I used to watch Who’s Line Is It Anyway? with my mum in my teens and so have grown up with a love of improvised comedy. Hell, I even produced an improvised feature film a couple of years ago.
I discovered that improv is super hard when I was a student and so I have a huge respect for those who can do it, and do it well.
There are several thriving improv nights around Yorkshire so it’s nice to see Riding Lights taking a risk on a regular show, Right Here Right Now, at the Friargate Theatre.
The set-up is simple: eight improvisers, one host, one man called Tim at the keyboards and lots of audience interaction.
Over the course of two hours, we were treated to such sights as a Morris Dancer with a machine gun on a quest to slay a dragon, and a giraffe, owl and squirrel defusing a bomb in ‘4D’.
It was the little touches that elevated Right Here Right Now from being a Who’s Line knockoff and into its own territory.
As is the way with improv, the show was a bit hit and miss. Some games and situations clearly suited some performers more than others, but in general it was fast, funny, unpredictable and chaotic.
Right Here Right Now suffered a little from an audience of mainly friends and colleagues, giving it more of a student ‘gang show’ feel than a professional production, but the performers dealt with it very well.
It’s hard to single out individuals with a show of this kind because, on a different night with a different suggestion, those who weren’t front and centre might have excelled.
But I think special mention must go to Jamie Higgins for his commitment to the bit when ‘sweaty’ was suggested as a trait in a dating game. Seeing a grown man pour an entire bottle of cold water over his head had the theatre rocking.
I think this show, which is on every other month, should be added to every comedy fan’s calendar. My wife and I enjoyed ourselves a great deal and look forward to a repeat visit.