Reset List presents a completely improvised rock concert where chord progressions, lyrics, harmonies, dance breaks, and all that goes on in between is made up on the spot. Audience suggestions fill out the set list each night. No song is ever sung twice and every night is a brand new show with a completely new set list.
Jet Eveleth is a staple of the Chicago improv, sketch and stand-up comedy scenes. She performs regularly with every group ever (including, but not limited to the Reckoning, the Deltones, and the Armando Diaz Experience) at iO, goes on cruise ships with the Second CIty, teaches at Columbia College and iO, and serves as Artistic Director of the Chicago Improv Festival. One of the shows she does periodically at iO is the Barb Lameter Show, which can only be described at 10:44 p.m. as like the Pee-Wee Show on crack. She plays the host, Barb Lameter, who writes letters to famous people and is visited in a deus ex machina fashion by friends and neighbors who get into crazy shenanigans with her. It’s pretty effing hilarious.
Well, Jet was kind enough to invite Reset List to play in one of her most recent shows, in which she wrote and directed a Zombie Romance High School Musical Tragedy. Israel played her voice teacher, Missy her mail person, and Matt her neighborhood member of the Church of Latter Day Saints (THE MOOOORMONS). We dropped in at just the right moments to help Barb stage the first draft of her show. Other people also popped up in to Barb’s world to help create a Zombie Romance High School Musical Tragedy that included love at first zombie sight, forbidden relationships, runaway teenagers and ultimately…suicide. Oh yeah, there were songs too. Sing song songs.
We had a great time performing with Jet while Andrew had to attend to other commitments and feel extreme, vomit inducing, envy. And if he didn’t vomit he should now while reading this blog… we’re waiting.
Our biggest fan (other than you, of course), Tom Bambara, hosts Tonight It’s Live: with Tom Bambara every Saturday night at 11 p.m. at the Oracle Theatre here in Chicago. His weekly talk show features co-host Andi Woody, one-man house-band Manny Being Manny, video sketches and interviews with different members of the Chicago creative community each episode. It’s funny, fun AND it’s also FREE. As in, entertainment for zero number of dollars.
Also appearing on Tonight It’s Live with us was Esteban Andres Cruz, a Jeff Award winning actor, singer, dancer, and younameiter. He was there promoting (among an insane amount of other projects) Easy Six, a rat-pack era show at the Factory Theatre. Also, look for him in the next Harold and Kumar film.
We played three songs, discussed with Tom the origins of both Reset List and Missy’s talent (which somehow led us into a tangent on duck rape) and played a little Beastie Rap with Tom and Andi to boot. T’was joyful.
Here’s the set list:
Images courtesy of John Abbott
The theme for this year’s Chicago Improv Festival was “Exploring Improv’s Edge.” It included 95 shows from 8 nations and 32 cities and we were invited to play in 2 of those 95 shows! For our first show we performed an electric/acoustic set at the Playground Theatre with Electric Lunchbox, a fellow Chicago improv group. We played to an awesome sold-out house full of friends and strangers alike. I’m not going to lie, it felt pretty good.
Here’s the Set List:
Images courtesy of John Abbot
For our second show we played as part of the “Special Edge” series where different groups were joined together to create a something new, challenging and fun. We were teamed up with The Era, The Currency, This is OK Cause We Are Singing About It, Williams and Martinez, Twins Comedy, Leotard Foundation and Sit Still for an evening of awesome. First, our songs fed their scenes fed our songs fed their scenes fed Ethiopia for a week! During the second half of the show Sit Still’s base scene served as a jumping off point for a montage of scenes which allowed players from all the groups to mix and match, creating fresh comedy with new partners galore. Memorable moments included “Shoot your twin day” at the shooting range, free cake, and Wonder Woman outfits.
Hopefully we did CIF proud explored the shit out of improv’s edge. Thanks to Jonathan Pitts, Jet Eveleth and gang for having us again this year. Let’s do it again sometime.
We were invited by Cabaret Vagabond to join in on the fun for their Christmas of theFuture. Every two months or so they gather a gaggle of performers in various venues around Chicago to put on an evening of song, dance, poetry, stand-up, painting, theatre, toasts and other various acts of kunst. Their Christmas of the Future was no different (yet each of their shows are different…mind blown). Martyr’s housed the festivities and it was a blast.
Here’s the set list
A huge thanks to Cabaret Vagabond for having us. Let’s do it again sometime.
Reset List 