This team sport is unlike the rest. It’s improv, and it’s here to make you laugh, Charlotte
Shameless Society Improv organizes pop-up comedy performances throughout the Queen City. But it’s got a lot more to share with the audience than just laughs.
Bryan Li is the co-founder of Shameless, an improv group founded alongside fellow Charlotte improviser Tony Galardi, bringing an entirely unscripted 90 minute show to local joints like Giddy Goat, Triple C and Independent Picture House. This troupe of eight performers regularly sells out 100-seat shows.
Li caught the improv bug after watching an improv show in NYC that fell a little flat in summer of 2018. Ironically, he felt inspired, wondering if he could do what those performers were doing. So upon his return to Charlotte, Li started taking improv classes with Charlotte Comedy Theater.
“Within three weeks, I realized this is possibly the most important decision I’ve made for myself … This community has meant the world and done a lot for me,” Li said.
By October 2022, Li had a few years of training under his belt and wanted to try something different with improv. He set to transport the performance outside of a traditional theater setting and into community third places, like coffee shops and breweries.
Enter: Shameless.
About Shameless
“We produce shows at venues that are supportive of local arts … bringing the show to Charlotte, as opposed to Charlotte trying to find secret pockets of performance art,” Li said.
Alongside being in convenient third space locations, what can someone expect from a typical Shameless show? A highly engaging and energizing collection of short form and slightly longer form improv games. (Yes, games!)
“Improv is silly … It’s just a bunch of adults trying their hardest to make you laugh for an hour and a half,” Li said. “The world is built mostly for kids to have fun. How often do adults get to have their own space, judgment free, to do something very silly and just laugh?”
Some of those judgment-free games include players alternating between Southern and Shakespearean accents as they make up a scene on the fly. Hosts Li and Galardi will ask the audience for suggestions, like a favorite dish, share a confession or sometimes tell a whole story about someone’s proposal to inspire parts of the show.
According to Li, a successful improv performance allows both the audience and the actors “to get lost in it because everything is happening in the moment. The concept that the performers don’t know what’s going to happen or what they’re going to say puts them and the audience on edge.”
It’s on edge in a good way, where the players and the audience are so captivated that “you don’t really have time to think about what might be bothering you in your own life,” Li explained. It’s an escape in a way, but arguably a healthier one.
This hyper-presence makes a real difference. Several audience members have thanked Li and Galardi at the end of their shows for being a relief from serious personal matters in their daily life.
Improv is a team sport
Improv is a lot less about performing than meets the eye. Instead, It’s a lot more about knowing how to structure a story, finding the game of the scene — the game being the odd, funny thing — and, importantly, listening and responding as a team.
Regular Shameless audience member Austin Baker said watching the troupe is like watching “one singular person, one singular brain, but it’s all of them working together.”
Each player on the team brings their own individual skill set, too.
“I’m not a big performer … my skill really comes in coaching and bringing people together,” Li said. “I am way better at knowing what everyone is good at, and putting them in a spot to really shine. That probably has come from my experience managing a restaurant.”
When he’s not improvising, Li’s leading the Open Rice team as a co-owner or serving on the board of Charlotte is Creative.
Above all, Li believes that selflessness is at the core of a strong improv performance.
“How you achieve greatness is having that selfless mentality,” he said. “In order for someone to fit on a team … that person has to be a team player.”
It’s a practice built off of trusting others, Li said. “Knowing you’ve got someone’s back, and someone has yours.”
Alongside Li and Galardi, the team players include Carol Tyner, Joy Surles, Tim Edwards, Wesley Kelly, DJ Henriques and Nicole Kerbs. Each possess qualities that make for a great improviser, but also “the qualities we want from our friends, from our community.”
Unlike what might be popular in New York or LA, these players have other full-time jobs, and improv presents a creative avenue outside of a 9 to 5.
“None of us were theater nerds. We all stumbled on improv because we wanted to meet some friends, challenge ourselves or because it seems fun,” Li said.
Improv goes beyond the stage
Li found that improv’s core tenets translate beyond the stage and into the real world.
“[Improv] has taught me how to listen. It has taught me how to be open minded to other people’s ideas … based on that, how to react and show support through basic communications skills like eye contact … and how to say yes.”
When Li talks about saying yes, he’s referring to the fundamental improv concept “yes, and” which is an improv and general leadership skill about affirming what’s been said or done, and building from there.
It fuels collaboration, Li explained. “Once I learned that concept, I became a better creator.”
“Humans in general, we like being together. That’s how we survive. And I think improv has really shown me and my friends the advantage of learning how to communicate with one another in a very supportive way.”
Want to learn improv?
The art of improv has proven to be so pivotal to Li’s career that he wanted to share the skills with others. He designed an “Improv for Life Skills” class with SkillPop.
The $20, two-hour class gives attendees tools “to be a better listener, be more comfortable in every situation, and feel good about yourself in under two hours,” Li said. The exercises “give you a glimpse of what it’s like to really just listen and trust yourself.”
The class is similar to Comedy Arts Theater of Charlotte’s “Unlocking the Self” class, teaching attendees skills like public speaking, self empowerment and storytelling.
Austin Baker, a Shameless and Skillpop attendee, said taking the class “opens up the door for connection, relationships and friendships … at the workshops everyone is hugging, high-fiving, best friends by the end of the night because you’re working so hard to build relationships to come up with ideas for the scenes.”
So whether people are looking to spend more time in a contagiously supportive environment, outside their comfort zone or to simply laugh and escape for a bit — watching and maybe even performing improv is a promising avenue.
Shameless will perform next on Wednesday, June 5 at the Mint Museum for Wednesday Night Live.
Shameless Society Improv
Instagram: @shamelessimprov
