944

944 Interviews Dr. God

Stand-up comics and actors step out onto the stage with something to say. They’ve memorized their routine and they know that if they speak what they’ve prepared that everything should go OK (most of the time, anyway). But imagine if there was no act, and instead they were given no preparation at all except for a random word shouted out by one of the audience members. That would be some people’s definition of hell.

Or, another term would be Improv.

Starting Thursday at the Phoenix Improv Festival, comedy troupes from across the country will hit the stage with nothing prepared, nothing to fall back on and no secondary cord to pull. That’s the beauty of improvisational theater -- the show could be amazing, or a total bomb that could ruin a career. And no matter which way it goes, the performance will never be duplicated, making each day at the show a one-night-only event.

To find out more about the world of improv, 944 sat down with Brian O’Connell of the improvisational comedy troupe Dr. God to talk about how they work on stage, and what it is that makes improv such a special experience.

944: What should people expect when they go to the Phoenix Improv Festival at the Herberger Theater’s Stage West venue on April 14-16?

BC: I truly believe -- and I’m not just saying this for the interview -- that the Phoenix Improv Festival is probably the best festival in the country. I’ve been to close to 25 festivals -- Out of Bounds in Austin, the Philadelpha Improv Festival is really good and we love Sketchfest -- but Phoenix is just ... Early on, [executive producer] Bill Binder and the founders of the festival decided that if they wanted to put Phoenix on the map, they had to go above and beyond everyone else. So they fundraised year-round so that all [the performers] have to do is get there. They put [the performers] up in a hotel, they give [the performers] a den mother whose whole job is to just to get them where they want to go and get the things that they need, within reason; You can’t say to them, “I’d like a llama.” They really cultivated a culture there. You can probably go any night of that festival and see great, great work from people all over the country. They know what they’re doing.

944: How did you get into comedy?

Brian O’Connell: I caught the sketch comedy bug early with "SNL," "Kids in the Hall," The Vacant Lot and then from there got into all of the old Monty Python things — that’s what I wanted to do. I was a pretty precocious kid, and I almost flunked out of kindergarten. I just wouldn’t pay attention or do anything that the teacher asked me to. At the end of the year, there was this little play where we did a bullshit mashup of "The Dish That Ran Away From The Spoon" and "The Wizard Of Oz." The only reason I passed was because Mrs. Nance, my kindergarten teacher, was also a music teacher and everyone forgot their lines but me. I saved the play by reminding everyone else what their lines were. So, pretty much, comedy saved my ass from a very young age on. I just kept going and going, and then I moved out to Los Angeles in 2000. I kicked around for a while, and then in 2003 I found IO West. A girl I dated in college who I stayed friends with said, “Hey, do you want to see my show?” I said, “Yeah, sure, I’ll come out and see it.” They just happened to have the best show they’ve ever had. I said, “I wanna fuckin’ do that.” I signed up for classes in two weeks -- signed up on March 1, 2003 -- and I’ve never left.

944: How did you hook up with the guys from Dr. God?

BCl: I came out [to Los Angeles] to do films -- I’m also a director, I just directed a movie this summer that will hopefully be coming out called "Angry White Man" -- I got hooked up with IO West and those guys were maybe 8 months to a year behind me. It was the kind of thing where you see those guys around and watch different shows and you think, “Those guys are pretty on point.” After a while, I saw them at a bar and I was like, “Hi, I’m Brian,” and one says “Hi, I’m Neil.” They saw my shows, and it was a mutual admiration society sorta speech. Eventually, it got to the point where they asked me if I wanted to sit in. I’m like, “Yeah, sure.” I did that a couple of times, we had one particularly good show and the next day Neil called me out of the blue and said, “Do you want to join Dr. God?” And without hesitation I said, “Yes!”

944: Since you’re an improvisational performer, we figured we would change things up a bit and hit you with some free association questions. Just give us the first thing that comes to your mind when we say these words. Ready?

O’Connell: Go for it.

944: "Law & Order," the TV show.

O’Connell: Oh god, I’m addicted to that show. I’ve seen almost every episode. When they have a "Law & Order" marathon on USA, I’m like, BOOM. I’m putting down the remote, and that’s what I’m doing for the day. Particularly ["Law & Order:] SVU." Neil Garguilo, who’s in Dr. God, his girlfriend, Lauren, is a huge "Law & Order" fan, as am I. "SVU" is probably our favorite one because it’s got Ice-T and Richard Belzer as partners -- how can you not love that? But Neil hates it, because he comes home from going out and doing his work, and he comes inside and is like, “Oh look, my girlfriend is watching what I like to call Rape Show. Because that’s almost always what happens. I walk in, and they’re talking about a kid who got raped and murdered. Thanks, I don’t want to watch that.”

944: Matthew Lillard (who is appearing with Dr. God at the Phoenix Improv Festival).

O’Connell: Consummate professional. He’s a great dude, a great father, his wife is a dynamite lady. To be perfectly honest, traveling around with that guy -- that’s how you interact with your fans. That’s how you be grateful. He always has a handshake, always has the time for a picture. He never stiff arms anybody. He’s never too cool for school, or too big for his britches. Especially with Scooby-Doo and kids. Kids come up to him all the time and he has nothing but time for them.

Check out the Phoenix Improv Festival August 14-16 at the Herberger Theater’s Stage West venue. For more information, go to phoeniximprovfestival.com
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