JustArts spoke with Josh Seiden '13, a seasoned member of campus improv group Bad Grammer, about his time performing improv at Brandeis, his advice for first-year students interested in improv and his goals for the Bad Grammer troupe.  

*

JustArts: What got you originally involved in improv comedy on campus? 

Josh Seiden: I think the thing that got me  first involved with improv comedy is that when I first got here, my friend David Fisch '13 said we should both try out for improv comedy.  I didn't really know any of the improv groups, so first I tried out for Boris' Kitchen which I thought was an improv group and I ultimately didn't get in, and David said, "Well, there are other things you can try out for."  So I was like,  "Okay, well I'll try out for some other things," and I tried out for Bad Grammer kind of arbitrarily because I thought it was Brandeis' only improv group.  Turns out it wasn't; there are three other very good improv groups, but that's how I got involved.  I liked comedy in high school and wanted to get involved in college.  It was sort of the luck of the draw that I got involved with Bad Grammer.

JA: What kind of experience has being a part of Bad Grammer been for you?

JS: I would say it's probably the best thing I do at Brandeis. I've met all of my best friends there.  Every single time I talk about Brandeis University, Bad Grammer is the first thing I bring up.  I can honestly say, not to sound clich?(c) because I hate talking like this, but I've never been in something where I've felt closer to the people and felt more like a family and I've never cared about a group more than I care about the improv group.  It's been a really incredible thing; it's meant a tremendous amount to me.  

JA: What plans does Bad Grammer have for this coming year?

JS: Oh God, what plans don't we have? Well, we have a show today, we have a senior end-of-semester show at the end of the semester, which we have yet to plan, but stay tuned.  It'll be on deck.  We're going to have an alumni show at the end of the year, and we're going to have a special mystery show next semester.  

JA: What kind of advice would you give to a first-year student who is interested in getting involved with improvisational comedy on campus?

JS: The first thing I would say is definitely try out.  I mean, almost none of us had improv experience when we tried out for our improv group.  You sort of learn on the fly.  The second thing is everyone who does improv at this school is extremely nice and extremely friendly and they love when people have questions and love when people get involved, so find the group that you like best and send them an email.  I'm sure they have open practices. I'm sure they'll let you practice and give you some good advice.  So don't be afraid to ask and follow any of your goals that you want to acheive.  

JA: Do you plan to pursue improv comedy in any fashion after graduating?

JS: I think I might, in some form, but not in a career.  There's no improv comedy track, but I hope next year, wherever I end up, I can take improv classes and hopefully join an improv team.

JA: Lastly, what is your favorite character to play in sketches?

JS: I don't really have any characters that I like that much.  One character that I like a lot was Silent Jim, but I think you should put in the article that there's a bunch of other characters that I do not play but I love as characters.  One is named Congo.  It's a gorilla.  It's played by Tom Phan ['14].  Ryan Fanning '12, who graduated two years ago, had a bunch of characters I loved.  Scat Man and Coach. There were a lot of good characters.  There's one character I like by Josh Liversidge ['15].  He's in Bad Grammer currently.  One good thing in improv is that you're not bound by the characters.  You can reinvent them all the time and that's something I've always loved doing.  

JA: How do you hope Bad Grammer can grow and develop in the next couple of years?

JS: We're already very good friends, but I hope we can stay very good friends and become even closer.  I hope everyone embraces their inner craziness and lets it fly a little bit more.  And I think that by spending more time together, we'll get closer and closer and more cohesive as a group.  

JA: And do you have any thoughts on how you'll be involved as an alumnus?

JS: We have our alumni show so I hope to come back to that.  And everyone in Bad Grammer, even though they're alums, they still talk to each other all the time and see how each other is doing.

                     -Phil Gallagher