When one starts out at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, there are a few things that come to mind: the acronym SOAR and the joy of being huddled in a Union South auditorium in order to sit awkwardly with a group of strangers.
However, there was that one orientation activity with a funny name that actually made everyone chuckle: ComedySportz. As incoming UW freshmen, all students receive a small taste of the comedy genius of the improvisational group, which originated in Milwaukee.
In short, ComedySportz consists of structured games played between two teams. While every game has its own set of rules, the one universal rule for ComedySportz players is to perform without preconceived ideas and act on instinct. In doing so, the teams compete for points awarded by judges, who are picked out of the audience.
Because the entertainment process is so different from anything else, Mary Parmentier, general manager of Madison’s ComedySportz, hopes that “the audience will get to feel like they are seeing something totally unique and unforgettable.”
While it might be easy to compare ComedySportz to the ABC sitcom “Whose Line is it Anyway?,” Parmentier describes the experience as “a group of people who can create something out of nothing and have [the product] be entertaining, compelling, intelligent and totally engrossing.”
The ComedySportz idea was originally conceived and organized in 1984 by Dick Chudnow, and it now exists on the national scale, with teams competing in 18 cities. Parmentier boasts that Madison was the first satellite city, founded in 1985, and that “Madison has developed a reputation for being the most risk-taking ComedySportz.”
One example of the risk-taking nature is that former Madison members founded many of the ComedySportz locations around the country. Parmentier cited Washington D.C., San Jose, Calif., and New York as examples.
“We’re really kind of a beginning ground in a lot of ways,” Parmentier said.
ComedySportz stands behind its claim as “America’s favorite funny, fast and clean show for the whole family,” but Parmentier had more to add to the claim.
“It is a family show. At times, I don’t really like that term ‘family show’ because it can mean insipid crap, but you can bring your kids, you can bring your grandma,” she said. “That’s pretty unique in a comedy setting. You can’t [usually] bring kids or your grandmother to a comedy club.”
Currently situated at 662 State St., inside Pizza Hut, the ComedySportz venue does offer beer, but that’s not its main draw. “It’s not a bar; it’s a restaurant,” Parmentier said. “We get a lot of groups of people who come out for an outing and come to see us. We can do that because it can be non-alcoholic.”
Since 1985, Madison’s ComedySportz has offered improv workshops available to the public. Parmentier, who first started as a participant in one of these workshops, now finds herself on the other side, as a teacher.
“People take the workshops for all kinds of reasons,” she said. “Of course we get college students. But we’ve had kids, we’ve had women in their upper 50s, and we’ve had professionals who just want to be more creative and confident in themselves.”
In these workshops, the participants have the opportunity to learn improv basics and get the chance to perform at the end of the course in front of friends and family.
“It’s important for us because we get to teach, but we also get to recruit our company members,” Parmentier said.
So if you’re looking for something a little bit different to do for a night out, gather a group, eat some pizza and enjoy the comedic work of some homegrown funny people.
ComedySportz is located at 662 State St., inside Pizza Hut. Show times are 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets are $9 for adults and $7 for students with an ID. For more information call 255-8888.
