Sunday, November 2, 2008

Top 8 on HOLD this week

We (the producers) of the Top 8 at EIGHT are currently in transit on our way to perform live shows on tour across the country. Production for Episode#7 is still happening but the episode will be posted later this week or early next. Keep tuning in to see footage from live shows on the road.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Top 8 at Eight

This weeks Top 8 at Eight video features headlines about the new google program "mail goggles", a virgin shark birth, and walmart vs the us economy. This is one of the funniest weeks yet. Quite surprising considering there were not a lot of unique headlines in the news this week.

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

This weeks Top 8 at Eight

This weeks Top 8 Headlines include the vp debates, bloombergs 3rd term bid, chihuahuas on crystal meth and more.

Monday, September 29, 2008

This weeks Top 8 at Eight!


Here is this weeks Top 8 at Eight. Some of this footage was taken from our roadtrip to MD, VA and then to Pittsburg PA. On Wednesday we departed for Gaithersburg and headed to do 2 shows in VA. From there we went straight to PA. The following morning we did 2 shows in PA. Between the shows we began filming the first of the headlines. This weeks Top 8 Headlines includes the debates, 700 Billion Dollar Bailout and more. Tune in every Sunday night at 8 on youtube to watch the Top 8.

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Eight is NEVER Enough Midwest Mini-Tour!

Eight is NEVER Enough is heading West this Fall!

2008 MIDWEST Mini-Tour: To purchase Tickets Visit our Website: http://www.eightimprov.biz/omaha2008.html

With tour stops in MI, WI & NE!

Nov 6, 7 & 9
The Theatre at Maple Ridge, Omaha

Nov 13
Gerold Opera House, Weyawega WI

Nov 14
Reniassance School for the Performing Arts

Nov 3
Farmington Hills, MI

More dates TBA!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Top 8 at Eight

We have a new webseries that will be released weekly. It's called the Top 8 at Eight. We basically take our favorite top 8 headlines of the week and do funky things with them. These videos are PG-13 but not as riske' as anything in the Absent Minded Comedy area. Some of the content may not be suitable for anyone under the age of 13 as many of todays current headlines have to do with off beat topics.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

So what is the difference between all the shows?

So.... we basically have three shows that we produce and perform. They are all similar in structure and on paper but contrast greatly in style, material and content. The main focus for this blog is for "Eight is NEVER Enough". That show is our main attraction and the most flexible. To break down the shows is as follows:

Eight is NEVER Enough - Improv and musical comedy for all ages. This is the public show, off broadway show and comedy club show. The humor is universal and geared toward a wide audience. The show is PG-PG-13. There is no bad language/cursing. When the actors violate this code they are pegged in the head with what we call the "gutter ball" - it's a dodge ball the audience members throw at an actors head if he/she says or does something inappropriate. It ends up working out wonderfully because honestly - it's fun to watch somebody get hit in the head with a ball. Not sure why. Either way it's great.

Improv 4 KIDS - Improv and musical comedy for ages 12 and under. This show is similar to EIGHT in structure but actually has different skits and for the most part different subject matter. We tend to have more music in these shows and they run about 10-15 minutes shorter. There is LOTS of audience volunteers. More so than in the EIGHT shows and I would even say the skits are shorter. Many of the suggestions we get from kids incorporate current pop culture. I've lost track on how many times we have done improvised blues or other song styles about Spongebob, Jonas Brothers and Miley Cirus. It's all about what the kids want so .. well there you go.

Absent Minded Comedy - The name says it all. Seriously. It is completely uncensored. There is a similar structure to EIGHT but much of the content contains swearing, sexual humor and pretty much anything else that could possibly be offensive. Also, the improv skits are different. We found that the improvs which didn't work in the EIGHT shows worked really well in an edgy environment. I would even go so far as to say these shows are experimental and avaunt guard-ish. We also book more comics on this show so the audience is getting an equal combination of improv and stand up. It works out really well. Besides, you never know whats going to happen but I can guarantee it's going to be an experience.

Monday, September 1, 2008

Not a kids show

Just wanted to take some time to define what "Eight is NEVER Enough" is exactly. First of all improvisation and stand up comedy are like apples and oranges. Let me just start by saying both are entertaining and both are equally funny. It really depends on an individuals tastes and sense of humor to decide which of the two they prefer. Stand up comedy is one person standing with a mike telling jokes and talking about funny situations. Improv comedy, or at least the way WE do it is when the performers make up unplanned skits, stories, songs and situations without a script and with the help of the audience. The audience and the performers must work together to great great comedy and theatre. Stand up on the other hand does not necessarily include audience participation. Some stand up comics do use crowd interaction but the majority of comics come on stage having prepared and tweaked a specific amount of material and comedy observations based on their personal experiences.

I am not sure why people confuse the two but it seems to be an ongoing problem when we are performing at a club that offers both. There has been much confusion over whether our show is a "kids" show and the stand up is the "adult" show. For one thing I think it is safe to say that we are neither. Our show is a theatrical comedy show designed for all ages. We created this show with the goal of making it accessible to all audiences: High brow, low brow and everything in the middle. When we started running 7 shows every week we decided that we wanted to cover all the basis. The show is tailored to the people that are sitting in the seats during the performance. We have done shows for colleges. In those shows the comedy and humor was geared to college kids. We have performed for Middle school and elementary school audiences - those show are geared toward young audience humor. We have performed at corporate events for fortune 500 companies (Morgan Stanley, General Motors and American Express to name a few) - those shows are going to be more adult type humor. This is the way improv works. It is based on the audience and therefore will be customized to their liking. It is a win win situation on both ends. Every show is different. Not just for the audience but for the performers too. I will never get tired of it because to me it will always be a challenge and it will always be fresh and never get stale. This is what attracts many actors to this wonderful art form.

So I think it is safe to say that we are not a kids show. Will the kids love the show? YES. Will adults love the show? YES. Can you feel safe bringing anyone to the show? ABSOLUTELY. Will there be kids in the audience? MAYBE. Will it still be funny? EVEN MORE SO. I don't have kids should I even bother? UNLESS KIDS IN THE AUDIENCE STOPPED YOU FROM GOING TO SEE IRON MAN, HULK AND DARK KNIGHT THEN YOU SHOULD COME SEE HOW FUNNY THE SHOW IS. With over 2000 public performances plus another 500 private events it's probably worth checking out.

Friday, August 29, 2008

On the ROAD

We are currently on the road on the way back from a gig that we did at Roger Williams University in RI. It was great. We will post videos soon from this eventful roadtrip. In what should have been a 3 hour drive took us 7.5 hours. We departed from NYC at 1:30 pm. Everyone was ON THE ROAD. Imagine that. Labor Day Weekend and non stop traffic. Who would have thought. Actually we did think about it which is why we left at 1:30 for a 9:00 gig. Got there at 8:40... so we did factor in time but never thought we would need that extra time. My next project is to get an touring vehicle. That will probably happen early spring or late winter. It will likely be wrapped with our logo. It will be making rounds in the city. Videos will be up soon.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Website Back up

The website is back up and running again. That was a lot less time that I had expected to kudos to Yahoo for getting it back up within a few hours rather than 72 hours. Anywho HEre is a clip from a post show backstage pizza eating thingy.

Website Woes

Well our website http://www.eightimprov.biz/ is DOWN! It is all Yahoo's fault. We called customer service after waiting on the line for over 30 minutes and they told us that it would be up and running in 72 hours. 72 HOURS! WTF??? So if anyone tries to go to our website between now and then the are going to get an error page. We were told that it was "just something that happens" with yahoo servers from time to time - huh???? wha???

Hopefully it will be up and running by Monday as we usually don't get a whole lot of hits on weekends but anyhow it is kind of ridiculous that this just kind of 'happens!" We apologize for any confusion. geeze Laurice

Friday, August 22, 2008

What's in a name?

Well being that we are about to enter into our 7th year in 2009 I can assume that it is too late to change the name of the troupe. However we are considering giving the actual run of the show different names such as "Eight is NEVER Enough Presents....(Name Here)". People are always asking us who came up with the name and why. Well the answer is we are not quite sure. I mean our first show was in December of 2002. We had a gig at Danny's Skylight Room on 46th St. When Walt called and booked the room the booker asked what the name of the show was so that he could put it on the calendar. At the time we had exacly eight people and we had been going back and forth about the amount of cast members and whether it was too many or too little. So at that point Walt just made up that name off the top of his head. After our first performance (Dec 22nd) it just kind of stuck with us. After a year or so of performances at various venues and clubs around the city we decided it was too late to change the name (even though it was confusing people).

We usually run the show with 6 cast members, not 8 and this is what is confusing people. Then one day Walt discovered that if you put the 8 on its side then you get the infinity sign. We discussed it and realized that NOTHING is ever enough. There is always more to learn, more to see, more to do, more to discover in life. This may sound like old wisdom but it is how we run our troupe and how we base our shows. 8 is NEVER Enough because nothing is never enough. More laughter is needed in the world. More smiles and more comedy. That's where we come in.

Eight is NEVER Enough has now played over 2000 public performances and corporate, private parties, school assemblies and college gigs and it is not enough.We have over 20 cast members - some shows playing on the road simultaneously while the resident cast runs shows in NYC. Still not enough. More fun and laughter is wanted and needed.

I think I have written enough - or not enough. What's in a name anyway? The show is what it is. Nothing will change that. It's fun.

Laurice

Last of the Upstate Video

Same Road Trip. Different video but same gig:

Tropic Thumper

Here is a video blog after a performance upstate:

-Laurice

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Road Show Blogging

This video blog does not need much of an explanation. Fresh from the road show upstate in Carmel New York:

Kiddie Rides

Here is the Image of the big kids playing in the mall. Our favorite duo was having fun but as you can see Walt's 5- year old character "JIMMY" who has been banned from "Eight is NEVER Enough"shows makes cameo in the mall taxi.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Today on the Road




Today we did a show for a camp group upstate in Carmel. Actually we did two shows for the campers back to back. It was great. We got some blog video footage from Walt's new laptop/webcam. In order to avoid traffic on the way back to the city we decided to hit the mall and catch a showing of "Tropic Thunder". This was a very funny movie but of course in the mall there was more comedy when Walt and Spero tried to both fit into a mini taxi made for kids.

-Laurice

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Welcome

Welcome to the ALL new blog for "Eight is NEVER Enough" Improv Comedy Show and the producers Walt Frasier & Laurice Fattal. Check back shortly for frequent video blogs from us and the rest of the cast.

Be sure to visit our website http://www.eightimprov.biz/ for all the latest on upcoming shows and events.