Students, Teachers Head For Humor Battle

Crawling around a stage pretending to pull a lost kitten out from under a porch is par for the course for a Friday evening with the Comedy Sportz team.

A improv group that competes against other local high schools, the team is comprised of the school's funniest drama students, selected through an audition process.

The improv group's weekly after-school practices offer a glimpse into the madcap antics showcased during its performances, competititions that pit it against other local school humor groups.

On Friday, the team will take on a new adversary—a group of El Toro High teachers. The annual Comedy Sportz Teacher Match is a highlight for the team, which sees its "dedicated" audience grow, according to student manager Zach Free.

Free leads the weekly practices, which develop students' drama skills as they perform scenes based on specific scenarios, or "games." 

"There are literally hundred of games ... we learn some each week," Free said, starting in September when the year's team is formed.

After auditioning on a whim as a sophomore, senior Jordan Lin said performing as part of the team has become "one of my favorite things to do."

Interacting with the audience—encouraged during Comedy Sportz performances—means that performing is different than having a role in a play or musical.

"You get to play off of the audience," he said. "It's interactive. I've always thought that's really fun."

And the interactions don't stop on stage. Lin said that members from different teams enjoy spending time with each other and giving feedback while off-stage.

Tina Valdes, 17, joined the El Toro High Comedy Sportz team in September.

"It's a good feeling to be with a group of people who give the gratifying joy of laughter, as cheesy as that sounds," she said. "People come in from their bad days and expect to [see us performing] and laugh."

The senior said that her favorite "games" are those with an element of guessing, such as the Dating Game, when students are given personalities to act out from the audience. She said learning the different games that might arise during competitions is one of the toughest aspects on being on the team.

Mitchell McMahon, 15, favors Beastie Rap, a game in which teams battle in rhyming sentence fragments.

McMahon, a sophomore, said that he expects to continue performing with the team through his graduation in two years.

Audience members find it tough not to stick with the group after seeing their first performance, too, he said.

"I guarantee you'll want to come to the rest throughout the year," he said, grinning.

Drama teacher Dan Blackley said that the group—which has participation in the drama program as a prerequisite—does more than have a good time.

"It's also a good opportunity to do something for the community," he said.

Friday's show begins at 7 p.m., but to get a seat at the popular annual performance Blackley advises arriving closer to 6:30 p.m.

Admission is $5 for students with an ASB card, $7 for general admission.