LOL WITH IT: PHIT spin-off Sideshow Showcase, tonight @ Arts Parlor

Philly Improv Theater's (PHIT) education director Mike Marbach created Sideshow Showcase, a new improv show at the Arts Parlor for those weekends when PHIT is not scheduled at the Shubin Theatre.

options

LOL WITH IT: PHIT spin-off Sideshow Showcase, tonight @ Arts Parlor

POSTED: Friday, November 18, 2011, 12:00 PM

Filed Under: Comedy LOL With It

Every Friday, Ryan Carey covers the people and events that are giving Philly the giggles.

Philly Improv Theater's (PHIT) education director Mike Marbach created Sideshow Showcase, a new improv show at the Arts Parlor for those weekends when PHIT is not scheduled at the Shubin Theatre.

"The point [of the show] is to give people a chance to grow, rather than keep doing the exact same thing they always do,” says Marbach, who has experience directing the PHIT house team Asteroid. “I want to challenge the groups to step out of their comfort zones and try new things. Also, I want there to be a good opportunity for new groups to perform. I don't necessarily want peoples' first time on stage to be at a pressure-filled show where they might be getting judged — like PHIT’s Cage Match, or a high-profile festival show."

Marbach has set up the Arts Parlor (a large dance studio) with folding chairs and a performance area where teams can be blacked out. The Sideshow Showcase can seat around forty, plus standing room.

This week's show features Iron Lung, a witout.net nominee for best improv group, who will be debuting their new style of long-form that they've been developing under the tutelage of ImprovBoston's Steve Kleinedler. I'm not allowed to say what it is, but Iron Lung's Jesse Carpenter says it’s something that’s “never been done … in Philly."

Also on the performance slate is improv darlings Aaron Hertzog and Becca Trabin’s Get a Room, Temple’s resident improv troupe Fowl Play, and the debut of a brand new Philly improv team.

Tonight, 8 p.m., $5, Arts Parlor, 1170 S. Broad St.

(ryan.carey@citypaper.net) (@slackerDIYtoday)

Photo of previous Sideshow act Beirdo by Erin Pitts

Posted by Ryan Carey @ 12:00 PM Permalink | Post a comment

Comments (0)

Q&A with SHARI SOLANIS: "The goal isn't pornography"
What we're trying to do this weekend
SEXY TIME Q&A: I've never had an orgasm during sex with a man — and I'm 30!
NOW SEE THIS: Transit cop arrests marijuana activist for alleged disorderly conduct.
CONCERT REVIEW: Primus (3D & quadraphonic sound) @ The Tower 10/17
Q&A with Tony Goldwyn: "Life is gray, and relationships are, too"
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: The Archbishop meets the Geator, the Mayor goes suit shopping, Le Bec Fin fin.
ICEPACK ILLUSTRATED: Indian fare rules, Dunder Mifflin lives on, Tom Jones is a god
Q&A with Goon’s Seann William Scott
SWIMMING HOLES: Some of our favorite places to get wet

About this blog

Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

Follow Critical Mass editors Patrick Rapa and Emily Guendelsberger on Twitter:

@mission2denmark | @emilygee

Search this blog:

Topics:

Blog archives:

May
April
March

February
January

Past Archives: