News Archive
1/7/07
Momentum Show Information:
O.U.I! will be in the Film Room, and playing at these times:
Friday Night Schedule:
Films: 6:00-7:30
O.U. Improv!: 7:30-8:00
Films: 8:00-9:30
O.U. Improv!: 9:30-10:30
Films: 10:30-12:00
Saturday Night Schedule:
Films: 8:00-9:30
O.U. Improv!: 9:30-10:30
Films: 10:30-12:00
And of course, the Momentum OKC website with ticket and venue information.
12/17/06
Bios for Thomas, Kyle, Rachel, and Becky are up!
12/14/06
No Improv Institute this weekend (12/17/06) due to the Holidays.
10/09/06
We've got:
Three new videos: Instant Musical- Cow Tipping, Blues Man- Red Sea Has Gone Blues, and Last Line First- Sumo Wrestling at the Atomic Daycare!
A new provisional player: Rachel Waughtel!
Two new provisional musicans: Thomas Rousson and Kyle Reid!
Welcome everyone to the team!
We've also got another installment of the Improv Institute!
Improv Institute (calendar/more info here)
Time: 5-7pm
Place: OMU Ballroom (3rd floor of the Oklahoma Memorial Union)
Lots of: exclaimation points!!!!!
10/5/06
I hope everyone had a fun time at auditions!
For those interested in the Improv Institute (a time to learn improv, hang out, and play), here's the information.
Improv Institute - NEWER Change of Date!
Date: Sundays. The first one is October 8nd, 2006.
Time: 5pm-7pm
Where: Oklahoma Memorial Union Ballroom (3rd floor of the Union)
Also, in case you don't regularly check out our Pictures and Video page, we've got a new one up! It's a Tap Out called "Monkey See Hairdo". Go watch, and don't forget to vote for it!
9/20/06
Remember how we told you to check the website for auditions information? Here's as much of that coveted information as I have right now:Audtions Information
Date: September 28th, 2006.
Time: 8pm-11pm
Where: Frontier Room (2nd floor of the Oklahoma Memorial Union)
Who: Anyone interested in performing improv, any pianists or guitarists interested in
providing musical accompianment
Auditons are on on a first come, first served basis, and slots are limited. This will be updated as more information becomes available. Mark your calendars for the 28th!
Improv Institute
More info as it becomes available.
Date: Sundays. The first one is October 8th, 2006.
Time: 5pm-7pm
Where: ??
-- Amy Allen, Webmistress.
9/16/06
The first show of the season is the 16th! That's tonight! We'll be in a new venue for this one-- the Union's Food Court. You know, that big area by Sbarro's and the jukebox. Lots of tables and chairs. So grab a friend, grab some food, and join us for an evening of laughter!
8/22/06
Are you ready for some improv?
Obviously Unrehearsed Improv! returns to the Univeristy of Oklahoma! Check out our show dates.
See the troupe perform hilarious antics with a slight summer tan!
Hear the unrehearsed yet brilliant lines!
and...
Touch someone special's heart when you bring them to a show!
You will be attending, won't you?
-- Amy Allen, Webmistress.4/2/06
The April Fool's show was so awesome I immediately had to upload all the pictures I took at the show. Check them out!
-- Amy Allen, Webmistress.
3/31/06
So, things look a little different around here. I, the webmistress (with lots of great input from the group), redid the entire site in this spiffy new style. If you find any bugs in the site, please send an e-mail to me at effika@gmail.com and I'll take look.
Oh, and did I mention that the troupe is one of ten college troupes performing at the Chicago Implosion College Comedy Showcase? This is a great honor for the group, and for all you great fans who helped get us there! We'll be performing on Friday, April 28th at 7:30pm. You can take a look at the shedule here! There's even a map for all you adoring fans who want to follow us on our one-stop tour.
-- Amy Allen, Webmistress.
3/7/06
Viola Question at OU
Were you there? Did you see it? If you did, you know what a treat it was.
Monday night, O.U.I! rocked the house with Viola Question (VQ) from Yale University.
A great crowd for a weeknight, the audience saw a show full of new games and new personalities. 24 dead improvisors (record-making) marked the beginning of the show in Mafia and we later Chose-Our-Own-Adventure with a pair of zany VQ ghosts. Your very own O.U.I! showed their stuff in a space adventure Monologues with a talking beard and a trip down fairy tale lane with a Snow White Half-Time Fairy Tale. VQ showed us how to get Revenge on horrible roommates and how to charm the Oracle that has answers to all your questions (one of our new favorites, I might add). Together, we put on our Superhero spandex to save the world and experimented on defenseless little hamsters in A Day in Eileens's Life. Crowd-pleasers all of them. In every way, it was a fantastic show with new surprises at every turn.
Jocelyn Ranne, the director of VQ had this to say about their trip into O.U.I! land.
"We just wanted to say thank you so much for the amazing time we had with you on Monday. You guys were all so wonderful and professional and made it a truly memorable adventure, one that we would bite at the bit to repeat. Seriously, we were blown away, clearly by your performance skills, but also by your cohesion and level of organization and professionalism. You were so polished and have really developed your own stellar style which is enviable. We had a BLAST playing with you."
It was a special thing for O.U.I! to play with
another troupe that values the artform of Improv and
looks with as much gusto as we do to learning and
improving performance skills. We will definitely be
re-visiting VQ's unique warm-up and several of their
games. We look forward to continuing to work with our
new friends even after they leave Oklahoma for the
chilly Northeast. Thank you, VQ, for a great
experience.
-Marcy Fleming, O.U.I! Manager.
10/04/05
O.U. Improv's Fall 2005 auditions are a success! After a rigorous and taxing fight to the death between 29 worthy opponents, most of whom were unarmed, three new faces emerged victorious. Please welcome these new members to our Improvable ranks:
Patrick Folmar, whose magical, muzak-slaying axe can sooth or maim the savage beast,
Albert Schilthuis, whose control over the elements caused us to blow all our money on special effects within two hours, aaaand...
Julie Pearson, whose mysterious past allows the writer to justify her Deus ex Machina-like skills whenever they're needed!
After these three wash the blood off in the shower, Albert and Julie will join our ranks as Improv Players, while Patrick will be joining me in the music section with his guitar. Look for these new faces in our upcoming Union show on October 15th!
-- Jay Edwards, musical director and hardcore player, O. U. Improv!
9/12/05
Auditions info is now available! Auditions will be held
on Wednesday, September 28, from 7pm-10pm in the
Gittinger Hall Lounge. The auditions will be held in
three one hour-long sessions: 7-8pm, 8-9pm, 9-10pm.
Contact Raychel
Winstead for more information.
-- Amy, the newest webmistress.
News Update:
08/25/05
::ominous music with lots of bass::
In a world crippled by war, poverty and supreme court
nominees ...
In a time when thousands of children are ripped from
their parents, stripped of their money, and forced to
live in tiny rooms with bathrooms they must share with
three other people ...
Only one group strives to bring to a community of
disheartened, broken people one shimmer of hope to latch
on to. Only one group promises joy where thousands more
bring misery and fear. And only one group stands up in
the face of adversity and oppression. Who is this group
who dares dream for such high hopes? Who is this
fearless group of heroes with the resolve to do what is
right? Who are the ones who will rise to the call of the
greater good? Who are these people?
Who?
Who???
Who?!?!?!?
…
The Salvation Army!
::glorious fanfare::
…
And O.U. Improv! is a close second.
We have no idea what the Salvation Army is up to, but
O.U. Improv! is ready for another jam-packed semester of
improvisational comedy! And we hit the ground running
with the first show of the semester taking place during
Howdy Week, the very first week of school. This Howdy
Week will be a treacherous journey through 80’s
themes, with large hairdos, synthesized music and David
Bowie. We welcome all of you new students (as well as the
old) to the Meacham Auditorium as we break away from
these 80’s clichés and try to get back
…
Back to the Improv!
The hilarity will ensue at 8:00 PM on Saturday, August
27th at the Meacham Auditorium on the 2nd floor of the
Oklahoma Memorial Union (OU).
That last sentence was unfunny. Um… Two friends
and I walked into a bar. It hurt.
Back to the Improv! will feature your favorite Hard Core
Players in OUI!’s premier performance in Meacham
Auditorium. We’ll be focusing on our quick-fire
short-form games, as well as introducing some new
games never seen before (by OU students)! We will also
be giving out exciting door prizes! Meacham seats nearly
500 people, and we do hope to fill each and every one of
those seats. Seats are first come, first served, so come
early! Camping overnight is reccomended. Contact
Raychel Winstead
for more information.
Also, a mere two weeks from our first show, OUI! will be making another premier performance in a currently improv-virgin theater, the Lab Theater in Old Science Hall. In opposition to Meacham’s rapid-fire short-form extravaganza, we will dedicate Old Science Hall to more laid-back, longer and artistic forms.
Sincerely,
Jay Edwards
Musical Director and Hard Core Player, O.U.Improv!
06/18/05
In the beginning, there was the webmistress. And she did update the website regularly. And it was good.
But, lo, there came a time when the webmistress became lazy, and the updates became fewer and farther between. Verily, it was not so good.
One fateful day, the webmistress came down from on high, unpacked her laptop, and got to work. She came up with these 15 .... 10 ... okay, these 2 updates.
"Forsooth," she spaketh (spaketh? honestly ...), "I have updated the site."
"I have updated the calendar so that it now shows everything we've scheduled for the rest of the year thus far."
"I have added pictures from the Yukon Library Workshop under the 'Pictures and Video' section, which is really 'Pictures, not Video' section right now."
Yea verily, she hath bespoke, this language is getting ridiculous. Let us just acknowledge that the site has been updated and get rid of all this silly themed update nonsense.
Amen.
Sincerely,
Raychel Winstead
Player and Webmistress, OUImprov!
Email: fast_eddie@ou.edu
04/14/05
Dearly Beloved,
We are gathered here today to join this improv with these viewers in holy hilarity. Is there anyone here who believes that these two should not be joined? Speak now or forever hold your peace .... last chance ... Anyone?
... I didn't think so.
Now, repeat after me:
-I do solemnly promise to look at all the new things my webmistress has added to the site recently, including all the pretty new pictures from performances under the Pictures and Video link.
-I also solemnly swear to read all the Coach's Corner columns, especially the new one just added today.
-I will come to the show on April 23th, 2005 at 8 pm in the Scholars Room of the OMU, as it was writ in the calendar. I will bring a friend. Refreshments will be served.
I now pronounce you audience and troupe. You may kiss the
screen.
Sincerely,
Raychel Winstead
Player and Webmistress, OUImprov!
Email: fast_eddie@ou.edu
03/03/05
::cough:: ::sputter:: ::cough::
Thank god I made it! I don't have much time left. I
must give you the update before I am no longer able,
before the frail existence we call life slips away from
me and I pass on to the paradise or oblivion that may
await me on the other side. Before I go I must tell you
this, as it will be my final words to you before I leave
for the cosmic journey of the void. I must tell you this
before I buy it, cash in, check out, croak, depart, drop
dead, eat it, expire, finish, go west, hang, kick off,
one-way ticket, perish, relinquish life, sprout wings,
succumb. Antonyms: be born, live. Listen well, for I
cannot repeat what I say, since I will most likely see my
final hour soon. Listen, my friends, listen!
There is nothing to report.
::dies::
Sincerely,
Jay Edwards
Musical Director, OUImprov!
02/17/05
My friends, the time has come. A cool mist hangs in the
air, the tides have begun to shift, and people have taken
to the streets in a fevered devouring frenzy. The public
can no longer tolerate an absence of improv in their
lives. They call for us to come out from the shadows,
not so much Batman-like, but more of a Mystery Men type
way, to save them from their laughless, improvless
slump. From our hibernation we shall reappear into the
OU mainstream. That's right, it's time for another...
O.U. Improv! show and workshop!
::glorious fanfare::
O.U. Improv!'s first community workshop of 2005 will be
held this Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. in the Frontier Room
on the second floor of the Union. During the workshop,
your amazing player and webmistress Raychel will teach
you the secrets to OUI!'s success: The Five Basic
Elements of Improv. (You didn't think we were naturally
witty, did you? ... Of course you did. Um... And you're
right!!!) The workshop is free and open to anyone,
experienced or non, youngish or old, who wants to join
in. But like all improv, we can't predict what will come
out of anyone's mouth, and therefore some material may
not be suitable for all audiences.
And later, you can see O.U. Improv! live in our monthly
Union show at 8:00 p.m. in the Scholars Room (3rd floor,
OMU). You will see everything from the workshop in
action, favorite games like World's Worst and Instant
Musical, as well as some new games introduced by our
Coach (and guest player!) Niigonwedom. Some material may
not be suitable for all audiences, and is rated "I".
Guess what the "I" stands for!
Speaking of Niigon, check out the new Coach's Corner
page, where he will be posting weekly about doing,
living, and learning improv. Also new to the site are
some pictures from last semester's Vote '04 Laughs, player spotlights
including information about your favorite players, and
updates on the Players
page. Be on the lookout for three new members, straight
from our auditions earlier this month:
Amy Vorphal, with incredible laughing powers.
Josh Smith, with unmatchable tallness. Aaand...
Kate Owens, the next potential Vampire Slayer.
We welcome The Thearless Threesome into our ranks, and
look forward to corrupting their souls with improv.
Oops, did I say corrupting? I meant... nah, corrupting
works fine.
Finally, for those of you on campus, the fun is not
confined to a couple of rooms in the Union. OUI! ads
have been placed all over campus sidewalks, and some may
even contain secrets to the meaning of life, the
universe, and everything. See how many you can find! Be
sure to visit our Activity Sidewalk at the east entrance
of Dale Hall, which includes dancing lessons, hopscotch,
impossible-to-read advertisements, and an
easy-to-complete maze!
All this and more to come! The year has just begun
(despite the fact that it's been begun for over a month
now), and OUI! is in full gear for the semester. And
see? We updated the news within a week of saying we
would! Ha!
Sincerely,
Jay Edwards
Musical Director, OUImprov!
E-mail: thatdamndrummer@yahoo.com
02/10/05
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls--prepare yourselves
for the unimaginable, the uncanny, and the unexpected.
From the blackest corner of the darkest room to your very
own internet browsers comes...
An OUI! Update!
Yeah. It's been a while since the last news update and
much has happened since then. In fact, a new year has
begun, a new semester has kicked off, and a (kind of) new
administration sits in the White House. Also, as if
there was a theme, new changes have happened within O.U.
Imrpov!
The most notable change you might have already realized:
I'm not Eric. Yes, our beloved manager, backbone, and
linchpin has retired from O.U. Improv! After several
years of watching the group grow, with the grand climax
of last semester's Vote '04 Laughs, he will be stepping
down to focus on his own adventures. He will be
graduating within a few months, and will then set out on
the great quest for a life and career.
But don't take it from me, hear it from the man himself
(edited for time and to fit your TV screen):
"It is with a heavy heart that I write this letter. I
am resigning my position as manager of O.U. Improv!
effective this Saturday, January 22nd. While I believe
that my reasons for doing so are valid, they do little to
console or convince me that I should feel good about this
choice right now.
...
"What I do now, I do because I must. If I plan to be
successful or prosper in any sphere outside the
comfortable microcosm of the University then my
attentions and energies must be focused elsewhere. I have
to pass all my classes. I have to start writing again and
finish 2 screenplays before the end of the summer. I need
to get a film project off the ground and running by the
end of the semester. Etc...
etc.
...
"The last five years have been an amazing ride, starting
out in my apt. at good ole' 1313 Renaissance Dr. all the
way to now. I want to specially thank Curt, Chris, Marcy,
Clint, Buck, Nick, and Phil for making O.U. Improv! a
reality (it wouldn't exist without them) and to all the
rest of you that have been involved since for making it
succeed beyond my wildest dreams. Thank you all for the
opportunity to be involved in something so special. It
has been an honor and a privilege to work for
you."
Thank you, Eric, for the opportunities that you have
given us. OUI! would not have survived without the
dedication and organization that you brought to the
table. We wish you the best of luck and a successful
career, possibly full of ninjas!
As a result of our loss, changes have occured in OUI!'s
administration. Four fearless members have stepped up to
drive Improv forward:
Marcy, with her deadly emcee style, has become our President.
Hillary, with her awesome acrobatic skillz, will act as VP.
Amber, who shoots lazers from her eyes, is now Secretary. Aaaand ...
James, abandoned in the woods and raised by squirrels, will take over as Treasurer.
With their powers combined, they will move O.U. Improv!
into the future--a future possibly full of robots.
::crosses fingers::
As the Fearless Foursome takes control, ouimprov.com is
also passing on to new hands. Raychel, Niigon and I will
be your new webmasters (and mistress), and we will be
updating this site for the new era. Check out our new
players list with newly added bios, as well as some new
members, coming soon! Our calendar is updated, with info
on our monthly Union shows. We will also be updating our
News section as often as there is news, and playing
around with the site to make it a spiffy place to stop
and play.
So fear not, citizens. Changes are upon us, but we have
not abandoned you. Nay, we have instead risen to the
challenge, stared death in the eye, and adopted
long-winded rhetoric littered with run-on sentences. What
lies ahead for our heroes? What dangers lurk around the
corner? How often will they actually update the
website?? Tune in, citizens, and see!
Sincerely,
Jay Edwards
Musical Director, OUImprov!
E-mail: thatdamndrummer@yahoo.com
11/28/04
I apologize for the delay in updating the site. October was the busiest month in the history of this group. We did four shows, half of them off-campus, and then there were at least eight practices, four of them devoted to our planned election night watch party blowout “Vote ’04 Laughs.” Take that and the 4 weeks of planning, fundraising, and publicity also devoted to what we were hoping would be a successful event, and you’ve got one hectic month.
So how did it go, you may ask? Well, it seems that all the hard work paid off. “Vote ’04 Laughs” was indeed a success. At peak time there were 300 people in attendance, which was our goal audience size. The room and set-up were incredible. The ballroom is a classy venue on its own. But, add the huge spread of food and drinks, the stage, tables, and chairs, and the awesome decorations that Bunny, Hillary, and Jennifer whipped up that day, and you have a room that people are excited just to be in!
The performance end of things that night was great, if not a little long. We ended up performing around 3.5 hours out of the 5 hour event. You live and you learn. Regardless, I think the people that came were entertained and we succeeded in creating a truly unique event, unlike anything else that was going on in the country that night: a fact that was confirmed by The Wall Street Journal. That’s right. We got a brief mention in The Wall Street Journal on Election Day. In addition to that blurb in the national news, we got some great coverage in the local press in the days leading up to and of “Vote ’04 Laughs,” all of which will hopefully be available to read on this site soon. Thanks to everyone who worked hard to make this event happen. It was a classy event that reflected well on us all. Thanks to all our co-sponsors as well: UPB, UOSA, OU Food & Housing, The Cynics Society, and Coca Cola.
Only two days after “Vote ’04 Laughs,” we played our most successful private show to date at the Oklahoma Parks & Recreation Conference that took place at the local Holiday Inn. After doing a rockin’ set, we stayed around for another 3 hours and sang karaoke with many of the people we had just performed for, joining up for some memorable duets.
Just this week, we did our first high school workshop/performance at Norman High School and we rocked so hard! The experience was a blast. I think the students had almost as much fun as we did. We hope to reproduce that magic next Friday when we do the same thing at Norman North High School.
I had hoped to make this update long enough to make up for all the silence, but I think I should start wrapping things up here. There should be a lot of exciting site updates going active by the end of December including our player bios, an online scrapbook, and our pictures and video section. We should also have some merchandise (DVD’s, T-Shirts, Bumper Stickers and more) available to purchase through the website using Pay Pal.
I’ll try and get another news update done around
the 11th. Until then, I bid you all adieu.
Sincerely,
Eric Webb
Manager, O.U. Improv!
10/28/04
For those of you longing for a news update, I apologize.
We have all been really busy getting ready for the comedy
extravaganza that will be "Vote '04 Laughs" our election
night watch party and variety show coming up on - you
guessed it - election night, November 2nd. For more
information on Vote '04 Laughs," click on the
advertisement to the right or click here.
-----
This is just one of many exciting things going on with us
right now:
Our new understudy group is in full swing and will meet
next, this weekend, on Saturday 10/30 from 5:30-7:30pm in
the Sooner Room. If you're interested in joining the
group as a performer, this is the best way to break
in.
The group is being co-coached by O.U. Improv! Hardcore
Player and Co-Founder, Clint Vrazel and Niigonwedom
(James Sinclair) a graduate student in the OU English
Dept. Niigon hails from Canada where he was the Drama
Department Head at Ecole Kelvin High School, in Winnipeg,
Canada. He was also the coach of the "Hot Stuff" Improv
Troupe which was twice provincial champion, and finished
in the top ten both times in the Canadian Improv Games in
Ottawa, Canada. Niigon also holds a degree in Improv and
Mime (among many others) from the University of
Winnipeg.
For more information contact Clint Vrazel at 579-2818 or
at clintvrazel@gmail.com
or Niigonwedom at 487-3596 or at niigonwedom@ou.edu with
questions. Check our calendar
for future practices or sign up for our list serv
here.
-----
We also have a Community Workshop coming up after "Vote
'04 Laughs" on Saturday, November 6th from 1-4pm,
Location TBA in the Sooner Room.
-----
We're going to be doing back-to-back workshop/performance
combos at both Norman High & Norman North later this
month.
-----
On top of that we're going to have another Union Show on
Nov. 20th, at 8pm in the Scholars Room.
As you can see November is going to be a busy month for
us, keeping up the pace we've already set in weeks
previous. "Vote '04 Laughs" may be the biggest event in
the history of O.U. Improv!, but the semester is far from
over.
Hope to see you all next Tuesday. GO VOTE!!!
-- --
Sincerely,
Eric Webb
Manager/Administrative Coordinator, O.U. Improv!
Phone: (405) 307-9769
E-Mail: ericwebb@gmail.com
AIM: thelastavatar
10/08/04
The rumors are true... We have a website. After many months of development and some growing pains that included a complete redesign, here it is: Our very own happy shiny home on the interweb.
So, you may be asking yourselves, "What does it do?" Well, other than acting as a front for our nefarious plans for world domination, this site will be a great resource for keeping up with all that's going on in the world of O.U. Improv!, which these days is a lot! You can locate upcoming performances, find out more about what kind of services we have to offer and how to book us for your next event, you can learn more about the history of the group, and most importantly, you can learn all kinds of lurid personal details about our sexy members.
Many thanks to Shawn Smalley, our webmaster and IT Coordinator, for pulling all this together in the last month. This site wouldn't exist without you! Also thanks to Derek Hubbard for hosting the site for such a reasonable rate!
For the first month you can expect a lot of changes as this is a work in progress. Bare with us as we work to add more content and features, including pictures, video, and a message board. I hope that you enjoy your stay here at www.ouimprov.com and that we'll see you at our next show.
Sincerely,
Eric Webb
Manager/Administrative Coordinator, O.U. Improv!
P.S. Like O.U. Improv? Then tell your friends, family, and co-workers about us and then send them this way!