Hollister
– ‘Balers and those who love them now have a new team to cheer
for.
Hollister – ‘Balers and those who love them now have a new team to cheer for.
San Benito High School students have put together a competitive comedy team and this weekend will be their first taking on kids from rival schools in a display of guts, glory and hopefully gags.
“These kids really are funny,” said Christina Plank, SBHS drama teacher. “You’d be surprised at what they come up with when you let them say anything, and that adolescent humor is still something that translates really well for adults, too.”
Improvisational comedy is just that: Performers make up scenes and jokes on the seat of their pants, often using ideas suggested from the audience, just like in the popular “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” television show. The team is affiliated with ComedySportz, an international league of student and adult improv teams who have been entertaining audiences for more than 20 years. Performers are competing for trophies and the SBHS troupe has their eye on the national ComedySportz high school tournament in late spring.
“The shows are run sort of like a baseball game,” said Plank, nodding to the team’s ‘Baler jerseys. “The teams compete, have innings, there’s a referee that can call a foul, that sort of thing.”
The first Saturday of each month, the team goes to the ComedySportz theatre in San Jose to train with a professional coach and students from other teams in the area.
“It’s really cool; we learn so much,” said senior Dina Silva, team president. “They tell you how to keep things moving, to keep from being nervous, what to do if you get stuck; it’s a great experience.”
Many of the students are also involved in the drama department’s regular season, and Plank says the skills they learn with ComedySportz are invaluable even when the actors are performing serious scenes in scripted plays.
“As an actor, the most terrifying thing in the world is forgetting a line,” she said. “But if you’ve had enough improv experience, you can make something up that will get the job done and be appropriate in the context of the scene.”
Many of the team members said that improv comedy is a nice break from school and other extra curriculars, and a few said they preferred it to regular plays and musicals.
“It’s a lot more fun and relaxed,” said Sarah Smith. “You can just act stupid and no one’s going to get you in trouble.”
Best of all perhaps is that the students are putting on a show they can bring their grandmothers to. Family-friendliness is a ComedySportz mandate, and performers who cross the line of good taste get “brown-bagged” – they’re forced to wear a bag on their heads and take a shameful time-out.
“It’s hard for me to remember not to drop my pants,” said Ricardo Casas. “I actually have to wear two belts, just in case.”
This week’s competition against Monte Vista High School will be the first of many.
“We’ll be doing this until April,” said Plank. “I think the best thing about this program is that it can continue for years, no matter which students are here or who the drama teacher is. I hope this will become a tradition.”
Danielle Smith covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or [email protected].
