As chairman Clive Anderson quipped in his introduction, not much has changed since the 1990s. Chris Evans is everywhere and there are people having a pop at the Government. He could add that his Channel 4 improvisation warhorse, making its very belated live debut, is as unpredictably hilarious as ever.
The format and the team is largely the same two decades on. The briskly witty Anderson took audience suggestions and handed them to Greg Proops, Josie Lawrence, Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood. From these cues the quartet conjured up rapidfire scenarios that rarely outstayed their welcome.
Even the suggestions harked back to past TV glories. Almost the only contemporary reference was when the foursome had to come up with unlikely Tinder introductions. “All the charges have been dropped,” joked Mochrie.
This was mostly family entertainment. There was little gratuitous smut for easy laughs. Instead there was plenty of singing, with an increasingly sweaty Sherwood having a stand-out moment serenading an audience member with a bespoke stadium rock anthem.
Care was taken to keep fans involved, with volunteers invited onstage. Two brave women even proffered their handbags so that Proops and co could use the contents as medical props. Mochrie, who could moonlight as a Bill Murray stand-in, promptly devoured their interval sweets.
This run hardly marks an improvisation revival as it never went away. One can see it at the Comedy Store, Paul Merton has his own troupe and there are various young companies winging it. Improv might save on rehearsal time, but you truly have to be on your toes at showtime.
It was no surprise that this seasoned ensemble was still sharp. The rapturous applause throughout underlined that there is a lot of love out there for them. They could not have got a warmer reception if they had scripted it.
Until July 5, tickets here. A version of this review first ran in the Evening Standard here.
