The Senseless Bureau knows how to grip their audience with plays on gender, nuance and innuendo. Their improv show—filled with ad-lib, mime and intuition—is provocative and carefree.
On a Wednesday night at Spice Monkey, a restaurant located in downtown Oakland, just over 40 people have filed into the mezzanine to see the troupe. Eight actors dressed in ordinary street clothes—D. Gregg Doyle, Jenna Shirar, Joe Garrity, Page Frakes, William Dimaculangan, Andrew Pearce, Bryan Bucci, and May Oskan—create the mood in the dimly lit room by positioning themselves under a set of stage lights. On the leather bar table to their left are a few pitchers of beer: payment for the evening.
After claps and cheers from the audience, and then a warm up, they begin playing a longform improvisational game known as the “Harold.” It consists of three unrelated scenes or “beats” and includes a group segment—all of the players must create a scene together based on a cue from the audience.
The troupe begins to gather ideas from the crowd.
“An after school activity.”
“Something that makes you smile.”
“Anything you’re afraid of.”
“Something you fucking hate.”