Harold Night 2003 — 9 of 27

Part 4 - Improv Groups and Their Members

Chapter 1 - PCR, Dillinger and The Lament

an improv group is a kind of person. an improv group is usually female. an improv group is usually unsmokable.

[PCR]

PCR is an improv group. The description of PCR is "Police Chief Rumble are 8 of the funniest people at the theater who do some of the worst improv here. Last week their show devolved into an on-stage discussion of who was funniest character from the long-forgotten sitcom Night Court. Members are: Charlie Sanders, Chris Kula, Katie Dippold, David Martin, Jeff Hiller, Bobby Moynihan, Angeliki George and Will MacLaughlin.". The printed name of PCR is "Police Chief Rumble".

Every turn while the player is in Notes:

say "Police Chief Rumble, who performed earlier, are discussing their show. [one of]David asks the coach if it was wrong of him to enter every single scene as the author Philip Roth.[or]Bobby confesses that he did not realize they were expected to do a Harold just because it was Harold Night.[or]Charlie is telling the group he has to miss the next 10 rehearsals because he's filming a feature film on VHS tape with his friends from Minnesota.[or]Angeliki is handing out personalized gifts to everyone else in the group.[or]Katie asks what time they are doing their second show. She is told there is no second show.[or]Jeff apologizes for turning both group games into karaoke contests. He points out that the second one was a heightened version of the first. The group nods in consent.[or]Chris is being asked by the coach to play a white character at least once in the next month.[or]MacLaughlin is defending one of his moves by quoting the Magna Carta.[in random order][br]";

say "Kevin, the group's coach, is giving them notes. Right now he's saying [one of]'I think we got to Phillip Roth's sex club too quickly.'[or]'We shouldn't have [i]Night Court[/i] references in more than one scene. Certainly not all.'[or]'Don't tag out people who are currently in a scene with you.'[or]'Good bird-fucking scene.'[or]'Was that President Clinton who got fired? Wait, no that was The Doobie Brothers.'[or]'I think it came off as weird that we constantly announced Kula's character was black. It was obvious.'[or]'Nice object work during the pogo stick chase.'[or]'I think we did the beats out of order? Or were the four group games second beats?'[or]'Was that the same Sideways Dracula that was in the show last week?'[or]'I think no one stepped out for third beats for at least 15 seconds.'[or]'I'm glad that we let Jeff sing that karaoke song to completion.'[cycling]".

Understand "Police" and "Chief" and "Rumble" and "Police Chief Rumble" as PCR.

Charlie Sanders is an unsmokable man. Charlie is part of PCR. The description of Charlie is "An immensely sweaty man.".

Chris Kula is a man. Chris is part of PCR. The description of Chris is "Despite being the palest man you've ever seen, he speaks in a voice so low you presume its produced by a machine.".

Katie Dippold is a woman. Katie is part of PCR. The description of Katie is "Katie has the furrowed brow of someone paying intense attention to the notes, except she is clearly staring completely past anyone else in the group and into space.".

David Martin is a man. David is part of PCR. The description of David is "David is a buttoned-down sort who is wearing a conservative sweater. He looks like he just got finished being a guest on Charlie Rose, except that he's also wearing sunglasses whose frames are in the shape of dollar signs.".

Jeff Hiller is a man. Jeff is part of PCR. The description of Jeff is "Jeff is at least twice as tall as every other member of this group.".

Angeliki George is a woman. Angeliki is part of PCR. The description of Angeliki is "Angeliki seems to be the only one paying attention to the coach.".

Bobby Moynihan is a man. Bobby is part of PCR. The description of Bobby is "Bobby is nodding emphatically at all of the notes. He's also holding a black baby Santa doll, which he seems to have somehow used during the show.".

Will Maclaughlin is a man. MacLaughlin is part of PCR. The description of MacLaughlin is "MacLaughlin looks big, intelligent and also out of breath. You can't decide if he plays rugby, runs a library or just got back from out-drinking a senator.".

Understand "Dave" as David.

Understand "pepper" and "Booby" as Bobby.

PCR is in Notes.

[Dillinger]

Dillinger is an unsmokable improv group. The description of Dillinger is "One of the rare improv groups who do amazing shows while following every improv rule possible. Members are: Sarah Burns, Brett Christensen, Anthony King, Lennon Parham, Risa Sang-Urai, Erik Tanouye, Joe Wengert and Zach Woods.".

Sarah Burns is a woman. Sarah is part of Dillinger. The description of Sarah is "Sarah is holding invites to her party, which she knitted herself.".

Brett Christensen is a man. Brett is part of Dillinger. The description of Brett is "Of the two members of Dillinger with plastic horn rimmed glasses, he is the bald one.".

Anthony King is a man. Anthony is part of Dillinger. The description of Anthony is "Anthony is so confident in his discussion with Gethard that it is not clear which one is giving notes.".

Lennon Parham is a woman. Lennon is part of Dillinger. The description of Lennon is "Lennon crosses her arms to hold the opposite shoulder so as to protect her body from imaginary attackers.".

Risa Sang-Urai is a woman. Risa is part of Dillinger. The description of Risa is "Risa is a short smiling girl who is planning on taking a group photo after notes are done.".

Erik Tanouye is a man. Erik is part of Dillinger. The description of Erik is "Erik apologizes for the tenth line of his third beat being off-game.".

Joe Wengert is a man. Joe is part of Dillinger. The description of Joe is "Joe is rocking back and forth and pushing his glasses back up his nose.".

Zach Woods is a man. Zach is part of Dillinger. The description of Zach is "Zach is towering over the rest of the team and is also 19 years old.".

Dillinger is in Gross Corner.

Chris Gethard is in Gross Corner. The description of Gethard is "A baby-faced nerd giving notes to Dillinger. He's drawing too many comparisons to early 1990s Marvel Comics and also hip hop records for this to be useful.".

Every turn when the player is in Gross Corner:

say "Dillinger performed earlier. They are discussing their show. [one of]Sarah says she's having a birthday party in a secret tunnel under the East River.[or]Brett is talking about troubles he's having editing his family's latest newsletter.[or]Anthony says he's going to be 15 minutes late to the next practice because he is directing an Off-Broadway play.[or]Lennon apologizes for her character which was so good the audience gave her a standing ovation.[or]Risa is singing along to the [i]Golden Girls[/i] theme.[or]Erik has suggestions for what songs to come to for the next 15 shows.[or]Joe asks if there can be a moratorium on bits involving nicknames.[or]Zach is saying how he needs to practice trumpet more. Also if he should attend his high school prom.[cycling][br]";

say "Chris Gethard, their coach, is giving them notes. He is saying: [one of]'I've heard PCR is talking shit that PCR is the best group on Harold Night. I'm not sure how Dillinger feels about that.'[or]'I wonder if the Kurosawa parody in the button line of the second group game was clear. Tanouye, you think it was, right?'[or]'The secret weapon of Dillinger is that you are good actors.'[or]'I think Dillinger should stop all sitting together at McManus. You gotta open that shit up.'[or]'I commend you guys for taking the suggestion of 'assplay' and never doing a dirty scene, but still honoring the suggestion. That was way cool. WAY cool.'[or]'There is no reason this group can't be as good as The Swarm if you put your hearts into it.'[or]'I notice Brett's object work for the piccolo in the first beat was different than the flute in the second beat. Nice! Nice.'[or]'It's time to bust this shit wide-open and take over.'[or]'You guys: if you're going to talk about minor Marvel mutants, and you don't bring up Multiple Man I'm GOING to take it as a personal affront.'[or]'Joe, where was the Nazi walk-on in the third beats? I was waiting for it!'[or]'I know I gave you a late blackout but I wanted you guys to learn to never give up on your Harolds, and of course you proved that lesson completely unnecessary.'[or]'The object work on the martial arts move was wrong, but I did like the intent.'[cycling]".

Instead of giving mix CD to Erik:

say "[noun] eyes it greedily but declines saying 'There's someone else who'd want it more.'".

Instead of giving mix CD to Joe:

say "[noun] eyes it greedily but declines saying 'There's someone else who'd want it more.'".

[The Lament]

There is an improv group called The Lament. "[if the player is in Arena]Spread out on the backline is your team, The Lament.[else]Standing in a slightly nervous herd is your team, The Lament.[end if]". The description of The Lament is "This is your group. You guys are the newest Harold team, and it's every member's first team. Impressively talented, but you're definitely still more tentative than you'd like. It took you all five hours to the pick the name. Second choice was 'Kirk Cameron's The Lament'. Members: you, Arnie, Dennis, Victor, Cecile, Michelle, Jenna and Henry.";

Every turn when the player is in Backstage:

say "[one of]Arnie is stretching his hamstring. He's superstitious about it -- only does it backstage and only for 30 seconds.[or]Dennis keeps saying 'got your back' over and over.[or]Victor looks oddly serious before he goes on stage.[or]Cecile is all smiles, though the way she says 'I'm excited!' betrays her nervousness a little bit.[or]Michelle is saying to no one: 'I cannot remember how to do improv.'[or]Jenna is doing a pattern game by herself to get ready.[or]Henry is dancing to the house music.[in random order]".

An improviser is a kind of person.

Arnie is a male improviser. The description of Arnie is "A thinky, premise-filled machine. Has trouble committing. Does stand-up on the side.". Arnie is part of The Lament.

Dennis is a male improviser. The description of Dennis is "Great at characters. Gets hives if you ask him what the game of the scene was. Once did a one-man Harold (uninvited) in the middle of Times Square at noon." Dennis is part of The Lament.

Victor is a male improviser. The description of Victor is "A thick Philadelphia accent and hyperactive temperament, Victor only needs to play one character: himself.". Victor is part of The Lament.

Cecile is a female improviser.The description of Cecile is "Had a lot of acting experience before she discovered improv. Commits, plays everything truthfully." Cecile is part of The Lament.

Michelle is a female improviser. The description of Michelle is "Perfect straight man and deadly walk-ons." Michelle is part of The Lament.

Jenna is a female improviser. The description of Jenna is "Jenna is a game machine. She prefers sketch writing, but is good enough at improv that she keeps getting put on teams.". Jenna is part of The Lament.

Henry is a male improviser. The description of Henry is "A enormous man with an equal amount of energy and commitment.". Henry is part of The Lament.

Sebastian is a male improviser. The description of Sebastian is "An eccentric older man who makes a living selling stats to minor league baseball teams. Weirdly good at improv." Sebastian is part of The Lament.

The Lament is in Backstage.

Understand "team" and "lament" as The Lament.

Understand "group" and "everyone" and "everybody" as The Lament when the player can see The Lament.

Understand "group" and "everyone" and "everybody" as PCR when the player can see PCR.

Instead of bitting the Lament, say "You say 'Got your back' to [one of]Arnie[or]Dennis[or]Victor[or]Cecile[or]Michelle[or]Jenna[or]Henry[cycling]." instead.