They were middle-aged amateurs, teenage veterans and mothers brought along for the ride.

But when Improv Now! came to Sterling on June 9 they were, above all else, funny.

“They were pretty spectacular,” said Thierry Barston, who came with friends after hearing about the upcoming event on Facebook. “It was incredible the way they were playing off each other. Some of those skits were hysterical.”

The performance saw six members of the eight-person group make their second appearance at the Improv Annex in Loudoun County.

“We’re brand new to this area,” Improv Now! organizer Mike Young said. “But we had a pretty good turnout for the first show and we’re expecting a pretty good one this time around.”

Improv Now! is a comedy troupe that gathers monthly lists of skit suggestions from their website, films the scenes and loads them on YouTube for all to see in addition to their live performances. The troupe also holds monthly workshops to the general acting public. Anyone with theatre, improv or comedy experience is encouraged to attend.

Approximately 40 people, most of whom learned of the performance through Facebook and word-of- mouth, crowded into the intimate annex on June 9 to watch the comedy troupe perform 14 skits over the course of an hour and a half. These ranged from a comparatively tame collective storytelling exercise to the “World’s Most Dangerous Improv Game,” in which players were blindfolded and walked around a stage with live mousetraps.

“This is my second time coming to see this show,” said audience member Moira Parham. “But it was the first one with mousetraps.”

Although she thought the “World’s Most Dangerous Improv Game” was a good closer, Parham said she enjoyed the whole show.

“I really liked the bar-joke segment,” she explained. “I’ve seen other improv groups do that and it’s such a challenge to come up with fresh material. They were great. I’d definitely come again.”

The Improv Now! membership encompassed a wide variety of age and experience levels. One of the players was 14-year-old Christopher Cox, a 10th grader from Columbia, Md. whose acting history includes multiple commercials and a stint on Broadway.

Cox, who eventually wants to become a filmmaker, said his participation in the group is a nice outlet.

Improv Now! cast members Roger Drummey and Kathy Cox try to convey to the audience the profession of dental hygienist. Times-Mirror Photos/Rick Wasser

“It’s fun, like a part-time job,” he said. “I can use all these characters that I think up and I can be creative. I don’t really get to do that in school.”

While Cox had the most impressive resumé, David Coleman seemed to be the ultimate favorite.

“He was just always on,” said Parham, the audience member who was attending for the second time. “He has such an incredible wit.”
Others agreed.

“The comments [Dave] was making to the ‘panel of experts’ were hilarious,” said attendee Jim Edwards-Hewitt. “He totally deadpanned it.”

Coleman, for his part, said he was initially surprised by how well audiences received him.

“A number of people in the group come from artistic backgrounds,” he said. “That’s their life, but my background is computer science and engineering. Before this group I had pretty much no experience with theatre, acting or anything like that.”

Organizer Young was a personal friend of Coleman’s and urged him to try out.

“It just worked out well,” Coleman continued. “It felt very natural to perform, and I enjoy making people laugh. I don’t think I’d want to make the commitment to do it professionally, but I enjoy this and we all have a lot of fun together.”

Improv Now! will have its next show on July 14 at the Improv Annex in Sterling. More information can be found on the group’s website, improvnow.com.