New Aquatic Science club pg. 14
Cavalier Spring Show Review pg. 13
Students create lockers for Space Station pg.8
LExI bids farewell to its beloved senior improvisers By Sutton Anderson Reporter
The Creek theatre department ended their year with a bang with the well loved Senior Improv show. On May 6 the Creek auditorium was filled with 250 plus people anticipating the final LExI, League of Extraordinary Improvisers, show of the year. Audience members came in wearing yellow ready for the show. LExI was collecting toiletry items for the My Body and Soul organization to help families in need. They had a photo booth created by LExI member Zoie Ellis, Mady Chidester and Riley Tamblyn that had mini fat heads of the improvisers for the audience to take photos with including a Snapchat geofilter created by riley Tamblyn and director Bradley Hewlett active for anyone in the auditorium. The Improvisers had also decorated the lobby to commemorate the final show of the year. It all started with a welcome from hosts Lillie Meade and Mady Chidester, and an introduction of the players from a voice above as the troupe ran down the isles one by one. “Improv is a supportive nature. It’s an environment where it’s okay to fail, and we all support each other.” Senior and first year troupe member Chidester said. The senior show was also on “wishbone day” or Osteogenesis Imperfecta awareness day, which is why the players and audience members all had some kind of yellow on, to show support. The Final LExI show of the year featured many different styles of games, from short form to long form. As well as a fun singing game called protest song. Protest song was led by guitarist Noel Yanez, as the players, Junior Michelle Demoss, and seniors Quaylon Conley, Arin Preston, and Nick Petitti sang in
protest of silverware. Protest song starts with the first verse then transitions into the chorus and next into the second verse back to the chorus, to the third verse and finally back to the celebratory chorus. LExI’s protest song started with Nick Petitti as he surprised the audience with a stellar singing voice and then was taken over by
go full out in his entrance and exit of the scene. Massey walked in singing a goodbye song to the bar and finished the game spinning junior troupe member, Riley Tamblyn on the bar around the stage. In this particular show the League of Extraordinary Improvisers played a game Creek audiences have never seen before
Photo by Alyssa Hutchison
Michelle Demoss’ catchy chorus that had audience members crying of laughter and singing for the next week. The first Act was filled with short form games. Short form is a type of Improvisation that is based on a staring variable, whether it be an occupation, location or object. Short form is constricted to a time limit in which the scene must confine to. Most audiences have a much easier time keeping up with the short form games. The LExI audience of 2016-17 seems to take pleasure in a short form guessing game called Bartender, where players convey a problem through song for the bartender to guess before they leave the scene. In the four main LExI shows this year, senior, Noah Massey has played the prized role of the guessing Bartender. In his final go around, he made sure to
entitled Rotisserie. In this scene based game, featuring four players, each player has two scene partners. There are four different scenes within this one game. Each scene has a different starting variable such as, a location, a relationship, an occupation and an object. The reason it is called rotisserie is because the players rotate the scenes, the rotation can move left and right, in a circle, or they can flip the rotation where the players in the back come up to the front. “My favorite improv game is Rotisserie. It’s like a mini long form game that allows the players to discover many characters and connections along with relationships in a shorter period of time. It’s also really fun to host.” Mady Chidester said. Act Two of the Senior improv show was filled with a long form with senior
players, Noah Massey, Connor Campbell, Justice Al-Hmoud, Zoie Ellis, Ephrian Zayas and Joe Looper. They also had a special guest performer, Improv teacher Bradley Hewlett play with them. It was a surprise for the seniors in their final show to play with their well loved teacher. A memorable tradition of senior roasting took place during the second Act. In comedy roasting is a way to congratulate a comedian for a good run in the world of laughter. All of the 2016-17 troupe members from all the shows this past year stood in a line on stage and one by one the seniors would sit in the improv throne to take their turn being roasted. The players in the line would step forward and roast the senior till the host dang the coveted bell. When LExI got through all of the seniors the underclassman went and sat in the audience as the seniors got the chance to roast teacher Bradley Hewlett before they finished their final show. To close the show, The League of Extraordinary Improvisers played the crowd favorite game of Battle Drum. One by one the players came up onto the stage in random characters and kill off the player before them. “Improv is about establishing stories and characters, listening and reacting honestly with your fellow improvisers. The phrase ‘yes and’ is something I will always remember,” Chidester said. “I’m going to miss being on troupe a lot but I am so proud of the name LExI has started to make for itself throughout the district.” “I love improv because it is perfectly acceptable, even glorified, to act kooky and undignified,” junior and third year improviser, Riley Tamblyn said. As LExI seniors exit the stage they will pass the trunk of comedy off to the players they will leave behind.