SPARSE PLUS partner Nová síť together with promoters from the Czech Republic, organised a tour of an improvisational performance by the ensemble Us Boys Who Go Out Together during the summer and autumn of 2024. The tour was a great success with the audience.
Here is an interview about how the tour itself was perceived by the cast, how they enjoyed the whole tour around rural areas and what is the beauty of improvisation.
1. How would you rate the tour?
We think the tour was a success. For us, everything worked out great.
2. What surprised you the most during the tour, either positively or negatively?
We were pleasingly surprised by the audiences as well as the places where we performed. It was definitely refreshing to get out of our bubble, which includes our Prague spectators, thanks to the tour, and be able to perform in different parts of the country for local communities. And in beautiful places where we have never performed before. Everywhere we met professional and caring production teams and technicians who helped us with our show preparations.
3. How did audience in different towns react to your improvisation? Was their reaction different depending on where you performed?
The reaction didn't vary depending on where we performed but rather whether our improvisation was successful or not.
However, we noticed a slight difference – compared to our performances in Prague – in audience’s gratitude, which we could sense during the entire tour. We felt that people somehow valued more the opportunity to see something new.
4. How was your relationship with the local communities? Do you engage audience in your improvisations in any way?
Yes, we like to engage the audience in our improvisations and communicate with them. For instance, we performed also in atypical spaces and environments that the local community was familiar with but used it in a slightly different way than how it served us, which created a certain relationship and interaction between us and them. We were in some way guests in their environment. We probably felt it the most during the performance of The Feast (Hostina), presented in Komařice for local residents. Although it was them who performed the guests in the show we brought for them, we were the real guests in their environment. Observing the relationship and togetherness of the local community which goes to the theatre to enjoy their evening together was an exceptional experience for us.
5. What effect does the environment and atmosphere of a particular place have on your improvisation and acting?
We are definitely influenced by the space we perform in, whether we perform indoors, in a theatre, or outdoors, in an open space. Our improvisation is then affected by spatial boundaries, whether the space has physical boundaries or not. For example, in Jičín, our improvisation took on a format closest to what our Prague audience is accustomed to from our regular shows, as we performed in a closed space, with a complete theatre setup. On the contrary, in Chvalčov it was very different because we performed outdoors in front of a cinema screen, and we had to work with the space differently than what we were used to. At the Kuks Festival, we performed under a circus tent, which also determined in certain way the atmosphere of the show.
6. How do you prepare before the performance?
The main thing is to do the basics, we always warm up and sing. What we try to avoid is talking about what that day’s performance should be about.
Part of the preparation of each performance are the props, which we do not bring with us. Instead, we use things we find on site at the given moment. Which is also one of the things (going back to the previous question) that greatly affects each performance – the objects we find in the space. The only thing we bring with us is the costumes.
The biggest preparation for each performance is done by our lighting technician Jonatan, who gets the lights ready and focused before the show.
We always try to enjoy our time in a new environment. We went for a swim before the show in Chvalčov; we spent a whole week in Komařice; and we went for a walk in the gardens in Jičín. That’s the nicest thing about tours, that we spend at the given locations at least a few hours before the show and soak up the atmosphere, ideally, we also stay the night. It's not just about getting there quickly to perform and leave right away.
7. What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of improvisation compared to a traditional script?
The downside is that it may not turn out well at all. That the show simply fails and is terrible. But the adrenaline rush is also fun at the same time. We don't see improvisation as a run-of-the-mill routine, and it challenges us, our abilities and skills on stage.
The advantage is that one doesn’t have to memorise anything, and we are more flexible in choosing topics that we feel resonate better with the audience. We can change the topics based on audience’s reaction, how we feel at the moment, or even based on the place we’re at the moment or the time.
8. How do your group members participate in the creation of improvisations? Does each member have a specific role or approach?
We have musicians and lighting technicians whose roles in the performances are clearly defined – they complete the ambience of the situation with lighting and sound. As far as actors go, everyone brings different assets which they work with in performances. But the longer we perform together, the less visible any differences are. Only Andrej still moves the best.
9. What is your personal relationship to improvisation? What do you enjoy most about this form?
We enjoy improv because it is such a dynamic form. For example, when I come up with a lighting design for another show, the fun "ends" right then because each following performance uses the same design, it becomes a routine. While with improv it’s always different and surprising.
The uniqueness of each performance is generally what we enjoy in improvisation. It’s not that we’ve been performing the same thing for 5 years, but in those five years we've performed a different show every single time. Every performance is the first and the last at the same time. Also, with improvisation there is always much to explore and push it further and learn how to work with it in performances.
And last but not least, we enjoy the company of people we work with. Our dream of making theatre with our friends came true.
10. Your best tour experience?
Definitely the time spent in Komařice and the unique presentation of our performance The Feast, its first presentation outside of Prague. It was also probably the most intense time we experienced on the tour, since we spent a whole week there. Thanks to this, we got a little taste of circus life, in the sense that during the day we were preparing the show, in the evening we did our best on stage and after the show we shared our experiences.
The performance in Jičín was also a wonderful experience for us, as it, sort of, took us back our memory lane to the days of intimate, studio performances.
Interviewees: Andrej Lyga, Šimon Pliska, Lukas Blaha, Václav Wortner, Jonatan Vnouček
https://www.facebook.com/mykluci
© Colour photo: Valdštejnská Lodžie / Black and white photo: REZI.DANCE Komařice
SPARSE PLUS partner Nová síť together with
promoters from the Czech Republic, organized a tour of an improvisational
performance by the ensemble Us Boys Who Go Out Together during the summer and
autumn. The tour was a great success with the audience. We bring you an interview about how the tour
itself was perceived by the cast, how they enjoyed the whole tour around rural
areas and what is the beauty of improvisation? 1. How would you rate the tour?We think the tour
was a success. For us, everything worked out great. 2. What surprised you the most during the tour,
either positively or negatively?We were
pleasingly surprised by the audiences as well as the places where we performed.
It was definitely refreshing to get out of our bubble, which includes our Prague
spectators, thanks to the tour, and be able to perform in different parts of
the country for local communities. And in beautiful places where we have never
performed before. Everywhere we met professional and caring production teams
and technicians who helped us with our show preparations. 3. How
did audience in different towns react to your improvisation? Was their reaction
different depending on where you performed?The reaction
didn't vary depending on where we performed but rather whether our
improvisation was successful or not.However, we noticed
a slight difference – compared to our performances in Prague – in audience’s gratitude,
which we could sense during the entire tour. We felt that people somehow valued
more the opportunity to see something new.4. How was your relationship with the local
communities? Do you engage audience in your improvisations in any way?Yes, we like to engage
the audience in our improvisations and communicate with them. For instance, we performed
also in atypical spaces and environments that the local community was familiar
with but used it in a slightly different way than how it served us, which created
a certain relationship and interaction between us and them. We were in some way
guests in their environment. We probably felt it the most during the
performance of The Feast (Hostina), presented in Komařice for local residents.
Although it was them who performed the guests in the show we brought for them,
we were the real guests in their environment. Observing the relationship and
togetherness of the local community which goes to the theatre to enjoy their
evening together was an exceptional experience for us.5. What effect does the environment and
atmosphere of a particular place have on your improvisation and acting?We are definitely
influenced by the space we perform in, whether we perform indoors, in a theatre,
or outdoors, in an open space. Our improvisation is then affected by spatial
boundaries, whether the space has physical boundaries or not. For example, in
Jičín, our improvisation took on a format closest to what our Prague audience is
accustomed to from our regular shows, as we performed in a closed space, with a
complete theatre setup. On the contrary, in Chvalčov it was very different because
we performed outdoors in front of a cinema screen, and we had to work with the
space differently than what we were used to. At the Kuks Festival, we performed
under a circus tent, which also determined in certain way the atmosphere of the
show. 6. How do you prepare before the performance?The main thing is
to do the basics, we always warm up and sing. What we try to avoid is talking
about what that day’s performance should be about.Part of the
preparation of each performance are the props, which we do not bring with us.
Instead, we use things we find on site at the given moment. Which is also one
of the things (going back to the previous question) that greatly affects each
performance – the objects we find in the space. The only thing we bring with us
is the costumes.The biggest
preparation for each performance is done by our lighting technician Jonatan,
who gets the lights ready and focused before the show.We always try to
enjoy our time in a new environment. We went for a swim before the show in
Chvalčov; we spent a whole week in Komařice; and we went for a walk in the
gardens in Jičín. That’s the nicest thing about tours, that we spend at the
given locations at least a few hours before the show and soak up the
atmosphere, ideally, we also stay the night. It's not just about getting there
quickly to perform and leave right away.7. What do you think are the advantages and
disadvantages of improvisation compared to a traditional script?The downside is
that it may not turn out well at all. That the show simply fails and is
terrible. But the adrenaline rush is also fun at the same time. We don't see
improvisation as a run-of-the-mill routine, and it challenges us, our abilities
and skills on stage.The advantage is
that one doesn’t have to memorise anything, and we are more flexible in
choosing topics that we feel resonate better with the audience. We can change
the topics based on audience’s reaction, how we feel at the moment, or even based
on the place we’re at the moment or the time. 8. How
do your group members participate in the creation of improvisations? Does each
member have a specific role or approach?We have musicians
and lighting technicians whose roles in the performances are clearly defined –
they complete the ambience of the situation with lighting and sound. As far as
actors go, everyone brings different assets which they work with in
performances. But the longer we perform together, the less visible any
differences are. Only Andrej still moves the best.9. What is your personal relationship to
improvisation? What do you enjoy most about this form?We enjoy improv
because it is such a dynamic form. For example, when I come up with a lighting
design for another show, the fun "ends" right then because each
following performance uses the same design, it becomes a routine. While with improv
it’s always different and surprising.The uniqueness of
each performance is generally what we enjoy in improvisation. It’s not that
we’ve been performing the same thing for 5 years, but in those five years we've
performed a different show every single time. Every performance is the first
and the last at the same time. Also, with improvisation there is always much to
explore and push it further and learn how to work with it in performances.And last but not
least, we enjoy the company of people we work with. Our dream of making theatre
with our friends came true.10. Your best tour experience?Definitely the
time spent in Komařice and the unique presentation of our performance The
Feast, its first presentation outside of Prague. It was also probably the most
intense time we experienced on the tour, since we spent a whole week there.
Thanks to this, we got a little taste of circus life, in the sense that during
the day we were preparing the show, in the evening we did our best on stage and
after the show we shared our experiences.The performance
in Jičín was also a wonderful experience for us, as it, sort of, took us back
our memory lane to the days of intimate, studio performances. Interviewees:
Andrej Lyga, Šimon Pliska, Lukas Blaha, Václav Wortner, Jonatan Vnouček
