If you’ve never seen an improv show, Saturday night might be the perfect time to find out what you’ve been missing.
Galesburg native Jill Bradford brings her fifth improv showcase to Prairie Players, 160 S. Seminary St., on Saturday, Feb. 28. Show time is 7:30 p.m. Doors and the bar open at 6:30 p.m. Admission is $5 at the door. The show carries a PG-13 advisory — content is uncensored and adult themes may arise.
Bradford spent 20 years in Denver as a professional improviser, director, and producer before returning to Galesburg in 2018. She found no local improv scene when she arrived. She started with weekly drop-in classes at FatFish, partnered with Prairie Players, and has built a program that now draws students from across the area ranging in age from 23 to 73.
Saturday’s showcase follows an eight-week class session. The first half features short-form games — think Whose Line Is It Anyway? — with rhymes, physical comedy, and audience interaction. The second half features a long-form structure called “The Sleepover,” in which audience suggestions gathered from lobby buckets and direct call-outs fuel a connected series of scenes that can run 20 minutes or more.
Bradford sat down with Jay Redfern and Tyler Gumm on Galesburg’s Morning News Friday to talk about the show, what improv actually is, and why she believes it translates well beyond the stage.