After taking time to catch up on sleep and sustenance, it is comforting to reflect on what a special event the London Improvathon is. I covered the whole show but had breaks to grab a couple of hours sleep and to eat, so you could consider me to be a lightweight in comparison with these improvathoners. For cast and audience, there is an invisible bond that forms over the fifty hours, the commitment to perform, or to watch the equivalent of twenty-five shows back-to-back, binds the two together, and the final bows are met with celebration. For those who do not wish to commit to fifty hours, there was an option to buy a two-hour episode ticket.
The history of the Improvathon goes back to 1993, when the first Canadian Improvathon took place, and then some years later Ken Campbell (actor/writer/director), was touring with a show in Canada, and watched improv company, Die-Nasty’s show. Very keen on experimental theatre, Campbell sent over performers from improv companies such as Showstopper! and The School of Night, to join in with the Canadian Improvathon, following up in 2008 with a London version.
The last Improvathon took place in 2019 with a western theme, with a change of direction this year, the theme was ‘The Wedding Party’. It lived up to its promise with wedding themes including Chekhov, Penguins, Star Trek, Cockney, Roman Centurian, Bob Fosse, Viking, Bene Gesserits from Dune, and two weddings with ghosts!
The show is set at Everafter Manor, a wedding venue managed by Marion Reasonable (Pippa Evans), with the core cast members who completed the full fifty hours being – handyman, Matt Finish (John Oakes), humanist celebrant/marquee supplier, Night Powell (Alan Cox), resident psychotherapist, Dr Cranberry Bird (Mark Meer), journalist, Anita Scoop (Nell Mooney), rich guy, James Boots ‘n’ Cash, ‘n’ Boots ‘n’ Cash (Justin Brett), florist, Bingo Flapjack (Belinda Cornish), wedding crasher, Vince Prawn (Jamie Cavanagh), cleaner/drug dealer (Inbal Lori), nun, Sister Margaret (Seamus Allen), new owner of Everafter Manor, Mark Mywords (Fabrizio Lobello). NOTE: Apologies if any of these names are incorrect, no cast list to reference.
Steering this production were Ali James and Adam Meggido, with a band and guest writer Mark Ravenhill and the versatile, atmospheric set designed by Alex Marker. It would be impossible to describe the storyline, as I would not have enough ink in my cartridge to fulfil the task, but let us just say, the goings on Everafter Manor would make Faulty Towers seem organised.
So, there was a vicar, vampire, psychiatrist (he was very busy), werewolf, nun, three headed dog, ducks, pigeons, penguins, ghosts, You-Tuber, cult leader, film director, possessed dog, impressions of Ian McKellen, Ronnie Corbett, Queen Elizabeth I, Donald Trump, John Gielgud, several Jesus’ on the cross, a cock and ball pyramid, etc, etc, etc… The list is long, but the sheer feat of being able to consistently switch and change where a character is going for this amount of time, can only be admired, and there can be no doubt, that the best in the world graced the Wilton’s Music Hall stage last weekend. There were tender touching moments, there was comedy galore, and songs made up on the spot, but the most endearing part of the weekend, was to see the mutual love, support, and respect, that these improvisers have for each other, it was an incredibly special event.
I can only hope that this event will be repeated again next year, a feeling that was echoed to everyone that I spoke to.
Reviewer: Caroline Worswick
Reviewed: 8th-10th March 2024
North West End UK Rating: