If there’s one activity that’s universally adored by all of mankind, it’s throwing socks at people on a stage.
Though the chances to do such a thing (without fear of prosecution or retribution) are few and far between, that’s all about to change when Granite State TheaterSports brings its own brand of improv to Hatbox Theatre this Saturday.
Theatresports is a form of dramatic, competitive improv that was created in 1977. The format features two teams competing in a variety of improv games against each other, and it requires the audience’s participation to both create the scenes and also decide who wins each round.
This Granite State TheaterSports troupe was founded by Larry Pizza and Kim Cassetta in 2009. All of the members of the troupe are actors as well as improv/comedy experts, all of whom work very well together, Pizza said.
“I can’t say enough about the team,” Pizza said. “They’ve been doing it for such a long time and they’re so good at it.”
It works like this: There are two teams with three to six people per side, and they take suggestions from the audience as well as Pizza and Cassetta on what to do. Once the prompts are established, each team presents their skit – made up on the spot – and tries to outdo the other team. Then the audience gets to vote by holding up a colored placard and voting for the team they thought was better. Points are awarded to the winning team each round, and whoever has the most at the end of the night wins a fake trophy.
But what about that sock-throwing we led with?
We thought you’d never ask.
“The final piece is that if a scene is not going well, if they (the audience) feel it’s not the quality they wanted, they get to throw a sock,” Pizza said. “The offending team loses a point to the other team.”
But don’t worry – you won’t have to pull your own socks off (in fact, please don’t) and go home with frozen ankles. Plenty of (hopefully clean) rolled-up socks will be provided to audience members, and you can even get the sock back after you throw it – it’s like unlimited ammo.
The shows do tend to focus on comedy, but there are sometimes some theatrical and dramatic elements, too. And while many improv comedy acts can be very adult-oriented, this one isn’t.
“We really pride ourselves on making sure it’s definitely family friendly,” Pizza said. Plus, the kids always love to fire socks at the stage, and the actors – Pizza included – get a kick out of it, too.
The show will debut at Hatbox on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $12, $14 and $17 and are available at hatboxnh.com. Shows are also scheduled for Feb. 24, April 21 and Aug. 11. Go to granitestatetheatresports.wordpress.com for more.
