 "Photo: Photo courtesy of Devin Begley Photography")
Chris Farley did it.
So did Lisa Kudrow, Stephen Colbert, Conan O'Brien, Tina Fey and even Pat Morita. Steve Carell taught it, and Will Ferrell still does it.
"It," of course, is the art of improvisation, and Second Nature Improv provides improv with an exhibition all its own in the fourth annual Fracas! Improv Festival.
The Fracas! Improv Festival, the brainchild of USC's own Second Nature Improv, first came into existence in 2004, with six college troupes performing over two nights. Since then, Second Nature has played host to the festival, nurturing its growth and creating a prominent force in college improv - it is the world's first and only purely collegiate improv festival.
This year's Fracas! makes a three-fold promise: to build unity among college troupes, to connect participants to the professional comedy world and to deliver three nights of inspired comedy.
"(We) started off at the beginning of this year thinking, 'How can we make this (Fracas!) the best yet?'" said Jacqueline Gabardy, the festival coordinator and a senior majoring in biology and Italian. While the festival has built momentum over past years, Second Nature wanted to push it to the limit and create an engaging experience. To achieve this, Second Nature started by seeking professional sponsorship, which it found with The Onion.
"Getting sponsored by The Onion was also a huge deal for us," Gabardy said. "It's a great partnership; we really found each other at the perfect time. For us it adds a new level of legitimacy to our festival to have their name attached."
The Onion provided the financial resources to add a third night of performances, set up 10 improvisational workshops for student participants and helped attract professional comedians to participate in a series of discussion panels, new to this year's festival.
Three panels were designed to engage the student improvisers in discussion with comedians and actors in the industry on a variety of topics relevant to improv. Some of the panel speakers include Matt Besser (founder of Upright Citizens Brigade), Melora Hardin (from NBC's "The Office") and Sean Conroy (from NBC's "Late Night with Conan O'Brien").
While Second Nature Improv was able to use many existing contacts to solicit panel participants, the professional community displayed a surprising interest in the festival.
Angela Kinsey, of "The Office," had her publicist contact the group after hearing about Fracas! from co-star Kate Flannery.
"(This) meant that the cast of 'The Office' was sitting around talking about our festival," Gabardy said.
The star power that Fracas! has attracted proved to be a key selling point for other college troupes.
"The workshops seem pretty awesome, and the names of the directors are pretty well-known in the improv comedy community," said Moujan Zolfaghari, co-founder of UC Berkeley's long-form improv and sketch comedy group, jericho!
Zolfaghari also mentioned that some members of her troupe, herself included, hope to continue improv professionally.
"Hopefully, Fracas! can provide some good connections," she said.
But it is not just the job connections that bring college comedians to Fracas! One of the festival's underlying missions is to foster intercollegiate community and support a flow of ideas between groups.
"There really is nothing quite like Fracas!" said Jacob Reed, a member of Second Nature and a senior majoring in fine arts and cinema-television critical studies. "It has an energy and an excitement that is unlike anything I've ever been a part of. It's a very positive, supportive, engaging environment, where everyone is encouraged to play to the top of their abilities."
In fact, the ties that Second Nature has built through past years allowed them to put on a comedy tour over spring break, performing with groups from Yale, UC Santa Cruz and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
"(Fracas!) has created an incredibly supported network," Reed said. "It's great."
The development of Fracas! is also marked, however, by frustration and disappointment in the university's lack of interest in the festival. While the festival has sold out in past years, Second Nature still feels that USC for the most part overlooks the event.
"USC is an institution filled with leaders full of creative drive. Fracas! is a perfect example of what student organizations can accomplish here," Gabardy said. "It's kind of funny to us that we can get some of the top comedians in the country, hundreds of college students from all around, and The Onion excited about what we're doing, but USC doesn't really take notice."
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The Fracas! Improv Festival runs April 12-14. For a full schedule of times, locations and performers, visit www.2nimprov.com/Fracas/schedule.
