On April 13, Bonita Vista High’s (BVH) drama department held its first improv show in the Bolles Theater. Improv–short for improvisation–is a form of live theater in which the plot, characters and dialogue of a game, scene or story are made up in the moment. BVH’s drama department competed against each other in teams through various improvisation games. In the end, a winning team would be declared based on who the audience cheers for the loudest–one of the many forms of audience participation featured in the show.

The show was hosted by senior drama club president Valeria Valencia and senior Kailea Vickers. Vickers explains that while this was the drama department’s first time doing an improv show, students in the drama department had grown familiar with improv after having practiced it throughout the year. 

“We do a lot of improv in class so our teacher thought it would be a great idea if we showcased our skills to BVH’s students. We [had] practiced improv throughout the year and it’s a skill that we develop as theater students. We practice all [of] the games repeatedly to get familiar with the flow of them.” 

The audience participation was encouraged throughout the show. The different games in the show required actors to rely on the audience to yell out locations for certain scenes to take place and to suggest quotes for dialogue. Drama teacher Rosamaria Sias explains that this made it crucial that the audience actively participated throughout the show. According to Sias, audience participation not only kept the scenes running but served as an indicator that the audience is engaged in the show as well.

“My biggest expectation was just to make sure that the audience was offering suggestions and that they were interacting, and they definitely surpassed that,” Sias said. “Having that interaction means that they’re invested. We want them to laugh, we want them to cheer, we want them to suggest. I think the worst thing would be if they were quiet. Because if that happens, that’s when [the audience] is not enjoying themselves.”

The improvisation aspect show required performers to form characters and dialogue on the spot. Vickers explained that this was especially challenging for some students who struggle with stage fright. To help students overcome this challenge in preparation for the show, the drama department first had students perform in small groups to slowly introduce them to what it’s like to perform in front of large audiences. 

“For some students, it’s harder for them to do certain things regarding improv such as creating their character, and a lot of our students struggle with stage fright,” Vickers said. “We slowly work to acclimate those students to perform on stage by performing in small groups and then performing in front of the class. Those students definitely got more familiar with the experience of being onstage in front of a live audience.”

Another aspect of the production included a hand-painted backdrop made by drama club member and sophomore Danica Fincher. The set depicted a bare stage with a glowing sign that said ‘improv’. Fincher explains the designing process and creative inspiration she used to make the set.

“I first went through many drafts, at first I was going to do multiple backgrounds and have different scenes. But then I thought of this idea of just doing one traditional old-school improv background so I sketched it out and got approved by Mrs. Sias,” Fincher said. “I then sketched it out on these large flats of wood and began layering base colors and shading, then did touch-ups.” 

Fincher’s designing process for the set was not without challenges. She describes the isolation she felt while being the only person in charge of set design, requiring her to spend after school and rehearsal time away from her friends and peers.

“I was put in charge of making this entire set so I spent [around] a month outside every period drawing, designing and painting. I had to stay after school sometimes and take time out of my day and away from my friends to go make it. So it was a bit like isolation because we have such a small design crew,” Fincher said.

One of the performers in the show was freshman Jeremy Berke. Berke recounts the laughter from both the audience and performers that was present throughout the entire show. The impromptu nature of the show meant actors had to work with any suggestions the audience gave–good or bad. However, Berke says that the unexpected suggestions did not hinder the quality of the show and actually made it more entertaining.

“The show is just so fun for the people performing and the audience. You could feel the laughter and the comedy spring around. It’s a really fun thing to do on both parts,” Berke said. “Audience participation is a big part of the improv show that lets the audience have more fun. You could get a really good suggestion or have a really bad suggestion that you have to work with but even the challenging ones end up being the most fun so it’s a win-win.”

Sias explains that the purpose of the improv show was to give the audience a good time, which she feels the drama department was successful in doing. This is why she hopes audience members continue to support the drama department in future improv shows. Sias shares the positive feedback audience members have expressed to her after the show.

“I’m just hoping that audience members will want to encourage the theater production here to do more improv shows. I’ve already heard a lot of parents say ‘I had so much fun I wish there was another one’ because they just enjoy it so much and everyone had such a good time participating and laughing,” Sias said. “With this production we just wanted to make the audience laugh and feel good, and I think we really accomplished that today.”