Loose Moose Theatre company gives action genre improv twist

By Rachel Woodward, July 26 2016 —

The Calgary Loose Moose Theatre company will bring the live improvised action movie Kill Hard back to the city for a second year after making appearances at the Calgary and Edmonton Fringe Festivals in 2015. The show will run at the Loose Moose Theatre for late night showings on July 29 and 30.

Last year’s shows starred local improv veterans Jamie Northan and Andrew Phung. This year, Quinn Cortini will take Phung’s place.

Northan says Contini is a great fit in the cast.

“He makes the show 30 per cent younger and 9 per cent better looking,” he says.

With a two-person cast, there are plenty of challenges, Northan explains.

“It’s physically demanding [and] it’s actually sometimes slightly dangerous. Most improv shows involve a cast of a half dozen or more, so a two-person show has its challenges but equally has its rewards,” he says. “It’s you and that other person staying connected through the whole show and it’s your baby. I’ve done things I’ve never done on stage.”

A notable feature of Kill Hard is the role of tech. Alongside the actors, the tech crew will run the show in a completely improvised behind the scenes.

“We have three people — one responsible for sound, we have another person who is responsible for lighting and sound effects — so all of the motorcycles or bombs or guns or punching or swords — and a third person which came out of a show we did in Edmonton. He does live Keytar music off to the side of that stage, so he underscores scenes as we do them,” Northan says. “He and our sound improviser are musically dancing together to create the movie atmosphere of the show.”

Northan says the improvised crew is unique to the show and thinks that audiences will be entertained by the tech improvisation.

“I think most people watch and they see us to our thing and they’re impressed but they don’t see the show behind the show which is this amazing tech crew we have,” he says.

Tickets for Kill Hard are $20.