10 June,2020 09:56 AM IST | | The Guide Team
Naveen Kaushik in a House of Prov event, before the lockdown
Whether it is students of improv comedy or those who want to get started in the form; or simply for an evening of laughter, Mischief in Action an improv group established in 2017 by actor Naveen Kaushik is back with House of Prov. These open mic nights dedicated to the form started in 2016 and have since been hosted at several city venues like The Cuckoo Club. "It was last year that we took a break. When we wanted to restart this year, the lockdown happened and we decided to take the show online," says Kaushik, revealing that a trial show was organised last month.
Pre-lockdown, the two-hour shows would include 20 performers but the list has now been truncated to 12, to suit the Zoom format. "Holding the audience-s attention for more than an hour online becomes difficult," Kaushik says, adding, "Improvisation is an audience-interactive performance art. But now, when you are doing it online in front of a web cam there is no audience, no laughter, no claps. And these are things that comedians really need to feed off, for their act. It encourages them to do better or explore more. That energy and ambience may be missing, but the desire to perform is still there."
While it was a project to give improvisation a stage, Kaushik admits, it has more often than not been restricted to improv comedy and only occasionally incorporates other forms like storytelling, scene work and character analysis. The new format, though restrictive in some ways, has a few advantages too. "Now, it is focused on one performer. Earlier, you could see them on stage with other people. Now, it just your face and some part of your house, which is an interesting thing too,"
Kaushik says.
On June 14, 1 pm
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Cost Rs 100 onwards
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