OVERVIEW

Grab your tissue packets and chope your seats! This National Day weekend, we take you down the river where spontaneous stories always flow! Join the Singaporean improv community as we celebrate by creating stories (with you!) about what it means to be at home, to bond with your community, and to truly feel that you belong.

[NOTE: In accordance with the new safety guidelines of Phase 2 (HA), all shows for this event will still be performers in-person unless otherwise specified. Please read the description of each show carefully before purchasing tickets.]

[Advisory-16 (Some Mature Content) // All shows will be performed in English]
[Art Credits: Gene Png @gene.png]

PERFORMANCE LINEUP

• FRI 6 AUG 2021
  • 8.00pm = 'WE ARE SYNCAPORE' by Strangers In-Sync
  • • ABOUT THE SHOW:
      How do Strangers In-Sync celebrate National Day? They put up an improv comedy show. Come join us at Aliwal Arts Center as we bring you a night of 5 stars and a moon. We may be from five different countries, but in August, We Are Syncapore!
      
      
    • ABOUT THE TEAM:
      Strangers In-Sync is exactly what happens when six people are united by their love for improv comedy. Formed in 2021, they are dedicated to spreading the joy of improv on stage as a way to escape reality.
      
      
    • CAST:
      BX Tang | Dave Mel | Fei Chen | Hamza Qaiser | Nicole Ng | Chen Zhiming

• SAT 7 AUG 2021
• • 5.00pm = 'DANCING ON THE KNIFE'S EDGE' directed by Hazel Ho
    [NOTE: Due to the new safety measures, this specific show will be live-streamed. As such, the show has been pushed back to start at 5.00pm. The streaming link will be sent to audiences on the day of the performance.]
    • ABOUT THE SHOW:
      What does it take to be successful in the Singapore system? Come cheer our improvisers on as they navigate short-form improv games like no other—in a society like no other— in search of the answer to this very question. Our brave (or foolhardy?) improvisers will have to shake and shimmy, twist and turn, learn to toe lines drawn in constantly shifting sands and, most important of all—just keep dancing, dancing, dancing on the edge.
      
      
    • ABOUT THE TEAM:
      Just a bunch of improvisers willing to put their necks on the line and rehearse like mad to serve you up a spectacle.
      
      
    • CAST:
      Al Hafiz Sanusi | Chang Hueyyin | Kim Tan | Umarani Jayapal | Too Xing Ji | Chen Zhiming | Zoe Zimin | Zulhafni Zulkeflee
      (Directed by Hazel Ho)
      
      
  • 8.00pm = 'REST IN PEACE (THE GOOD OLD DAYS)' by Baby Shoes Never Worn
    
    • ABOUT THE SHOW:
      It's been said that a true measure of a person's character is not by how they're praised when they're alive, but rather how they're commemorated in their death. Baby Shoes invite you to Rest In Peace (The Good Old Days), where they will explore the (death and) life of a character through the reflections of attendees at a wake. Take a trip down memory lane with these improvised mourners, as they unearth what the good old days are like in Singapore and examine the power of nostalgia in a city that sometimes seems to move a little too fast ahead of itself.
      
      
    • ABOUT THE TEAM:
      Baby Shoes Never Worn is The Improv Company's collection of the sharpest talent to come through our classes and graduate showcases in 2019. They specialise in dramatic long-form improv, creating grounded stories about characters in the midst of personal growth and abrupt maturity. While they can be an extremely fun-loving group on stage, Baby Shoes believe that the most engaging stories are the ones resonating with vulnerable honesty and candour.
      
      
    • CAST:
      Nigel Poh | Devi Malarvanan | Haruna Isono | Marcus Bjoerkqvist | Zavier Kok | Zulhafni Zulkeflee

• SUN 8 AUG 2021
• • [NOTE: Due to the new safety measures, the 3.00pm performance by Pirates of Marina Bay has been cancelled. All tickets for this show will be refunded.]
  • 8.00pm = 'THE STORY SPINE' by The Company Players
    • ABOUT THE SHOW:
      What goes into a good story? Find out with The Company Players as they present The Story Spine, a well-established form of dramatic improvised theatre. Follow a day in the life of two improvised characters as they try to adapt and make peace with events disrupting their routine lives - a situation that 2020 has made us all too familiar with. Inspired by your suggestions, the Players will use spontaneous storytelling to weave a moving play that will entertain and stay with you long after the evening is over.
      
      
    • ABOUT THE TEAM:
      By day, they may look like regular working professionals from your office. But by nightfall, The Company Players become a mischievous crew of Improvisers! As The Improv Company’s main improv comedy group, the Players would host fortnightly shows (pre-COVID), making them the most regularly performing improv team in Singapore as of 2019. The Players have also done shows overseas, particularly the Manila Improv Festivals. Their changing themes and formats for each show will guarantee nights of laughter - you might even become their guest co-star for the night!
      
      
    • CAST:
      Kim Tan | Afiq Yusof | Asher J. Tan | Daniel Rouquette | Imran Khan | Hsia Yi Ling

ADMISSIONS

• Venue: Multi-Purpose Hall, Aliwal Arts Centre (28 Aliwal St, S199918)
  • Ticketing:
    • $25 / $30 = Single Seating (1-person admission per ticket)
      
    • $40 / $45 = Pair Seating (2-persons admission per ticket)
    • $10 = Live-Streaming (for 'Dancing on the Knife's Edge' only)
  • Discounts:
    • TIC Vouchers
      • Please enter your voucher code when prompted before completing your payment
    • Early Bird Sales (20%-off)
      • Use Promo Code 'pineapple'
      • Extended until Mon 2 Aug 2021 (11.00pm)

WHAT IS IMPROV

'Improv' is short for 'improvisational theatre'. As the name implies, improv is a special form of theatre wherein no scripts are involved! The performers have to create their stories on the fly, sometimes with the help of their audience. This creates a unique experience where no two shows are the same, and both performers and audiences actively collaborate as part of the experience.

So come on down to the Civic District and have some "Yes, And" fun creating stories with our players!

SAFETY MEASURES

The Improv Company is committed to reviving the local improv scene in a safe and responsible manner. This event will comply with all Safety Management Measures as specified by the National Arts Council and the performance venue. Such measures include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Venue Staff will conduct temperature checks and SafeEntry check-ins at all entrances of the performance venue.
• Audiences are to be seated in single or pair seating, with at least 1m between each seating. Seats will be allocated when you check-in to the performance venue; swapping of seats will not be allowed once you are allocated your seat(s).
• A maximum of 40 audiences is allowed for each show at this performance venue.
• There will be a safety zone of 3m maintained between audiences and performers.
• Audiences and non-performing Staff are to keep their masks on at all times. Only performers on stage are allowed to remove their masks, and they must wear masks when off-stage.
• Audiences can submit their prompts for shows via digital means, and will not be allowed to shout suggestions from their seats.
• Ticket-holders not feeling well are strongly encouraged to stay at home and rest.
• The Improv Company and the performing venue reserve the right to remove any person who they deem to be breaching Safety Management Measures from the premises.