2003-03-27 - 11:44 a.m.

Bush vs Blair, being the Greek Chorus

So, this morning, as I was hitting the snooze on my alarm, fighting between pretending I'm a part of the work-a-day world, and the sweet embrace of blissful sleep, I heard Dubya and Tony Blair in a joint press conference. Maybe it's because a crisp british accent already has some cache with me, but it seemed to me that Bush was even more of a rube than normal (if that's possible). He did, at one point, after a long and relatively eloquent speech by Blair, have enough self-awareness to simply say "I have nothing to add to that". With such a striking contrast, it's funny to think that in England (this according to Eric Idle) they call Blair "Bush's Bitch".

~*~

Last night, during what was once Improv class, but has now become rehearsal for our Improv show, we finally found a format that seems like it will really work out for us. It involves me (and possibly at some point PotHead McStoneyPants) playing improvised guitar, and acting as kind of a Greek Chorus. I basically get to stand in the back, playing and listening. Then, when the mood strikes me, I can jump forward, and sing, or simply make commentary. Last night was a blast, because I just said everything that I figured the characters might be thinking, but were too scared to say. Or I'd just punctuate a moment. It was sweet. Herr Director was running around the audience going "Yes! Perfect!" I haven't seen him that excited in a long while.

It feels like we finally found a format that gels with who we are as a group. We got some of our good group dynamic back, and we Played, ferchrissakes. We had fun. I know I had a blast.

I'm worried about PotHead McStoneyPants (so-called because of his propensity for a little herbal relaxation prior to class) doing that role, though. Because he...well, he's usually stoned. Which means he's not even remotely crisp. He runs about two minutes behind the curve on comprehension. And he doesn't listen. Which is pretty much death in Improv.

Don't get me wrong. He's a good guy, and when he's on, he's a great improv performer. He's nearly perfect at what I call the Silent Bob, where you stand in the background of the scene, and don't say much, but at the end, you say one or two things that tie the whole scene together and bring closure (and usually a big-ass laugh).

But all this is when he's crisp. Which he is not. Because he's stoned. He could do the guitar bit, but not while he's stoned. And I know how Herr Director will deal with that. This is no longer class, it's building a show. A show that reflects directly on the quality of instruction at this theater. Which is a major source of revenue. Which means that if it doesn't work, it won't happen. So if McStoneyPants can't cut it as guitar guy, he won't be guitar guy. And I just hope, that if that happens, that he'll be okay with it.

Ah well. Regardless, I'm happier about the improv show than I've been in a while.

Now I just need to get ready for tomorrow night.