The Immediate Gratification Players
The Immediate Gratification Players (IGP) are a collegiate improvisational comedy troupe based out of Harvard College. They specialize in long form, free-form improvisation with musical accompaniment.
History
The Immediate Gratification Players were founded by Harvard freshmen in the fall of 1986. Unlike the majority of collegiate troupes, the Immediate Gratification Players do not charge for admission to their shows.
Each year, the Immediate Gratification Players host the Laugh Riot improvisational comedy festival at the American Repertory Theater. The invitational festival, begun in the spring of 1999 and now entering its 12th year, includes many troupes from other colleges, such as Cornell, Wesleyan University, and Columbia University.[1][2][3] On the weekend of the annual Harvard-Yale football game, the Immediate Gratification Players either host or travel to a show which also stars an improvisational comedy troupe from Yale.[4][5] Along with on-campus shows, they frequently play at Boston's Improv Asylum and at comedy clubs in New York City.[6] Beyond the Northeast, the Immediate Gratification Players have played in Florida, Los Angeles, Texas, Chicago, the San Francisco Bay Area, and London.[7][8][9][10]
Apart from a traditional long form, free-form, the Immediate Gratification Players annually perform shows in specialty forms such as the “dinner party” and “radio show” formats. In 2007, they were selected out of the numerous Boston-based improv troupes to star in a several comedy sketches produced by the Boston Globe in its Peter Post etiquette section.[11][12]
Notable members
| Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Farai Chideya | 1990 | Journalist, former host of NPR's News and Notes | [13] |
| Nate Dern | 2007 | Comedian, Reality Show contestant, season 3 of Beauty and the Geek | [14] |
| Sarah Haskins | 2001 | Comedian, Current TV's Target Women | [15] |
| Todd Kim | 1994 | First Solicitor General of Washington, D.C., First contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? | |
| Justin Krebs | 2000 | Creator of Drinking Liberally | [16][17] |
| David Modigliani | 2002 | Director and Producer; Crawford (film) and Trust Us, This Is All Made Up | [18] |
| Nicholas Stoller | 1998 | Director and Producer; Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Fun with Dick and Jane | [19][20][21] |
See also
- Improvisational theatre
- List of improvisational theatre companies
- List of improvisational theater festivals
References
- ^ http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=522070
- ^ http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~hrdc/htdb/displayproduction.php?productionid=680
- ^ http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=506019
- ^ http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/2500
- ^ http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2008/11.20/11-thegame.html
- ^ http://www.thetanknyc.org/?q=content/improvision-/-igp
- ^ http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=90987
- ^ http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=97495
- ^ http://media.www.dailynorthwestern.com/media/storage/paper853/news/2000/03/31/Campus/Improv.Groups.Opens.Festival-1903925.shtml
- ^ http://www.pantheater.com/about-pan/pressrelease-pantheater-harvard-immediate-gratification-plays-comedy-show-sanfrancisco.htm
- ^ http://multimedia.boston.com/pub/m/13912248/peter_post_the_kisser.htm?pageid=36
- ^ http://multimedia.boston.com/pub/m/13912247/peter_post_the_clipper.htm?pageid=36
- ^ http://www.theroot.com/blogs/rock-and-roll/former-npr-host-farai-chideya-kisses-sky
- ^ www.natedern.com
- ^ http://current.com/topics/88813968/target_women/new/0.htm
- ^ http://democracyforum.blogspot.com/2006/03/justin-krebs.html
- ^ http://www.thetanknyc.org/
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1370803/
- ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/09/fashion/weddings/09vows.html?_r=1
- ^ "The Dark Side" WHRB radio interview, 2008
- ^ http://www.harvardwood.org/?HH200804