Comedy for a Cause: Dreamers and Makers Improv Show

Under the heat of stage lighting sat a table scattered with various crafting supplies. The table’s height was much too short for what was about to happen, but that’s improv for ya.

Most people would agree: the art of arts and crafts is best enjoyed around the familiar comfort of a kitchen table, a warm, intimate classroom, or maybe under the shade of a particular park tree (weather permitting). Rarely, if ever, would you plan to do arts and crafts on a theater stage with the eyes of 20-30 people (that’s 40-60 eyes) keenly watching your every move. But that’s improv for ya. 

With the reveal of a stage curtain, two grown men were found standing behind this crafting table. They were much too tall for this short table. As they introduced themselves, which they had made up, and the holiday-themed crafting show they were about to put on, which they had also made up, it became apparent that something strange was happening. Not only were they doing arts and crafts on a brightly lit stage, but also the arms and hands that came from underneath their shoulders were not their own. In fact, they were the arms and hands of two fellow improv actors standing behind them. Rarely, if ever, do you do crafts with arms and hands that are not your own. But that’s improv for ya. 

This game is one we like to call “Helping Hands”. Made famous on the show Who’s Line is it Anyway, we adapted it on the Carnegie stage the night of August 29th for our show benefiting a local non-profit: Dreamers and Makers. 

For our final show during the summer residency at the Carnegie, we wanted to do something special to mark the occasion. So, we decided to partner with Dreamers and Makers to raise funds instead of charging admission to the performance. With Dreamers and Makers' first semester starting at Carnegie in September, it felt like a perfect chance to welcome this organization into its new space and gather support and awareness for the important work they are doing in Jackson.

By the end of the night, and with the help of our generous audience members, we were able to raise over $400 for Dreamers and Makers! Which is kinda crazy considering a significant part of this effort was supported by two grown men pretending to be craft show hosts with arms and hands that are not their own, but that’s improv for ya!