007 - Jethro Nolen - On working with Del and allowing everything to be part of the work

Explicit content warning

11/04/13 • 65 min

Talking Shop: An Improv Podcast with Brian Gray

In October's episode, Brian sits down with Arcade Comedy co-founder and twenty year improv veteran Jethro Nolen. Jethro has studied and performed at iO and Annoyance in Chicago with teachers such as Charna Halpern, Mick Napier, Susan Messing, Joe Bill, Craig Cackowski, Rich Talarico. He has performed with Boom Chicago in Amsterdam, at iO West in LA and studied with The Groundlings. Jethro is now a Creative Director at Arcade Comedy Theater where he performs regularly with Nolen & Nolen, Dinner with the Nolens, and a variety of other shows.

I talk with Jethro about his experience with The Lindbergh Babies, a team directed by Del Close and who performed the last improv form Del ever created. We talked about Del's process and its influences on Jethro's own work, specifically about getting rid of preconceptions about the form and the scene and allowing anything that happens to be a part of the work.

DISCLAIMER: During the set, Jethro spoils the ending to Breaking Bad.

We then did a pretty outlandish 10 minute montage, which you can watch here:
https://vimeo.com/78526238

Thanks to Zach Simons for audio production and live tech and our new home at Arcade Comedy Theater for hosting the show.

Music in the podcast:

Talking Shop Theme by Michelle Horsley
Kick Shock by Kevin MacLeod
Last Days of Disco by Fhernando

Don't miss Talking Shop next month on November 17 at 8pm with actor, improviser and teacher Ric Walker!

DISCLAIMER: During the set, Jethro spoils the ending to Breaking Bad.

We then did a pretty outlandish 10 minute montage, which you can watch here:
https://vimeo.com/78526238

Thanks to Zach Simons for audio production and live tech and our new home at Arcade Comedy Theater for hosting the show.

Music in the podcast:

Talking Shop Theme by Michelle Horsley
Kick Shock by Kevin MacLeod
Last Days of Disco by Fhernando

Don't miss Talking Shop next month on November 17 at 8pm with actor, improviser and teacher Ric Walker!

Previous Episode

006 - Benjamin Amiri - Dedication, being there in the scene, and direct and kind coaching

Benjamin Amiri

Benjamin Amiri began his improv career at free Irony City workshops in 2008 and his blossomed into a talented player, sought-after coach and introspective articulator about his work. Ben has been a member of the Steel City Improv Theater house teams The Up & Up, Field Trip and Well Known Strangers as well as a number of independent teams and coach of Hotel Nowhere and Yeah Those Guys.

I talk with Ben about getting interested in improv as a professional engineer, then diving in hard, being intensely present in his scenes, and his uniquely wonderful coaching style that is focused on positivity and support but not at the expense of a strong motivation for quality.

Thanks to Omar Ornelas for audio production, Aaron Tarnow for live tech and the Steel City Improv Theater for hosting the show.

Music in the podcast:

Talking Shop Theme by Michelle Horsley
Kick Shock by Kevin MacLeod
Last Days of Disco by Fhernando

Don't miss Talking Shop next month on October 20 at 9pm at our new home at Arcade Comedy Theater. I'll be talking to Jethro Nolen!

Next Episode

008 - Ric Walker - On the Improvised Shakespeare Company, the 4 qualities necessary to be great at improv, and using stock characters

In November's episode, Brian sits down with performer, teacher and writer Ric Walker. Ric has taught Improvisation, Acting and Writing for organizations including Pegasus Players, After School Matters and The Second City. He has improvised with legendary companies such as The Improvised Shakespeare Company, Comedy Sportz Chicago, The Second City and MCTD (Midwest Comedy Tool & Die). Ric is currently an MFA Student at Pitt and an active member of the Pittsburgh comedy community.

Ric Walker

Ric and Brian discuss the process used by Improvised Shakespeare Company and how that show was created in the early days, Ric's informal poll of great improvisers that revealed four qualities of great improvisers and what they are, as well as Ric's use of stock characters, particularly in short form.

We then played two 5 min(ish) character-focused games, one in which we played two characters being interviewed documentary-style and the other in which I interviewed a series of Ric's go-to characters.

Thanks to Zach Simons for audio production and live tech and our new home at Arcade Comedy Theater for hosting the show.

Music in the podcast: