Her Campus South Carolina President Lexi Hill talked to some of the members of OverReactors to find out what they’re all about, and here’s what we learned!
For those of you who are unfamiliar, OverReactors is an improv comedy club, open to all USC undergraduate and graduate students. Members think one of the greatest things about OverReactors is that they understand that everyone’s busy, which makes it easier for people to come to practices with no commitment unless they’ve auditioned for a monthly show.
So, if you’d like to try your skills out, head over to one of their open meetings on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 10 to 11:30 p.m. in the lower level of Booker T. Washington. A typical open practice begins with warm ups, which leads into more short-form games that are repeated until everyone has a chance to participate. At the end of practice, team members circle up and participate in “what can only be described as a pun-off.” Finally, to wrap up the practice, everyone goes around in a circle and “taps each other’s backs while saying, ‘I’ve got your back,’ because, members are considered family in OverReactors.”
Staff writer Payton Mullinax went to their last show and found out how Gabe Crawford and JM Williams, president of OverReactors, got started in Improv. Gabe said he was “dragged to practice by an ex-girlfriend four years ago.” Williams’ start to improv, on the other hand, wasn’t as unexpected: “I did theater in high school so, once I got to school I researched clubs to join found OverReactors. I immediately thought it was diverse and magnetic. I knew it was something I wanted to be apart of. I started doing shows my sophomore year of college.”
Members liken these practices as an escape from everyday life. Corey Drennon says, “For an hour twice a week I can forget about everything else that’s stressing me out in my life and just be whoever or whatever I want to be. I just get to laugh with people who are always accepting and non judgemental. They’ve become my closest and truest friends at USC and my support system. The people you find at Ovaries are not even comparable to anything else.”
Other members love that OverReactors allows them an environment where they feel safe at all times. Member Sophie Tipton’s favorite part about Overies is “that it’s an environment that I can depend on every week to be friendly, free of judgement, and where I’m expected to be myself.”
Ben Giddens agrees, the open environment of OverReactors Improv gave him the confidence to accept his humor, “I feel comfortable being myself. Before I always felt like my sense of humor didn’t really work in most situations, but it turns out that people in OverReactors laugh at the same stuff I do. I feel comfortable laughing at what makes me laugh.”
Although improv is fun, it can also be hard. Members say that he hardest part about improv is “finding the courage to not force comedy.” In fact, “true comedy comes from scene connections with your improv partners and a willingness to ‘give gifts,’ or pieces of a scene that allow your partner to have the spotlight or develop something new in their character.” But, what most people consider the hardest part of improv, being funny, is done every day, so don’t think about it too much.
We can probably all agree that there is no better way to end a stressful day than with laughter. So next time you’re feeling over-stressed, why not attend an OverReactors practice? Aside from learning more about who you are as a person, or what your style of humor is, OverReactors is also a great way to make friends. Members’ majors range from “theater to accounting to chemical engineering, so it’s not reserved for performing arts majors only.”
If you’re unsure about performing in front of a huge audience, luck may be on your side. In fact, there may be an in-house show alternative to the big Benson performance. Think about it, all the fun of a show with less stress!
Be sure to stop by Benson Theater on 301 Pickens to catch their upcoming show, Pool Party, on October 21st. Tickets are $5 cash or card at the doors, which open at 10:30, but the show starts at 11. If you can’t make that show, be sure to mark down their final show of the semester on November 18 at the Benson Theater at 11. For spring show dates and more information on OverReactors, check out their Facebook page.