Watch out Rapid Fire Theatre. Go 4 Broke, the new kids on the block, has found a new home after Alberta Avenue Theatre was closed, and they are jabbering full throttle.
The brainchild of numerous St. Albert actors including Sean Bedard, Josh Languedoc and Ali Yusuf, it is now housed at The Naked Cyber Café in Edmonton.
They are on a trial run booked to perform the last Saturday of every month. Their next gig is Saturday, Nov. 29 starting at 8:30 p.m.
“Go 4 Broke is back and the coolest thing is that we’ve been working on a ton of new formats, and the coming show will be a test on our audience,” says Languedoc. He is also directing Honk Jr., a family show that runs at Festival Place from Feb. 13 to 16.
Go 4 Broke’s last big engagement was scoring a spot at Blues on Whyte during the 2014 Edmonton Fringe Festival. The August run attracted a larger audience and over half a dozen fresh faces joined the group. The troupe now totals 17 improvisers.
Since The Naked Cyber Café is a family focused restaurant, Go 4 Broke is creating an all-ages show, a switch from the previous adult-only events at Alberta Avenue.
“It seats about 50 to 60 people. It’s in a friendly neighbourhood and they serve sandwiches, coffee, panini and treats. They have a really big stage and an open mike on Thursday nights. I was actually surprised at how big the stage is,” Languedoc said.
Go 4 Broke has planned two sets with five games in each set.
“We’re going to start with fun formats – improvised games like 4 Square where four actors and a host rotate the scene with suggestions from the audience.”
There’s also Reduction, a series of short scenes dubbed “high risk, high stakes” scenes and Seuss, where players speak in the style of Dr. Seuss characters.
“Ideally it would follow a Dr. Seuss rhyme.”
Over the last five years, Go 4 Broke has gradually built a loyal following as well as added new fans.
“We’re hoping to keep growing. We hope to expand and develop a more diverse audience and so far it’s working for us. Some of the guys have even gone into schools to teach workshops.”
The Naked Cyber Café is located at 10303 108th St.
