performance because people were warmed up to the form and ready for some variety and participation. Although ending with pickup lines was more vulgar than the rest of the show’s tone that wasn’t enough to detract from the overall engaging performance that would certainly have repeat customers.