Take a seat and have some laughs. Improv Niagara brings you hilarious comedy created on the spot, inspired by your suggestions.
Improv 1812 promises to make you laugh AND learn. (WHAT?) Let them take you back to a hugely important time in Niagara’ s history, but like… through improv!
The Substitute Teachers know when the teacher’s away the cats will play! So, sit back, relax, put down your books and get ready for some laughs.
Brock, Niagara College & University of Niagara Falls students get $5 off regular admission!
Hosts Nick Watson (@fivestergram) and Brie Watson (@briewats0n) are back after an unplanned hiatus to chat plans for the podcast going forward including new segments like: what’s filling the tank, what’s draining the bucket and what are we working on as 2024 comes to a close.
Nick’s Update:
Finished “Infinite Jest”
No more contests until his 3 books are edited
Trying out new “Scrivener” software
Brie’s Update
Joined Assembly Improv team: P!sstank
Tuesday Night Improv coming to Spotlight in St. Catharines
Struggles: Balancing resources
RESOURCES:
Thinking about starting your own podcast? Click HERE to get one free month of hosting.
Join us for Improv Niagara’s Improv Meet-Up Night. Come give improv a try!
Open to all levels of experience! We warmly welcome individuals at any stage of their journey. Whether you are just starting out or have years of experience under your belt, this jam is for you. Embrace the excitement of learning and growing, as we believe every level of experience brings unique perspectives and valuable contributions. Come join the fun and unlock your spontaneity!
Book your spot in advance, or pay upon arrival. It’s all good.
Tips: Dress comfortably (we’ll be moving around quite a bit) & bring water to drink.
REMINDER! Don’t forget to bring your indoor shoes.
Our guest in this episode is mustard and smoked-meat wizard Zane Caplansky, founder of Caplanksy’s Deli & purveyor of fine mustards. When Nick had the idea of interviewing a chef to discuss the artistic elements of food and cooking, Zane immediately came to mind. As it turns out, the struggles associated with balancing artisanal meats and mustards and attempting to find balance in life are huge. Six-figure-legal-fees huge.
And yet, Zane is probably the most optimistic and hopeful guests we’ve had the pleasure of speaking with – and in the current political climate, that doesn’t seem so easy to do, right? So, grab some pickles, dip ’em in some tasty Caplansky mustard & enjoy our journey strugglin’ on with Zane Caplanksy.
Your Creative Tips
Success & Failure, Cooking, Management, Work-Life Balance, Family
It sure has been a while since we posted one of these “Get to know yous” (2021! Wowza!) – and we’ll have a couple more coming at you real soon. So let’s dive in and meet KATE!
Q: What’s your favourite thing about Niagara?
The water! I moved here from Waterloo which ironically has no water.
Q: Is there a specific person in your real life that you emulate on stage?
My mother comes out from time to time – and my daughter too.
Q: Favourite comedy of all time?
I don’t do favourites and can never think of movie titles when asked to. I’m terrible at trivia.
Q: Who were your favourite funny people growing up?
I grew up without television and my first contact with comedians was This Hour Has 22 Minutes on CBC.
Q: Ever think of branching out to other acting or artistic outlets?
I do act! And sing and dance lalala! And I write. I can’t draw or paint to save my life though.
Do you have a default character your body does naturally on stage?
This kind of arrogant character who says ridiculous nonsensical things as if they’re obviously super reasonable.
Since before you began playing with IN and now, have you noticed anything different in the way we play?
One of my favourite things about Improv Niagara is the complete support on stage, the trust between players, and the way the players honour the scene or the game rather than going for a cheap laugh. Respect.
Q: What your #1 most favouritest thing about improv?
Freedom to play and laugh.
Q: Who would win in a fight: Pink Panther or Scooby Doo? And why?
The Pink Panther because they’re way smarter and less food motivated. But there wouldn’t be a fight, the Pink Panther would trick Scooby into going along with whatever plan he was hatching.
Q: If you were stuck on a desert island, what 3 objects would you HAVE to bring with you?
A solar powered e-reader crammed full of books, a device that turns humidity into a sessional yet hoppy IPA, and a wondrous piece of clothing with many layers and snaps that could be a pillow or a hammock or a blanket or a party dress, if needed.
Q: Favourite ice cream flavour?
mint chip or coffee or caramel or peanut butter or…
Q: Favourite pizza topping?
Well, it has to have cheese, at least…
Q: Any secret, unusual talents?
I’m pretty good at figuring out where you put the thing, even if I don’t really know what that thing is or who you are.
Q: Favourite James Bond movie?
The one with the fancy weapons and the hawt chicks.
Q: Toilet paper roll: over or under?
Over, of course.
Got any more questions for Kate? Head over to our Instagram @improvniagara and feel free to ask her! Otherwise, don’t miss Kate at the next Improv Fallout show on Saturday May 25th at 8PM at Mahtay Café!
Yaaaaaaaaaay Kate!
Kate at Improv Fallout's New Year's Eve Eve show. Photo by Ivy Bone.
Join us for Improv Niagara’s Improv Jam Night. Come give improv a try!
Open to all levels of experience! We warmly welcome individuals at any stage of their journey. Whether you are just starting out or have years of experience under your belt, this opportunity is for you. Embrace the excitement of learning and growing, as we believe that every level of experience brings unique perspectives and valuable contributions. Come join the fun and unlock your potential!
Tips: Dress comfortably (we’ll be moving around quite a bit) & bring a bottle of water.
REMINDER! Don’t forget to bring your indoor shoes.
At Improv Niagara, we offer improv workshops to all sorts of teams, from Fortune 500 companies to local community organizations. We’re often asked.. “OK but… how does it work? What do these workshops LOOK like? Will I be thrown on stage to perform an impromptu stand-up comedy routine?”
Let us ease your worried mind. (Improv helps with that, too!)
An improv workshop consists of a series of exercises or “games” that are designed to focus on specific skills. Originally, in the context of theatre performance.
Over time, a lot of research has gone into demonstrating the tremendous benefits improv games have in the workplace (and in life in general); public speaking, active listening, collaborating, communicating, teamwork and so much more.
The workshops typically begin with icebreakers, getting people comfortable with one another, and with this the principle of acceptance, or “yes and,” – a way of creating an atmosphere of non-judgement in which to learn, to try new things, to take risks, and to fail. (Getting over of the fear of failure is a tremendous benefit practiced in improv training.)
Then we move onto games that are more skill-specific. The games are normally done in one big group, smaller groups, or pairs.
An example would be, if our focus was on active listening. The Game LAST WORD, FIRST WORD. An excellent game to encourage strong listening skills.
In pairs, one person will say any sentence. Their partner will respond with a sentence beginning with the last word of their partner’s previous sentence, ensuring they have listened to the entire sentence to the very end. Benefit: This benefits listening to understand, versus listening to respond. It demonstrates respect and shows that you value your partner’s contribution.
It’s difficult to get a sense of how well these games work by just reading their description, which is why it’s such a hands-on, interactive experience. So here are a few reputable articles on the benefits of improv:
If you’re ready to help your team reach higher goals, personally and professionally, give us a shout at info@improvniagara.com and let’s get your team improvising.
Heather Eyman is a fitness coach and improviser among many other things and in this episode, we see the path Heather took to narrow down on what’s important when there isn’t enough time to do everything and when you’re the kind of person who enjoys the abundance of what life has to offer.
We also ask her advice on how to fix Nick’s darn back! Find out what kind of tips she offers Nick, and all of us when it comes to making deposits into your body bank. (That’ll make more sense when you listen!)
Your Creative Tips
Health and Wellness, Fitness, Improv, Time Management
Our first episode in over four months! Why the break? Well you’ll just have to listen to the episode and find out. HA! Masters of the tease.
But really, it’s a doozy of an episode where Brie & Nick dig deep into some real talk about physical and mental health, motivation, relocation and the whole thing gets a little vulnerable.
It’s not all struggle though. There’s life. There’s travel. There’s a mandatory Maron reference!
Take a listen & let us know if it resonates with your journey.
