Ice Cream and Kofi

"Everyone must have ice cream with Kofi Annan sometime."

These immortal words were spoken tonight at an improv comedy show. We found a comedy theater only about twenty minutes from us in the burbs (as opposed to having to drive into Chicago to see ComedySportz). Tonight was the first time we went to this theater. It was a small one with a stark stage, but the seats were comfortable, and the votives on the tables provided a cozy atmosphere. Before the show started, we (and the rest of the audience) had a chance to write down word and phrase suggestions for the scenes on slips of paper; there was also a blackboard in the back where you could offer other suggestions.

Most of the troupe was on tour, so it was a husband-and-wife team of actors on stage. They not only acted but took tickets, ran the concession stand, and did everything else. Everything ran pretty smoothly, though. Like ComedySportz, this group believes that you don't need to be raunchy to be funny, which is a good thing as there were families in the audience. Some of the kids even volunteered to be in the scenes, which is something I never do.

The title of this blog entry comes from a suggestion Eugene wrote down before the show. They used it during a game called Slips. (Every so often during the scene, the actors have to pick a random slip of paper and use the word or phrase in the scene.) Eugene wrote down something like "having ice cream with Kofi Annan at the United Nations." He actually wrote two phrases (well, technically a word and the above phrase) on the slip, which may explain why the actor who picked up that slip paused before continuing with the scene. They also used one of my phrases: "Your mother should know." (I had to sneak in a Beatles reference; it's a song title.)

We enjoyed the show and plan to go back sometime; we may even see some of the non-improv shows. Afterwards, we did have ice cream, although Kofi didn't show up. It was still welcome after a long day of cleaning, running errands, making pizza, and reviewing. I did get in some time on Lennon's Line; all I did was chop down a scene. As long as I get some time for my writing in....