The Maritime Improv Show’s Belly Laughs Gave Me a Peek Inside Jonathan Winters’ Head

Co-directors Sharon Dixon Obst and
Ted Carlson-Webster

Saturday evening I had a chance to take in the Maritime Improv Team’s Belly Laughs at the Spirit of the North Theater here in Duluth. Personally, I’ve always enjoyed improv comedy. It requires a super-quick wit. For this reason Jonathan Winters epitomizes the essence of this form of comedy. My youngest brother has a similar talent for snapping together comic retorts with lightning speed.

The two-hour show began with the directors welcoming everyone and briefly explaining what long-form Improv is all about. In a word, it’s storytelling. After the troupe was introduced, the merriment began.

Here are three examples of the manner in which they played their games. Everyone was lined up at the back of the stage as a theme was requested from someone in the audience. Because the Fourth of July was two days earlier, the word Fireworks was suggested as a prompt. like a Roman candle, one after another stepped forward and shared a humorous story involving fireworks. This evolved into sketches in which various actors teamed up to re-create events and stories. It didn’t seem possible that this was all occurring based on a random prompt.

Another sketch that involved audience participation went like this. As we entered we were asked to fill in blanks on pieces of paper. “Things you can say to your _____ that you can’t say to your _____”
At intermission we did this again, with the prompt being “Something your father/mother/sister/brother/boss would say.” These audience-generated answers were worked into the sketches, usually with humorous effect.

Story time at the bookstore.

My favorite sketch, though, was the Biography game. An audience volunteer was selected, and the co-directors interrogated her to get a handle on her job and what a typical day looked like. Saturday night the volunteer was a woman who works at the bookstore downstairs at Fitgers.

In sketch after sketch the players created out of thin air all kinds of hilarious scenarios, from reading books at storytime to children to customers complaining about prices compared to Amazon. It was a real cracker-upper.

* * * *
Afterwards, it brought to mind Jonathan Winters and shed new light on the man with the manic mind. The Improve team was comprised of all kinds of people, each a totally unique character in their own right. They took turns stepping forward and then retreated back to their places, but someone or two would always be in the spotlight.

This got me thinking that inside Jonathan Winters’ head are all these fully developed characters. They’re lined up at the back of the stage, each eager to come forward and take a turn or in tandem, creating stories out of thin air, Winters himself being the embodiment of each.

Winters didn’t just do this in movies. I myself was treated to a 40 minutes “show” when I interviewed him for an article 15 years ago. Here’s a transcript of that 2004 Jonathan Winters interview. The only thing missing is the soundtrack.

To catch the flavor of Mr. Winters, if you’re not familiar with the man, here’s a fun Improv of Winters with Dean Martin. If you enjoy this, there are more to be found now on YouTube.

Here’s another you might enjoy… again with Dean Martin.

During the Improv show Brian Matuszak, Rubber Chicken Theater, gave a plug for another evening of Chicken Hat Plays. The event involves eight short plays written during the previous 24 hours, and enthusiastically performed this year on August 2 at the Spirit of the North Theater. The year I went it was great fun and remarkably inventive.

Here’s an overview of Chicken Hat Plays and what they’re about from a 2017 story at Perfect Duluth Day.

* * * *
If the above Jon Winters link didn’t work for you, here is a Friend Link to the Jon Winters Interview. As the saying goes, laughter is the best medicine.