Sep. 10, 2008 - Issue #673: Sex in the City 2008
Die-Nasty Soap-A-Thon
After 16 years, 53 straight hours of improvising becomes second nature
In fact, it’s such a natural occurrence that, for some company members, this won’t even be the first several-day-spanning performance of the year. London had its very first improv-a-thon during the winter, lasting 50 hours and starring a number of Die-Nasty members. The Edmonton company was, after all, the inspiration: the overseas copycatting came about after renowned UK performer Kim Campbell sent some of his friends to attend and perform in last year’s Soap-A-Thon. They raved back to Campbell, who then cooked up his own 50-hour extravaganza.
“We never used the word ‘soap opera’ [over there]; it just means shit,” says Dana Andersen, core Die-Nasty member and the director/ringleader who guides the whole weekend’s scenes. “We called it an improv-a-thon, but basically it was Die-Nasty.”
Although Campbell’s since passed away, there are future UK improv-a-thons on the horizon. But at the moment, Andersen’s more concerned about his own approaching 53-hour show. He missed most of last year’s Soap-A-Thon due to a death in the family, but he doesn’t seem worried about getting back into the sleepless groove; he’s done it plenty before, so he knows what to expect when the hours of consciousness start adding up.
“The first couple of times is like taking some sort of weird drug: you didn’t know what sleep deprivation is going to do,” Andersen explains. “But now I know how it affects me, and I know when I’m getting paranoid or getting kind of cranky. You can see it coming from a long ways off, and do some things to make it easier for yourself.”
This year’s loose plot—some kind of guidance for the madness—places the cast in Hawaii.
“We always try to find an excuse why we’d be up for 53 hours,” he explains. “So this year, we thought just a tropical Hawaiian vacation. A family going to Hawaii, just spending 53 hours going through adventure and mayhem.”
That setting is the only predetermined performance point: the rest is up to Andersen (who directs, picking which actors begin what scenes), the actors onstage and the catalytic effects of a sleepless weekend spent on stage. Some will sleep; some won’t. Either way, Andersen looks forward to seeing how the hours whittle away at the cast’s psyches.
“I’ve seen people go through what I call the stargate: it’s when they’re ready to crash, and then they just lose all inhibition, and start speaking in tongues, and then suddenly, it all becomes clear to them, and they relax,” he says. “Some people have no problems. So it’s interesting to watch. I quite enjoy the process of watching people go through this weird sleep deprivation.” V
Fri, Sep 12 - Sun, Sep 14
Die-Nasty Soap-A-Thon
Directed by Dana Andersen
Starring Jeff Haslam, Davina Stewart, Mark Meer, Belinda Cornish, many more
Varscona Theatre (10329 - 83 Ave) $10 - $30
New comments for this entry have been turned off and any existing ones are hidden. We apologize for any inconvenience.
