The Annoyance Theatre , or Annoyance Productions , is a theatre and associated ensemble based in Chicago , Illinois , that deals mainly in absurd and outrageous humor . Many people who have performed with the ensemble have gone on to become successful stage and screen actors. Popular productions have included Co-Ed Prison Sluts and That Darned Antichrist . Annoyance Productions currently runs classes in improvisation, writing, musical improvisation, acting, and solo work.
22-486: The Annoyance Theatre was founded by Mick Napier as "Metraform" in 1987 and changed its name to the Annoyance after moving into a new building in 1989. The Annoyance moved again in 1994 to a theater on the 3700 block of North Clark Street, where it would remain for six years. In 2000 the Annoyance was forced to move out so the building could be demolished to make room for a temporary parking lot for nearby Wrigley Field , which
44-526: A Jeff Award . He also teaches Advanced Improvisation at The Annoyance, the final level of the improv comedy training program. Napier performs weekly in the partially nude improv show entitled Skinprov at The Annoyance. Skinprov, which he also directed, is a weekly show whereby a bunch of men strip to their undies and stay in a state of undress for the entire show, and, according to Timeout Chicago's blog, "...Horny bachelorettes love this". He also makes numerous guest appearances at improv shows staged throughout
66-470: A good scene. In this book, Napier suggests that a different approach is essential to creating good improv. Napier argues, rather, that improvisers should 1) Do something, 2) Check out what you did, and 3)Hold onto what you did. In 2008, he directed a revival of the classic Annoyance show Co-Ed Prison Sluts: The Musical , the longest running musical in Chicago. Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones expressed
88-524: Is an American director and improvisational theater teacher. He is the founder and artistic director of the Annoyance Theatre and a director at The Second City . He has directed Stephen Colbert , Tina Fey , Rachel Dratch , Horatio Sanz , Nia Vardalos , Andy Richter , Jeff Garlin , and David Sedaris . Napier directed the Comedy Central Cable Ace nominated show Exit 57 and
110-551: Is complemented by the "No, but ..." technique, which serves to refine and challenge ideas in a constructive manner. Despite the popularity in recent years of "Yes, and ..." as a sort of slogan among many practitioners, there is hardly universal consensus regarding its authenticity and value. Gary Schwartz argues that it runs counter to the most basic tenets of improvisation. Schwartz states that he never heard Viola Spolin propose anything similar and that in fact she would have been categorically opposed to it. He argues that
132-524: The Troma film Fatty Drives the Bus which also featured notable Chicago improvisers and actors still living and working there today, including Susan Messing , Joe Bill and Mark Sutton. In 2008, Fatty Drives the Bus landed on several cult top ten lists such as Liberal Dead which wrote, "...a weird cross of 70’s era exploitation and comedy rolled up in a nice little blasphemy laced package." He founded The Annoyance with
154-518: The Uptown area of Chicago. That location opened with a production of President Bush is a Great Man , directed by Mick Napier . In October 2006, the theatre revived their very first show, Splatter Theatre , first performed in 1987. This has become a Halloween tradition at the theater. In July 2008, the theater revived their flagship show, Co-Ed Prison Sluts , first performed in April 1988. September 2014,
176-666: The Annoyance Theater featuring himself, Rachel Dratch ( Saturday Night Live ), and Stephnie Weir ( MADtv ). Napier's wrote his handbook guide for students of improvisation, Improvise:Scene from the Inside Out in 2002. In it, he challenges 'The Rules' of improv that many students first learn. Napier argues that these 'Rules' are not only not helpful, but actually destructive to the process of creating good improv. Adhering to 'The Rules' can leave improvisers powerless to play, and as such, does not necessarily mean that it will lead to
198-528: The Annoyance Theater produced Good Morning Gitmo , a one act comedy by Mishu Hilmy and Eric Simon about Guantanamo Bay Detention Center. The last performance at the Uptown theatre location was on August 24, 2013. The first performance at the Belmont space was Napier's Invisible World on Saturday May 24, 2014 and the company continues to produce original material created by their own ensemble. In February 2015,
220-614: The award-winning Paradigm Lost , Martin Short & Friends , and Jeff Garlin 's one-man show I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With . In the fall of 2009, Mick directed the 50th Anniversary show for The Second City. Yes, And "Yes, and ...", also referred to as "Yes, and ..." thinking , is a rule-of-thumb in improvisational comedy that suggests that an improviser should accept what another improviser has stated ("yes") and then expand on that line of thinking ("and"). The principle does not forbid disagreements between
242-463: The city. He also served as a judge on The Second City's Next Comedy Legend on the CBC . Mick attended Indiana University Bloomington . Although Napier has directed numerous shows at The Annoyance theater, he has also directed many other productions not affiliated with the theater including David Sedaris ' off-Broadway Obie award-winning One-Woman Shoe , more than 15 The Second City revues including
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#1732870060127264-439: The contributions added by others. Participants in an improvisation are encouraged to agree to a proposition, fostering a sense of cooperation rather than shutting down the suggestion and effectively ending the line of communication. In an organizational setting, saying "Yes" in theory encourages people to listen and be receptive to the ideas of others. Rather than immediately judging the idea, as judgment has its place later on in
286-599: The cultural impact of the show stating, "A lot of people, the very same people who now dominate comedy, television and even how many Americans get their politics, took comfort in how “Co-Ed Prison Sluts” attracted nightly lines that stretched for a full Chicago block. For 11 consecutive years (take that, “ Wicked ”). And so they stuck around here, and built a scene." Napier is an Artistic Consultant to The Second City and recently directed their 50th anniversary mainstage show. He has directed several other revues, notably including "Red Scare" and "Paradigm Lost" for which he received
308-530: The development process, one should initially accept the idea, which enables the discussion to expand on the idea without limitations. The next step in the process is to add new information into the narrative. The concept of "and" is to sway away from directly changing the suggested material, "and" rather building upon it. Additionally, and often overlooked, the "And" encourages self-awareness, confidence, and expressive skills which are necessary for setting limits, asking for help, giving feedback, delegating and even
330-418: The improvisers' characters, but states that one should not reject the basic premises introduced by the other person, as this would throw them off and harm the flow of the scene. The principle is also used in business and other organizations for improving the effectiveness of the brainstorming process, fosters effective communication, and encourages the free sharing of ideas. The "Yes, and ..." rule
352-407: The intellectualization and urgent planning involved under "Yes, and ...": "by sharing a deep non-intellectual connection where mind and body work harmoniously as in play, spontaneity and true improvisation appears." He advises replacing "Yes, and ..." with a more elemental mantra frequently used by Spolin: "Follow the follower!" The "Yes" portion of the rule encourages the acceptance of
374-580: The philosophy that training improvisers to be individually powerful is the best way to support those with whom one improvises, an answer to the Yes, And philosophy, which he found led to weak, polite improvisation more often than powerful, good improvisation, a subject that he elaborates on in his book, Improvise: Scene from the Inside Out . In August, 1999, Napier contributed to R. O’Donnell ’s TV show R. Rated , which aired midnights on Fox, Chicago. It included several of his animated shorts and other video works from
396-435: The slogan "misses the point of total relation needed in improvised theater." To Schwartz, it substantially interferes with the natural flow experience of the group and generally reduces the project of improvisation to "information sharing" and rapid-fire entertainment, led by the wittiest performers, resulting in "uninspired, 'talky' and not very theatrical" work. According to Schwartz, Spolin's formula contrasts completely with
418-467: The theatre announced that they would be moving from their Uptown Chicago location to their current home at 851 W. Belmont in the Lakeview district of Chicago. In 1992 the Annoyance opened a show called The Real Live Brady Bunch , in which a troupe of performers, with an eye toward irony, acted out entire episodes of the 1960s and '70s family sitcom The Brady Bunch . The show was hugely successful, riding
440-503: The theatre produced the Gobbler’s Knob: Groundhog Day Spectacular , an annual variety show celebrating Groundhog's Day . The show was created by Tom Troup and Christopher Kervick and starred Tim Heurlin as the mayor of Punxsutawney, PA . 41°56′23″N 87°39′05″W / 41.9398°N 87.6513°W / 41.9398; -87.6513 Mick Napier Mick Napier (born December 12, 1962)
462-473: The wave of 1970s nostalgia that came in part to define the 1990s and continues to this day. What Every Girl Should Know... An Ode to Judy Blume was another popular show and even gained the respect and approval of author Judy Blume . Throughout the late 1990s iconic film director John Waters and comedian Charlie Callas made appearances at the Annoyance. The Annoyance opened a new theatre and bar in July 2006 in
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#1732870060127484-402: Was later the site of a mixed commercial/residential building containing a Blockbuster Video . At the time of its closing in 2000, Co-Ed Prison Sluts , a musical comedy with a frequently rotating cast, was the longest-running musical comedy in Chicago, having played for 11 years. The Annoyance took up residence in a new building in 2002, and signed a lease for an Uptown location in 2004. In 2013
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