Quick Wits brought laughs to LDS Institute
Beating out John Bytheway and a jazz concert for the chance to perform, Quick Wits, an improvisational comedy troupe, made the audience laugh Friday at the Latter-day Saint Student Association’s sold out Comedy Night.
Scott Mortensen, activities vice president of LDSSA, said this wasn’t Quick Wits’ first trip to the Logan LDS Institute.
“They had done it in past years,” Mortensen said. “I heard they were awesome.”
Mortensen said all 510 tickets were sold one and one-half days before the show was scheduled.
Before Quick Wits took the stage, attendees were served lasagna, salad, bread sticks and dessert.
Brian White, a senior engineering major, said he was looking forward to seeing Quick Wits perform.
“I went to their Christmas play and I was really impressed with it,” White said. “They are quick-witted.”
Chelsea Johnson, a junior majoring in computational mathematics who was about to see Quick Wits for her third time, said the cast is very accommodating of the audience.
“They use the culture,” Johnson said.
The Quick Wits cast took the stage, and after a few jokes and introductions, rolled on with the entertainment.
Bob Bedore, Quick Wits’ creator, acted as the show’s director introducing games, choosing audience members to participate and soliciting audience suggestions to test the actors’ improvisational skills.
Some of the favorite acts the troupe performed were “The Crocodile Hunter,” in which Steve, played by Bedore took his day off to visit Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory. Bedore demonstrated each and every of Steve’s nuances as he met Oompa Loompas and walked around the
factory.
Another of the favorite acts was “A Day in the Life” in which the troupe portrayed an otherwise normal day of student Shelly Swasey – in one minute. The troupe earned the audience’s laughter again and again as they reduced the day’s time to 30 seconds, then to 14.5 seconds, then seven seconds, then three.
“Both cheeks hurt,” said Shalene Barfuss, a Logan resident, after the show. Bedore, a former stand-up comedian, said he formed Quick Wits about nine years ago because there wasn’t anything like it around the Layton area (where he went to high school). He said the group of five actors who performed Friday are only a part of the 40-member cast that performs on a regular basis on the Clearfield and Trolley Square stages.
Ben Brinton, another Quick Wits’ cast member, said he thoroughly enjoyed performing at the Logan LDS Institute.
“It’s hard sometimes to enjoy yourself when you’re doing improv comedy,” Brinton said. “It was great – the audience was really animated.”
Brinton said actors sometimes draw a blank on stage.
“That’s why there’s a group of actors,” he said. “Sometimes that’s the humor of it.”
In order to avoid those blank moments, especially with musical parts of the comedy sketches, Brinton said he tries to stay well-rounded with his musical tastes.
“I learned to play different genres of music,” he said. “You have to take in and learn as much as you can.”
Brinton said aspiring improvisational comedians can attend free workshops held at Trolley Square on Saturdays from 4 to 6 p.m.
“It’s a good place to start,” Brinton said.
Quick Wits can be seen in Clearfield, located at 389 S. State St. on Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30 and 10. The troupe can also be seen in Trolley Square in Salt Lake City at the same times.