Semi-Final 2 Cranston Cup Semi-Final 2 rocked the house at Belvoir St Theatre last
Sunday night. The Wizard's Finger (Simon Greiner, Jordan
Raskopoulos, Steen Raskopoulos, and Lee Naimo in absentia) made a
commanding leap into first place with a 4-5-5 for their scene which
took the simplest of offers - "Tuesday" - and turned it into a scene
about a time-traveller who ends up falling down a chimney. The
Finger clinched their victory with their triple-5 take on two
procrastinating Brazilian costume-makers who are saved from disaster
when, 24 hours before Mardi Gras, a bunch of tiny creatures invade
their house at night and sew all the unfinished costumes. Tickle Me
Emo (Lisa Ricketts, Grant Davies, Cam Knight, Jon Williams), with
their version of Frankenstein as a spaghetti Western, scored second -
and Jon Williams had the line of the night, "I've got a hat!" Third
place went to Suntime Happy Brown Fish, who had the theatrical moment
of the night with their radio play about the Great Jam Conspiracy,
performed entirely in the dark. And sadly we said goodbye to the
Coolest Kids in Competitive Chess, who did brilliantly in their first Wizard's Finger has now advanced to the Grand Final, leaving four
teams to battle it out this Sunday for the final two Grand places.
Come see who it'll be: Tickle Me Emo, Suntime Happy Brown Fish, Land
of the Foxes (Dave Harmon, Neal Downward, Ben Jenkins, Alexandra Lee)
or Unlimited Soundburger (Steve Lynch, Matt Foster, Adam Gelin, Jane Simmons). Semi-Final 1 Week 7 The Cranston Heats concluded this Sunday with a lot of heat - on
stage and off. A sold-out, sweaty house laughed and applauded as The
Wizard's Finger (Lee Naimo, Jordan Raskopoulos, Steen Raskopoulos, and Simon Greiner in absentia) worked their magic, coming in first. The Wizards' scenes included a Spoon River set in Egypt, a
disturbingly funny trip to the taxidermist, and the Moment of the
Match for Lee's gadget-laden detective, who on the trail of a
carnivorous plant in a silent movie drove to the national gardens,
folded his car up, and ate it. Second place went to Shots & Goggles
(Giles Hardie, Tim Judge, Yasmin Sabir), despite - or because of -
Giles taking his shirt off to pursue Yasmin into a sauna, and later
getting stabbed by her and her evil twin Tim. Purple Monkey
Dishwashers (Stephanie Merriman, Lauren Cook, Lauren Cresswell,
Ashley Turner) showed us how an Accent Rollercoaster is done, with
their shy girl who got the guy by putting on a Scottish accent. And
I'm Luke Skywalker I'm Here to Rescue You (Jon Briden, Richard
Bennett-Forrest, Louise McManus) showed us the human side of the new
immigration test, with their Sing About It about Jon Briden's horrifying past, which explained his fear of Black Doors. Week 6 Week 6 of the Cranston Cup Heats ended with a tie! Herding Cats (Rebecca de Unamuno, Berryn Schwerdt, Toby Truslove and Dave Williams in absentia) played brilliantly, whether hiding in a coffin to scare a mourner, creating a perfect mime trapdoor on the Newtown Stage, or choosing between Shakespearean suitors. Not to be outdone, Unlimited Soundburger (Steve Lynch, Matt Foster, Jane Simmons, and Adam Gelin in absentia) showed what happens when you get a cut-rate genie out of a vase and literally brought down the house with "Tornado", the Broadway musical. The Cats and the Burgers were ably joined by 101 Things to Do with Cling Peaches (Christopher Moriarty, Linda Calgaro, Jonathan Wald, and Karina Francis in absentia) who scored well with their scene about an officeworker whose primary relationship was with the watercooler, and Church of Miscellaneous Belief (Nick Byrne, Brittany White, PJ Williams, and Greg Thomas in absentia - noticing a pattern here?) who discovered PJ's long-lost mum - and thus meaning in his life - in an amenable audience member. Pete Lead was the able host, Cindy Tonkin the timekeeper, and Victor Spiegel the musician - who provided excellent Shakespearian music on his recorder.
I'm Luke Skywalker and I'm Here to Save You: Week 5 The 5th heat of the Cranston Cup was characterised by good solid play, a little crazy and the usual dose of drama! Tickle Me Emo won the night with a series of excellent and kooky scenes - an outer space Touch to Talk with aliens and co-pilots as well as a shop where everyone was related (and sleeping together). The Coolest Kids in Competitive Chess came second with a scene about the Zen of footwear, beautifully accompanied by the night's improvising musician, Victor Spiegel on an authentic-sounding Japanese koto. I'm Luke Skywalker and I'm Here to Save You (Richard Bennett-Forrest, Louise McManus, and Jon Briden) came third with their dashing Broadway musical about an orphan and Santa Claus, topped it off with a nun in love at confession - Jon Briden proving he can remember at least 4 of the 10 Commandments. Unlimited Soundburger (Matt Foster, Adam Gelin, Jane Simmons, Steve Lynch) played an excellent Seduction in which Matt was going to jump off a cliff, but in the end his mum did. The same team showed us the invention of the wheel, spurred on by a caveman with burnt feet who needed to get around. Rebecca de Unamuno hosted a magnificent night of fun and frolic.
Unlimited Soundburger: Week 4 Last Sunday a sold-out crowd laughed and cheered as the 2007 Cranston
Cup Heats brought more of the best in improvised comedy to the
Newtown Theatre. Once again Suntime Happy Brown Fish (Cale Bain,
Amanda Buckley, Dave Bloustien, Susie Youssef) earned first place
with such brilliant scenes as a gibberish musical about immigration
to America and a touch-to-talk romance in a computer store. The
Wizard's Finger (Lee Naimo, Jordan Raskopoulos, Steen Raskopoulos,
Simon Greiner) came a close second - and earned the moment of the
match - with their winking bank robbery and an ode to Ghostbusters
sung on a sinking submarine. Rounding out the night were Canberra's
Church of Miscellaneous Belief (Nick Byrne, Brittany White, Greg
Murphy, PJ Williams) whose mimed duel was a hit with both audience
and judges. And last but not least, 101 Things to Do with Cling
Peaches (Karina Francis, Linda Calgaro, Christopher Moriarty,
Suntime Happy Brown Fish:
The Wizard's Finger:
101 Things to Do with Cling Peaches:
Church of Miscellaneous Belief: Week 3 Love was in the air last Sunday at Week 3 of the Cranston Cup Heats Spooky Rumpus (Geoff Bartlett, John Knowles, and Scott Hall-Watson) had their happy faces on all night, with scenes where an estranged mother and son made peace, and another where Geoff Bartlett hugged John Knowles to stop him from blowing up the world. Shots and Goggles (Tim Judge, Yasmin Sabir, and Charissa Simons standing in for Giles Hardie) gave us a touching romance between a woman needing caffeine an a coffee machine programmed to make pleasant conversation (the Barista-tron 50000). And the intrepid schools comp champions from Crestwood High, Purple Monkey Dishwashers (Stephanie Merriman, Lauren Cook, Lauren Cresswell, Ashley Turner) - earned the moment of the match with a scene about preying mantises in love - even if the female ate the male at the end. Suntime came in first, followed closely by Spooky Rumpus, then Shots & Goggles and the Dishwashers. Next week Suntime Happy Brown Fish return to see if they can make it two in a row. They'll be challenged by three teams playing for their first heat: The Wizard's Finger (Lee Naimo, Jordan Raskopoulos, Steen Raskopoulos, Simon Greiner), The Church of Miscellaneous Belief (Nick Byrne, Brittany White, Greg Thomas, PJ Williams) and 101 Things to Do with Cling Peaches (Karina Francis, Linda Calgaro, Christopher Moriarty, and Jonathan Wald). Tickets as always are available via www.ticketek.com.au or at the door at the Newtown Theatre, corner of King and Bray Sts, Newtown. Show starts at 8 pm.
Purple Monkey Dishwashers:
Shots and Goggles: Week 2 The comedy battle for the biggest and ugliest trophy in Australia - Impro Australia's Cranston Cup - heated up last Sunday at the Newtown Theatre. In another very close game, Week 1's first place winners Land of the Foxes once again came out on top, with a love triangle on a Sydney ferry and a Broadway musical about a poor girl making good - with the assistance of her dead aunt. Sydney Uni competition winners The Coolest Kids in Competitive Chess came in a near second, helped along by a very unusual take on the romance between Charles and Camilla - and by a scene about a superhero who couldn't stop talking but was vanquished by Awkward Silence Boy ("Sometimes when I'm in the bathtub I think about my mum.") Coming in third was Herding Cats, who earned the Moment of the Match with their touching depiction of an origami crane coming to life to teach the world about finding meaning and beauty. And rounding out the night was A Complimentary Punch in the Face, whose scene in a saloon with one player performing the arms of the other two showed how the West was really won. Next week the stars come out as past state and national champions take the Newtown stage, including Dave Bloustien (The Glass House), Amanda Buckley and Tim Judge (Blank the Musical), as well as last year's Theatresports Schools champions Crestwood High. Tickets are available via www.ticketek.com.au or at the door if available. The Newtown is at the corner of King and Bray Sts, Newtown. For complete information on the Cranston, including teams, standings, and schedules, visit cranston.improaustralia.com.au. And to make a suggestion for a scene you'd like to see played - and get a chance to win tickets to the semi-finals - head to www.ludiccreative.com/cranston.
Coolest Kids in Competitive
Herding Cats:
Week 1 The first week of the 2007 Cranston Cup Heats proved that there's nothing funnier than sickness and death! Tickle Me Emo tied for first with Land of the Foxes after both struck gold with literally killer scenes. Emo - Lisa Ricketts, Grant Davies, Cameron Knight, and Jon Williams - had a nearly perfect score with their scene in which Jon egged his son Cameron to become a boxer rather than a writer by goading him into a homicidal rage. Not to be outdone, the Foxes - Dave Harmon, Ben Jenkins, Neal Downward and Alexandra Lee - showed that even the Kennedy assassination could be funny. Alexandra Lee delivered the line of the night when the character she played, a devoted fan of the president, remarked sincerely, "He makes my cancer hurt less." Close behind Emo and the Foxes came A Complimentary Punch in the Face - AJ Tennant, Dan Ilic, Kilian David, and James Kerley - whose scene about an aquatic fun park under level 3 water restrictions brought down the house. And rounding out the night were Spooky Rumpus - Geoff Bartlett, John Knowles, Adam Yardley, and Scott Hall-Watson - who portrayed a touching and hilarious scene about a man finding happiness with unlovable pets.
Complimentary Punch in the Face:
Spooky Rumpus:
Land of the Foxes:
Tickle Me Emo:
TEAMS
September 16 @ 8 pm: September 23 @ 8 pm: September 30 @ 5 pm: October 7 @ 8 pm: October 14 @ 8 pm: October 21 @ 8 pm: October 28 @ 5 pm:
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