2.26.2006

Lyssavirus Rabies virus Brings the Funny

Lyssavirus Rabies virus Brings the Funny

Actorly, we are not. But The Flying Buttresses do have a superstition or two. Most prominent of these is that we are wary of good rehearsals right before shows. This especially goes for the long form we do in said final rehearsal. Call it a desire to purge all of our sucky ideas or simply a more primal belief that being funny would compromise our improv virility in some way. Or just call it some dumbass thing that we do that has no relation to/impact on reality (just like a blog, for example). Those are all equally catchy names for it. The important thing is that this Thursday's rehearsal was thoroughly suckass. Honestly, we went all out to make it the nadir of good taste and entertainment. In sum, the long-form we did opened with one Buttress coming down with a raging case of genital rabies. A respectable show was a lock from there.


How did the gift of Rabies get into our rehearsal?

I rarely remember much about shows. Well, that's not totally true. I remember stuff that I screwed up and brilliant ideas (and they are invariably "brilliant") that I should have used, but only thought of after I left the stage. I think it may have been a decent performance though. This isn't so much remembering anything about the show as it is my own happy funtime brand of revisionist history. Still, it seems we are the cream of the 2 p.m.-on-a-Sunday- afternoon improv crop. Sure, being the kings of the theatrical Early Bird Specials comes with responsibility, but we wear it well.

Most importantly, we seemed to do well by our new venue, the Beat Kitchen. Some people's suggestion that we ask management to rename it the "Butt Kitchen" may be a bit premature. Three dozen fans don't merit us getting naming rights. Plus there is some concern that such a change may serve only to confuse gay tourists. In any case, thanks to everyone who came out to support us. A special thanks to those who came early enough to get a buzz going to make the improv go down (and the laughter come up) that much smoother. And a rabies pox on the houses of those who stayed home to watch the Closing Ceremonies.

2 Comments:

At 10:25 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

It's so sad - it seems that evandebacle's early days were BOLD and manly, but have dribbled away to standard text. There's some kind of symbolism there, but it escapes me. Anyway, the REAL reason we Fly types like to have a sucky rehersal right before the show is in order to invoke the Law of Funny Conservation: Funny is neither created, nor destroyed. Since the amount of Funny in the universe is static, by sucking royally in the rehersal before a show, a funny void is created, into which Funny flows. Can't you see it written on our expressions when we are on stage? "We are void! Fill us!"

 
At 11:14 AM, Blogger evandebacle said...

Shannon, your theory on Funny Conservation is intriguing, but may not take into account the amount of anti-Funny matter, or funons, which are theorized to exist in the universe. Also, current models of a universe composed of vibrating Hilarity Strings means that there are anywhere between 6 and 22 additional dimensions of humor which the Flying Buttresses have not exploited and in which non-funny rehearsal work may be properly perceived as fucking brilliant.

 

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