“Survivor” has survived 24 years and 46 seasons, and its fan base remains loyal and deep. Two Whole World Theatre main cast improv players fit the mold: Allison Louie and Daniel Clanton.
The theater had a two-month gap in August and September at 10 p.m. Saturdays, so Louie and Clanton decided to pay homage to their favorite reality TV show by creating “Improvivor.”
They gathered eight cast members and split them into two tribes: Millennials and Gen Xers, which the TV show used as a theme in 2016. Every week the “Millennials vs. Gen Xers” performers go through “Survivor” paces, including challenges, tribal councils and using hidden immunity idols. Over an hour, they play various improv games for laughs and immunity followed by a double elimination.
Clanton, 44, playing the role of “Survivor” host Jeff Probst, gleefully snuffed the “fire” from the torches of two players who were “voted off the island.”
Over four episodes in August, “Millennials vs. Gen Xers” will conclude Aug. 24 with a victor. There is no $1 million prize — Whole World Theatre is a small nonprofit, not a major media conglomerate like CBS — so winner will only pocket bragging rights.
“I want to win. I’m cutthroat,” said Tanya Wagner, who plays a Halls Cough Drop-loving Gen Xer named Carol on “Improvivor.” The audience, which has a vote to get rid of a player, gave Carol immunity due to her goofy hair-spraying antics. (She held an “emotional support” purse with hair spray in it, which is a bit of a cheat in improv land but reluctantly accepted by Clanton and Louie)
Wagner said she has loved “Survivor” for years, recalling watching it as a young mom when the show debuted in the summer of 2000 and shepherded in the durable reality competition genre. “‘Improvivor’ is a great concept,” said Wagner, who has been active with the theater since 2011.
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho!
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho!
Like all improv, the night was hit-or-miss. Ricardo (played by Camilo Duarte) rubbing the hands of Perry (Noah Kitchens) while plucking sand out of the rice came off as both funny and oddly sensual. Perry’s off-the-cuff take on reinventing Margaritaville garnered laughs, but a Gen X effort at building a roller coaster was incoherent.
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@
When Ricardo, played as a gym rat with misogynistic arrogance by Duarte, was about to be voted off, he played his immunity idol — which canceled the vote against him — and survived another week. Staying in character, he gleefully gave the audience the middle finger.
“I had a good show, and that’s all that matters,” said Eden Kahssai, whose beauty queen champ Nancy was eliminated Saturday night over Ricardo.
“The mark of a good ‘Survivor’ player is knowing when to use your immunity idol, and Ricardo did that,” said Clanton, speaking like a true “Survivor” super fan. Louis, showing dedication to her craft, created the immunity idol herself with beads purchased from Michaels arts and crafts store.
Duarte said that, as an improv player for 10 years, he likes the challenge of staying with the same character over multiple shows. “We usually do six or eight characters a night,” he said. In this case, “every week, you get better and better over time. And everyone has a backstory.”
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com
Whole World Theatre’s “Survivor” connection runs deeper than “Improvivor.”
Theater co-founder Michael Snow finished 11th in the TV show’s 26th season in 2013 — “Survivor: Caramoan” — and he provides a pretaped video introduction at the start of the show. “May the best improvisor win!” he declared.
In September, a new four-week “Heroes vs. Villains” season, named after the TV show’s 20th season in 2010, will begin. Audience members who attend multiple shows can receive half-price tickets.
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@
Credit: RODNEY HO/rho@
IF YOU GO
“Improvivor”
10 p.m. Saturdays. $20. Whole World Theatre, 1216 Spring St. NW, Atlanta. wholeworldtheatre.com
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