Awkward Silence Comedy to host 'improv jam session'

Junior Brian Frange jumps up on stage and asks the audience to suggest a setting for the next improv game. \nSomeone yells, "dildo factory!" \nTwo members of Awkward Silence Comedy immediately start improvising the intricacies and potential hazards of working at a dildo factory. The audience erupts with laughter.\n That was only one comedy game that the comedy troupe performed last Thursday. The cast consists of students Brian Frange, Andy Blastick, Justin Purcell, IDS photographer Georgia Perry and the newest member, Katie Brody. There are also a few members on hiatus, who are currently working on other projects. The troupe was formed two years ago by Brian Frange.\n"There was long-form improv on campus but there was no short-form improv like what you see on 'Whose Line is it Anyway?'" Frange said. "I had (a short form improv group) in high school so I started Awkward Silence here."\nPerformers come on stage with a high level of energy after warming up backstage. The performers introduce themselves and ask the audience for suggestions for comedy games. The audience then shouts out suggestions to keep the cast on its toes. With audience input like "Ghengis Khan" and "romantic comedy," the cast must be prepared for anything.\n"It's just way better than television," former audience member and new cast member Katie Brody said. "It's interactive for the audience."\nSome of the games the troupe performs can get messy. For the rhyme change game, a performer will say a line and then the next performer must say a line that rhymes with the previous one. If a performer is unable to think of a rhyme quick enough, Purcell will run out on stage with a sock full of flour and smack the unsuccessful rhymer in the head with it. This is a new game for the troupe but it's been getting a lot of laughs.\n"We'll do it again in the future," Purcell said\nOther games include dating show and showstoppers. Showstoppers is usually the last game of the night and features Blastick on the acoustic guitar and the other cast members singing their lines. It showcases other talents of the performers on stage.\nThis Thursday, the group will host a jam session after its regular show. It's a good way for those new to improv to get a taste for performance. It is also fun for the cast to share the stage with the audience.\n"It's a good chance to improvise with our audience," Frange said. We want to reach out to our audience and Jam Session is a good way to do that." \nThe current group has been together for over a year. The cast members have become good friends, because of their weekly six-hour practices.\n"We take people into the group not only as improvisers but also as potential friends, people we can hang out with all the time," Frange said.\nAwkward Silence Comedy performs 9 p.m. every Thursday in Frangipani Room at the Indiana Memorial Union. On Feb. 2 and 3 they will be headlining the IU College Comedy Festival. On Friday they perform again, and Saturday special guests Upright Citizens Brigade Theater will perform.