You Know What I Mean #47: If you think you can leave the past behind
You must be out of your mind
Hi, hi. It’s been a little over a month since I sent out the last newsletter. I didn’t mean to go this long, but here we are. I think every other week might be the best schedule going forward, but feel free to weigh in. Weekly seems too much and monthly is not enough, though it’s better than nothing at all.
I’m hanging in there, you know? I don’t know what to say that we’re not already saying. I’m fine.
Locked in a UCBT hallway at 7am after performing at the Del Close Marathon. I snagged this photo from my pal/former teammate/#1 Words With Friends opponent, Mike Peditto. Thanks, Mike.
You may or may not have heard that the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater (UCBT) and training center closed in New York. Whether or not you know or care about this depends on probably either your age and your interest in improv comedy.
For example:
Me, to my hippie therapist: “Do you know what the Upright Citizens Brigade is?” Therapist: “No… is that a political thing?” Me: “Nope.”
Me, to non-comedy friend: “You know what UCB is, right? In New York?” Her: “Yeah, it was a show once, right?” Me: “… yeah, kinda, at one point, but that’s not it.”
UCBT has been making cuts for a while and their financial situation was perilous even in the middle of a robust improv boom, so this wasn’t a huge surprise. It’s gotten some criticism for how it doesn’t pay performers, something that’s rampant all over the improv world (My thoughts on this are thoughts for another newsletter).
I never went through the New York system, but there was a trick down effect to the improv classes I took in Pittsburgh. I’ve written before about how improv impacted my writing. I really do believe that everything builds upon what came before and if I hadn’t stopped writing for a few years to focus on performing, I wouldn’t be writing today.
I performed in the Del Close Marathon (DCM) a couple times, UCBT’s annual improv festival. For non-comedy people, DCM was best known for having improv shows running continuously for three days straight with 15 minute cleaning breaks every six hours. I had stayed up all night, I was sweaty and sleep deprived, and when I looked out at the audience, most people were slumped in their seat asleep. The show we did at 6:30 am was not memorable. More memorable was how our entire team got locked in some back hallway and had to bang down the doors to get out.
I don’t really know where I’m going with this. I guess that even with UCB’s financial mismanagement this feels ominous and right now, we don’t know what’s going to be around in a year and what’s not. Hell, we don’t even know what’s going to happen in July. It’s not about the places, it’s about the people. Here’s hoping we can still find our communities and hallways to get locked down after all this is over.
Personal Recommendations
Dedicated Side B. CRJ knew we needed something fun to dance to when we weren’t going on walks with Fetch the Bolt Cutters in our ears and as always, she came through.
Blow the Man Down. Blame it on my lifelong landlocked status, but I really love stories in small sea towns (Mystic Pizza, Broadchurch, Dawson’s Creek, Murder She Wrote, etc. etc. etc.) and here’s another one, set in Easter Cove, Maine. Shout out to Amanda Waltz for the recommending this one after I mentioned my love of Margo Martindale. She’s part of a great female ensemble cast in this weirdly dark comedy of two sisters coping with their mom’s death while dealing with a lot of other stuff (no spoilers). It’s not a perfect movie (the stakes could have been heightened, IMO), but still enjoyable and it clocks in at the exactly right 90 minute time.
Never Have I Ever. I’m a real sucker for teen shows and this one is a real charmer. Devi is an Indian-American teenager in Southern California coping with the grief of her father’s death along with all the other crap that comes with being a teenager. It’s also not perfect, but satisfying and cute, and sometimes that’s all you need.
Fresh mint in my coffee. It’s works best with lots of cream. I recommend putting it in a tea strainer.
Take care, everybody. Writer friends, #1000wordsofsummer is starting up again next week, so sign up for that if it interests you. I made some good strides last time.
All the best,
Andrea