ComedySportz
Encyclopedia
ComedySportz is an improvisational comedy organization started in 1984 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, by a group of local comedians including Dick Chudnow
, Bob Orvis, Brian Green and many others.
show Whose Line Is It Anyway?
, though the ComedySportz organization precedes that show's debut by 4 years. The CSz format is very much like the Theatresports
format which preceded ComedySportz by 7 years.
ComedySportz penalties (put in place for the audience's benefit) include:
Although the image of competition is maintained, the teams are often dynamic, with rosters depending on which Actletes (many of whom have other occupations) are available for a match at any given time.
, England, although this the team originated in Chorley
, Lancashire
.
Most ComedySportz cities operate their own "arenas", some with theatre type settings, others as nightclubs. Few (including ComedySportz Milwaukee) have their very own bar and restaurant. The clean content and audience focused nature of the ComedySportz show allows the most successful CSz groups to perform thousands of road shows for corporate, college, church, school and association clients each year; most CSz groups also lead corporate teambuilding workshops. In addition, Playerz from some cities coach ComedySportz high school and middle school leagues, in which students perform in shows similar to those seen at the "professional" level.
Prior to 2004, this mostly annual event was billed as the "ComedySportz National Tournament".
Indianapolis, Indiana
hosted the most recent World Championship, from July 20 to 23, 2011. The 2012 World Championship will be held in Chicago, Illinois.
(MADtv
), Eric Price
(MADtv
), Liz Cackowski
(writer, Saturday Night Live
), Jason Sudeikis
(cast, Saturday Night Live
), Jeff Davis (Whose Line Is It Anyway?
), Chris Tallman
(cast, NBC
's Thank God You're Here), Eric Christian Olsen
(Community
, NCIS: Los Angeles), Steph DeWaegeneer (Ms. Plus USA 2009), Mark Mohelnitzky
(Los Angeles
radio personality on KMVN-FM
), Dan Harmon
(Community
), Rob Schrab
(The Sarah Silverman Program
), Nick Swardson
(stand up comedian, film & television actor, film writer & producer), Mike Rock, Derek Mears
("Friday the 13th
"), Wayne Brady
, Dick Chudnow, James Thomas Bailey, Lauren Pritchard ("MADtv
"), and Victor Varnado
("film & television actor, comic book writer").
Dick Chudnow
Dick Chudnow is an American comedian and entrepreneur.Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Chudnow created and licensed the ComedySportz improvisational comedy format in 1984, which soon spread to other cities in North America and to Manchester, England...
, Bob Orvis, Brian Green and many others.
Format
The traditional format of a ComedySportz (CSz) show features two teams of improvisational performers (Actletes), competing in various improv games and performing scenes with audience members judging the results and awarding points. In every show, a CSz referee monitors the action, awarding points and administering fouls as necessary. The flavor is very much like the televisionTelevision
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
show Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway? is a short-form improvisational comedy TV show. Originally a British radio programme, it moved to television in 1988 as a series made for the UK's Channel 4, for a 10 series run...
, though the ComedySportz organization precedes that show's debut by 4 years. The CSz format is very much like the Theatresports
Theatresports
Theatresports is a form of improvisational theatre, which uses the format of a competition for dramatic effect. Opposing teams can perform scenes based on audience suggestions, with ratings by the audience or by a panel of judges...
format which preceded ComedySportz by 7 years.
ComedySportz penalties (put in place for the audience's benefit) include:
- the Brown Bag Foul, called when an Actlete uses explicit language or refers to something crass or off-color. The Brown Bag Foul is infamously punished by making the offender wear a brown paper bag over their head for the remainder of the scene, even if the offender is an audience member. (In some ComedySportz venues, this has been replaced with the "Potty Mouth" foul, and the brown paper bag has been replaced with a toilet seatToilet seatA toilet seat is a hinged unit consisting of seat and lid which is bolted onto a toilet bowl for a flush toilet. A toilet seat consists of the seat itself, which may be contoured for the user to sit on, and the lid, which covers the toilet when it is not in use.If the toilet is located in a home...
.) This foul is the "bagged" mentioned in the ComedySportz theme song. - the Groaner Foul, whereby an Actlete who speaks a pun bad enough to make the audience groan loses at least one point for their team, unless their apology to the audience is heartfelt enough.
- Example: 2 peanuts walked into a bar. One was a salted.
- the Delay-of-Game Foul, called when action on the field becomes dull and uninteresting. The team has 15 seconds to make things interesting again or they may be ejected from the field and/or lose points. Is also called the "Waffling Foul".
- the Taste Like Chicken Fowl, a simple pun found in the official ComedySportz program.
Although the image of competition is maintained, the teams are often dynamic, with rosters depending on which Actletes (many of whom have other occupations) are available for a match at any given time.
Organization
ComedySportz is licensed by the World Comedy League Incorporated. There are over 20 cities with licensed ComedySportz organizations, most in the United States. In recent years, ComedySportz has been licensed in ManchesterManchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, England, although this the team originated in Chorley
Chorley
Chorley is a market town in Lancashire, in North West England. It is the largest settlement in the Borough of Chorley. The town's wealth came principally from the cotton industry...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
.
Most ComedySportz cities operate their own "arenas", some with theatre type settings, others as nightclubs. Few (including ComedySportz Milwaukee) have their very own bar and restaurant. The clean content and audience focused nature of the ComedySportz show allows the most successful CSz groups to perform thousands of road shows for corporate, college, church, school and association clients each year; most CSz groups also lead corporate teambuilding workshops. In addition, Playerz from some cities coach ComedySportz high school and middle school leagues, in which students perform in shows similar to those seen at the "professional" level.
World Championship
Teams meet annually at the ComedySportz World Championship for a competitive tournament, training and exchange of artistic, marketing and organizational ideas. The location of the tournament rotates among the member cities. The very first World Championship, August 4–7, 2004, also served as the Grand Opening for Milwaukee's all-new ComedySportz Arena at 420 South 1st Street in Milwaukee. In 2009, the World Championship returned to Milwaukee for the 25th anniversary celebration.Prior to 2004, this mostly annual event was billed as the "ComedySportz National Tournament".
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
hosted the most recent World Championship, from July 20 to 23, 2011. The 2012 World Championship will be held in Chicago, Illinois.
History
| Year | Host City | World Champion |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Chicago, IL | pending |
| 2011 | Indianapolis, IN | Indianapolis |
| 2010 | Philadelphia, PA | Philadelphia |
| 2009 | Milwaukee, WI | Milwaukee |
| 2008 | Portland, OR | Portland |
| 2007 | Quad Cities Quad Cities The Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of... |
Quad Cities |
| 2006 | San Jose, CA | San Jose |
| 2005 | Los Angeles, CA | Los Angeles |
| 2004 | Milwaukee, WI | Minneapolis |
Notable alumni
Alumni of ComedySportz include Frank CaetiFrank Caeti
Franklin "Frank" Caeti is an American actor and comedian known for his time as a cast member on the FOX sketch-series MADtv from 2005 to 2007. Caeti is also an alumnus of The Second City and Comedysportz in Chicago.- Education :...
(MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
), Eric Price
Eric Price
Eric Price is an American comic actor. Price is most notable for his membership in the recurring cast of comedians on sketch comedy series MADtv during its 14th Season.-Early years:...
(MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
), Liz Cackowski
Liz Cackowski
Liz Cackowski is an American comedy writer and actress.-Career:Cackowski began her comedy career at The Second City in Chicago where she was discovered and hired by Saturday Night Live, where she worked as a writer from 2003-2006. Since leaving SNL she appeared in feature films such as Forgetting...
(writer, Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
), Jason Sudeikis
Jason Sudeikis
Daniel Jason Sudeikis is an American actor and comedian currently starring as a cast member on Saturday Night Live.-Early life:Sudeikis was born Daniel Jason Sudeikis in Fairfax, Virginia, the son of Kathryn , a travel agent who was president of the American Society of Travel Agents, and Dan...
(cast, Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
), Jeff Davis (Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway?
Whose Line Is It Anyway? is a short-form improvisational comedy TV show. Originally a British radio programme, it moved to television in 1988 as a series made for the UK's Channel 4, for a 10 series run...
), Chris Tallman
Chris Tallman
Chris Tallman is an American actor and comedian best known for his regular appearances on the Comedy Central programs Crossballs and Reno 911!. Tallman was also the creator of the popular Channel 101 series Time Belt which he wrote, directed, co-produced and starred in...
(cast, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Thank God You're Here), Eric Christian Olsen
Eric Christian Olsen
Eric Christian Olsen is an American actor. He currently portrays Detective Marty Deeks on the CBS television series NCIS: Los Angeles.-Early life:...
(Community
Community (TV series)
Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television...
, NCIS: Los Angeles), Steph DeWaegeneer (Ms. Plus USA 2009), Mark Mohelnitzky
Mark Mohelnitzky
Mark Wong is an American host and radio personality. He is the former News Director and host of the "Movin' News Minute" on Rick Dees in the Morning on Movin' 93.9 in Los Angeles, and the host of "Mark's Merchandise Madness" on the Celebrity Shopping Network, which airs Fridays from 6-8pm Eastern...
(Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
radio personality on KMVN-FM
KMVN-FM
KXOS is a Spanish AC station serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area. The station is owned by Emmis Communications and operated by Radio Centro, which owns several stations in Mexico....
), Dan Harmon
Dan Harmon
Dan Harmon is a writer and performer. He is the creator and an executive producer for the NBC television comedy series Community, and, along with Rob Schrab, a founder of the alternative television network/website Channel 101....
(Community
Community (TV series)
Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television...
), Rob Schrab
Rob Schrab
Rob Schrab is a comic book creator, actor, comedian, writer, and film and television producer. Schrab grew up in Mayville, Wisconsin. He is known as the creator of the comic book, Scud: The Disposable Assassin, co-writer of the feature film Monster House, the unaired pilot Heat Vision and Jack,...
(The Sarah Silverman Program
The Sarah Silverman Program
The Sarah Silverman Program is an American television series that starred comedian and actress Sarah Silverman, who created the series with Dan Harmon and Rob Schrab...
), Nick Swardson
Nick Swardson
Nicholas Roger "Nick" Swardson is an American actor, stand-up comedian, and writer. He is best known for his recurring role as Terry Bernardino in the Comedy Central series Reno 911!, for his work in Happy Madison films, most notably the 2011 film Just Go With It, and for his new Comedy Central...
(stand up comedian, film & television actor, film writer & producer), Mike Rock, Derek Mears
Derek Mears
Derek Mears is an American actor and stuntman, best known for his role as Jason Voorhees in the reboot of Friday the 13th.-Early life:...
("Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th
Friday the 13th occurs when the thirteenth day of a month falls on a Friday, which superstition holds to be a day of bad luck. In the Gregorian calendar, this day occurs at least once, but at most three times a year...
"), Wayne Brady
Wayne Brady
Wayne Alphonso Brady is an actor, singer, comedian and television personality, known for his work as a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series Whose Line Is It Anyway?, and as the host of the daytime talk show The Wayne Brady Show...
, Dick Chudnow, James Thomas Bailey, Lauren Pritchard ("MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
"), and Victor Varnado
Victor Varnado
Victor Varnado is an American standup comedian and actor. Born in Gary, Indiana, he is African American and albinistic. He was born legally blind due to his Albinism...
("film & television actor, comic book writer").
Locations
- Austin, TexasAustin, TexasAustin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
- Berlin, Germany
- Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New YorkBuffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
- Chicago, Illinois
- Houston, TexasHouston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
- Indianapolis, IndianaIndianapolis, IndianaIndianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
- Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
- Manchester, EnglandManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
- New Orleans, LouisianaNew Orleans, LouisianaNew Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
- New York, New York
- Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
- Portland, OregonPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
- Provo, UtahProvo, UtahProvo is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Utah, located about south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the county seat of Utah County and lies between the cities of Orem to the north and Springville to the south...
- Quad CitiesQuad CitiesThe Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of...
(Davenport, IowaDavenport, IowaDavenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
; Rock Island, IllinoisRock Island, IllinoisRock Island is the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 40,884 at the 2010 census. Located on the Mississippi River, it is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Moline, East Moline, and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The Quad Cities...
; Moline, IllinoisMoline, IllinoisMoline is a city located in Rock Island County, Illinois, United States, with a population of 45,792 in 2010. Moline is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring East Moline and Rock Island in Illinois and the cities of Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa. The Quad Cities has a population of...
; Bettendorf, IowaBettendorf, IowaBettendorf is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Bettendorf is the fifteenth largest city in the U.S. state of Iowa and the fourth largest city in the "Quad Cities". As of the 2010 United States Census the population grew to 33,217. Bettendorf is one of the Quad Cities, along with...
) - Richmond, VirginiaRichmond, VirginiaRichmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
- Sacramento, CaliforniaSacramento, CaliforniaSacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
- San Antonio, TexasSan Antonio, TexasSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
- San Jose, CaliforniaSan Jose, CaliforniaSan Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
- Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
See also
- Improvisational theatreImprovisational theatreImprovisational theatre takes many forms. It is best known as improv or impro, which is often comedic, and sometimes poignant or dramatic. In this popular, often topical art form improvisational actors/improvisers use improvisational acting techniques to perform spontaneously...
- Whose Line Is It Anyway?Whose Line Is It Anyway?Whose Line Is It Anyway? is a short-form improvisational comedy TV show. Originally a British radio programme, it moved to television in 1988 as a series made for the UK's Channel 4, for a 10 series run...
- The Second CityThe Second CityThe Second City is a improvisational comedy enterprise which originated in Chicago's Old Town neighborhood.The Second City Theatre opened on December 16, 1959 and has since expanded its presence to several other cities, including Toronto and Los Angeles...
- Saturday Night LiveSaturday Night LiveSaturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
- TheatresportsTheatresportsTheatresports is a form of improvisational theatre, which uses the format of a competition for dramatic effect. Opposing teams can perform scenes based on audience suggestions, with ratings by the audience or by a panel of judges...
- List of improvisational theatre companies
External links
- Official Websites for other ComedySportz locations:
- Austin, TX
- Berlin, Germany
- Buffalo, NY
- Chapel Hill, NC
- Chicago, IL
- Houston, TX
- Indianapolis, IN
- Los Angeles, CA
- Manchester, England
- Minneapolis, MN
- New Orleans, LA
- New York, NY
- Philadelphia PA
- Portland, OR
- Provo, UT
- Quad Cities, IL/IA
- Richmond, VA
- Sacramento, CA
- San Antonio, TX
- San Jose, CA
- Washington, D.C.