Silverbacks to offer Multi-Level Improv Courses starting this June!

Steve Benelli and Sarah Mikayla Brown of Silverbacks Improv Theatre

In response to the interest of the community, Silverbacks Improv Theatre in collaboration with Theatre 810 will begin offering a regular serving of improv classes, starting this June. In this first session, members of Silverbacks Improv Theatre will offer two options for classes, Improv 1 and Improv 2.

Improv 1 is an entry-level course that will be equally relevant to those who are interested in performing improv, and those are simply looking to think outside the box and have some fun. Teacher Sarah Mikayla Brown will teach improv fundamentals in a laid-back environment. Improv comedy is a great way to exercise the brain and to learn effective brain storming and communication skills.

Teacher Sarah Mikayla Brown is a Lafayette native and ULL graduate who went on to live in Chicago and found the Chicago Fringe Festival, as well as study improvisation at the Annoyance Theater. Now living in Lafayette, she is a member of two professional ensembles, Acting Up! in Acadiana and Silverbacks Improv Theatre. She is the co-creator of the popular play, “Cajun Face.”

Improv 2 is intended for those who have taken an introductory lesson in improv in the past, or who have had equivalent experience. This class will focus on teaching students how to build characters and to begin on the skills needed to create improvised scenes. Improv 2 will be taught by Steve Benelli.

Benelli is a native of New Orleans but has been living in Lafayette since 1998 when he became a founding member of the UL-Lafayette based improv troupe, Cult of the Stage Monkey – Lafayette. He served as a longtime director of COSM before resigning that post a few years ago prior to becoming a founder of Silverbacks Improv Theatre. Steve is also a musician and is a member of the pirate band, The Whiskey Bay Rovers.

Silverbacks Improv Theatre (Lafayette, LA) mixes special improvised brews for audiences across the U.S. Favorite improv creations include Film Noirs, 90's Sitcoms, and Sci-Fi's. The Silverbacks are always energetic, nerd-tastic, and not afraid of costumes. The Silverbacks consists of members who have trained and performed in places as far as Mississippi, Texas, Illinois, California, and D.C. with a combined total of over 50 years of improv experience. Silverbacks Improv Theatre performs monthly at Theatre 810 and for Lafayette’s 2nd Saturday Art Walk at Cité des Arts.

Registration is available through Eventbrite. Space is limited, so sign up to secure your spot today!

1. Improv 1 – A Silverbacks Improv Class in Collaboration with Theatre 810 (Teacher Sarah Mikayla Brown)
Dates: June 6, June 13, June 20, June 27
Time: 10am – 12pm
Ages 16+
Register by Calling Theatre 810 at (337) 484-0172 or at: https://improvlevel1.eventbrite.com

2. Improv 2 – A Silverbacks Improv class in Collaboration with Theatre 810 (Teacher Steve Benelli)
Dates: June 6, June 13, June 20, June 27
Time: 2:30 – 4:30pm
Ages: 16+
Register by Calling Theatre 810 at (337) 484-0172 or at: https://improvlevel2.eventbrite.com/

Acting Unlimited invites YOU to audition for The Addams Family: A New Musical!

Acting Unlimited will hold auditions for The Addams Family (the musical) on May 16, 17, and 18 at Theatre 810 (810 Jefferson St., Lafayette, LA). Saturday auditions will be held 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and auditions on Sunday and Monday will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Those auditioning must prepare one minute of a musical theatre song, will be asked to read scenes from the script, and will be taught a dance combination. No accompanist will be available.

Performances of the production will be August 7 to 16, Friday through Sunday at Burke Theatre on UL’s campus. Rehearsals will begin in early June. All roles in the musical are available, including all of the quirky Addams family clan: Gomez, Morticia, Wednesday, Pugsley, Fester, Grandma, and Lurch. There are several supporting roles for a young man, a woman in her 40s, and a man in his 50s. The chorus of deceased ancestors can be of any age and any voice range. The production is directed by Travis Guillory.

The Addams Family is a new musical comedy with music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice that opened on Broadway in 2010. The show features an original story, and it's every father's nightmare. Wednesday Addams, a teenage girl with a passion for the macabre, has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet, smart, “normal” young man from a respectable family. And if that weren't upsetting enough, Wednesday confides in her father, Gomez, an eccentric Spanish patriarch, and begs him not to tell her sultry, aloof mother, Morticia. Now, Gomez Addams must do something he's never done before - keep a secret from his beloved wife. Everything will change for the whole family on the fateful night they host a dinner for Wednesday's new, all-American boyfriend and his conservative parents. They're creepy and they're kooky, mysterious and spooky. They're all together ooky - The Addams Family.

For more information, contact Travis Guillory at trvsguillory@yahoo.com or contact Acting Unlimited at actingunlimitedinc@gmail.com or (337)484-0172.

Join the event on Facebook for updates: https://www.facebook.com/events/1600853486828581/1614846055429324/

Student Performances coming to Theatre 810!

This week, Students from Lafayette Parish will take over downtown, bringing their unique performances and art to the spotlight.

The Student Arts Expo is an annual event designed in increase public knowledge and appreciation of the arts with performances and visual arts exhibits representing nearly every school in the Lafayette Parish School System by students in grades preK–12.

This event is in its 6th year and brings more and more people to Downtown Lafayette every year.

This year, Theatre 810 is proud to host several groups of students. First off, the LPSS Talented Senior Students will take the stage mid-week.

Wednesday, May 6, 2015: 6:00pm- Madeline G.
                                   7:00pm- Lillian F.
Friday, May 8, 2015: 7:00pm- Sam F.

3 Seniors. 2 Nights. 1 Theater. The LPSS Talented Program will present two nights of Talented Theatre Senior Shows at Theatre 810. Throughout the school year, these students have collaborated with their peers and teachers to create individual original shows. The shows’ themes vary from Commedia dell’arte, the exploration of conformity, and performing art vs. performance art. Running time will vary between 20-40 minutes per show. Events are free and open to the public.

On Saturday, May 9th, the Student Arts Expo will be going on at various spaces downtown. The Festivities at Theatre 810 will take place from 4-8pm, and are free to the public. The schedule for Saturday, May 9th is as follows:

4:00pm- Paul Breaux Talent Theatre Class

4:30pm- High School Monologues and Scenes

5:00pm- Middle School Monologues and Scenes

6:30pm- “Gone” by Cody Daigle

7:30pm- Film Screenings


The Student Arts Expo is presented by Acadiana Center for the Arts, Lafayette Parish School System and Cox, with support from Downtown Lafayette and Lafayette Consolidated Government.