The Improvised Play – Arcola Theatre, London

Lola-Rose Maxwell and Charlie Kemp achieve feats of theatre and comedy for Arcola audiences: making up a play entirely on the spot for their viewing pleasure in The Improvised Play!

The Improvised Play

The premise here is simple.  In fact, the title says it all.  After a first run in 2022 at the Royal Court, Lola-Rose Maxwell and Charlie Kemp have brought their improvised play to the Arcola Theatre.  With just three audience prompts (a decade, location and title), they construct a story over the span of 70 minutes. And not just a story – they make a three-act play with scenes, a narrative arc, a beginning and an ending. A bit light on the story in the end, perhaps, but impressive nonetheless.

Given that you (if you go) will see an entirely different play, I won’t be spoiling anything if I tell you the improvised play I saw was When in Rome, set in the Colosseum (and elsewhere in Italy) in the 1970s.  Arnold and Falula bonded despite their differences, particularly as Arnold inspired Falula in her bag-making business.  There was some talk of snakes eating their tails as a metaphor for time.  And a bit about clothing made of cobwebs was rather amusing.  As you can tell, a lot of the whimsy and fun of traditional improv is imbedded in the format. The play you might see will be something entirely different.  It could be set in the Middle Ages, Victorian London or contemporary Bangkok.  The only limit is the imagination of those audience members brave enough to call out the prompts.

Teamwork and Quick Thinking

Is this theatre for the ages?  Not quite. There’s a reason why people don’t usually think up plays on the spot: some of the scenes dragged a little and it’s a challenge for Maxwell and Kemp to continually make sense: at times you could see them struggling to think of what to say or do next.  But is it an impressive feat to keep what is essentially an extended improv scene going for that long?  Yes it absolutely is.  It must take a lot of trust for the two to work together to build up not only scenes but the play as a whole.

In my experience improv formats where the scenes are shorter and prompts refreshed more frequently allow the players to pack in more ideas and jokes.  But this longer format does allow some gags to develop, and the audience feel part of more in-jokes as Maxwell and Kemp try to bring to mind whatever facts they can muster about their allocated time and place.  I enjoyed myself and laughed at many of the sillier moments.

So if you’re looking for Shakespeare, go elsewhere (or maybe go, and shout out the Globe Theatre and the 1590s as prompts…?). If you want a diverting evening, however, and have been known to enjoy comedy and improv, then this is not a bad pick.  I have no idea what improvised play you will see but I hope you enjoy it!

Salterton Arts Review’s rating: 3/5

The Improvised Play on until 9 March 2024