-
- ‘Slow…Children at Play’
- Caught
Speeding at Andrew Benne Studio
- By Justin
L. Smith
Slow…Children at Play, an improvisational comedy troupe, was founded
in late 1997 by actor and director Tim Simek because he wanted a more
consistent creative outlet than auditions could provide. The group’s
moniker represents Simek’s philosophy that we are all just “kids”
who want to “go out and play!”
The group, similar in structure to The Groundlings, is layered into
two troupes. The second-tier group (“The Deuce”) is comprised
of beginning improv actors who, with time and experience, eventually
graduate to the next level (“The Core”). Some standouts
from The Deuce include D’Jef Baker, Wayne Berg and Heidi Popp
while The Core boasts strong performances from Davis Choh, Kelly Boczek,
Jason Gareffa and co-director of The Deuce, Ian Flanders, among others.
Anyone who’s seen the popular show Who’s Line is it Anyway?
knows the routine of improv games. While Slow…Children at Play
mines some of this familiar territory, most of the games are fresh and
some, as far as I could tell, completely homemade, including a comical
rendition of “Sitcoms You’ve Never Seen.” The group
also cleverly utilizes multimedia to present a hilarious “mockumentary”
during the performance.
Improv is inherently an extremely difficult thing to pull off, probably
more so than stand-up comedy, because of the lack of prepared material.
The performers are literally “winging it” all the way through
the show. But Slow…Children at Play performs with grace and style,
and occasionally provides the chuckles, too. And because it is generally
unfavorable to swear or use ‘blue’ material in the improv
world, the performances are extremely family friendly.
In addition to regular performances at The Andrew Benne Studio in North
Hollywood, the group also performs at private parties, corporate functions
and other various venues.
Catch Slow…Children at Play at The Andrew Benne Studio, 4930 Lankershim
Blvd. in North Hollywood. Contact (818) 410-PLAY for performance information
and be sure to visit their comprehensive website,
www.slowchildrenimprov.com
Faith Dickenson of
The Tolucan Times had to say:
If you're familiar with Whose
Line Is It Anyway? or any other comedy improv groups,
you'll know what to expect from Slow…Children at
Play. The audience participates quite a bit, so
if you come to their performance. Come prepared to have
a lot of fun and be part of the show.
The Slow…Children at Play
cast quickly moved through one improv exercise after
another, beginning with "Object of the Joke" where the
host, Tim Simek, gathers objects from the audience and
has the cast give their interpretation of what else
they could be used for. Their responses were clever
and, at times, a little racy.
"Well, Actually" has Tim Simek
taking suggestions from the audience for different circumstances
to throw at the characters. Every time Tim rings a bell,
the cast has to do a complete reverse of their previous
sentence, making up stories as they go along. One of
the audience favorites was "Movie Makeover," which had
ET, portrayed by Gretchen Massey, doing all sorts of
obscene gestures.
Some of the activities actually
kept you on the edge of your seat because the audience
was privy to information that was kept from the cast
members. Most notable was "Three Things," where Matt
Daniger had to guess the activities that were suggested
by the audience. The other cast members had to mime
and speak in gibberish to convey the activity to Matt.
The cast worked well together
and the show moved along quickly through the various
exercises. It was both amusing and entertaining. Directed
by actor and founder Tim Simek, the talented cast also
includes Melissa Graves, Tammie Calhoun, Chris Cause,
Davis Choh, Chas Mitchell, Susanne Stoeckeler and Steve
Wallace.
ReviewPlays.com
remarked:
The Creative Center in North
Hollywood is a little like an old book store, where
one halfway expects to see a creaky old person blowing
dust off a book and inviting you to enter the back room
for some truly special editions. Instead we met Barbara,
who is as far removed from a creaky old person as you
can get! This lovely greeter does show you to the back
room, and that's when you seem to feel like you're in
and old Garland-Rooney film where they said "Let's have
a play." They throw together a few chairs, move some
couches near the front, run to the hardware store to
buy some reflectors and floodlights, stick them up on
poles and then go for it.
We felt like we were in somebody's
living room doing charades - big time! Tim Simek has
brought together a bunch of crazies who will improvise
anything at the drop of a hat, and keep you laughing
till your sides split in the process. Our favorite bit
was the opening spoof on Britney Spears, "Oops I did
it again!" Propriety and good taste prevent us from
mentioning the flatulent gist of the parody, but suffice
it to say that Tim sprayed the stage with room deodorizer
at the end of the number.
With the audience suggesting
most improv situations, themes ranged from having sex
in a kitty litter box to re-enacting the Survivor show
in Sweden. There was the "Dating Game" spoof, the Acronym
bit and a really funny human symphony where Tim "conducted"
the cast in a mock concert. They spoke words that were
audience inspired in rhythmic crescendos and well timed
choral voicing. Needless to say, the whole thing was
completely off the wall, but they pulled it off with
a straight face.
Something like the Groundlings
and a little like Whose Line is It Anyway, this troupe
is developing its own unique identity, and they are
eclectic enough to take on any situation, especially
in a place like Los Angeles. Alphabetically, the cast
includes Tammie Calhoun from Texas, Christopher Cause
from Massachusetts, Davis Choh from Fullerton, Matt
Daniger from Los Angeles, Melissa Graves from far-away
lands (yeah - right!), Gretchen Massey, also from Texas,
Chas Mitchell, a New Yorker, Susanne Stoeckeler from
the Catskills, Steve Wallace from Texas and founder
Tim Simek - Texas too? Guess the folks in Texas don't
cotton much to goofy folk so Tim and his cohorts had
to escape to California.
Now that they're here, you can
find out more about the show by contacting director
Tim Simek at (213) 212-9921.
