Fuzzy Dice shakes it up

"Roll right," one member shouts, and the entire crew of Princeton's newest improvisational comedy troupe, Fuzzy Dice, sprints to its next position in the Rockefeller common room. Members Dave Kaplan '06, Eva Vertes '07, George Lace '08 and Will Ellerbe '08 are playing their trademark game — Fuzzy Dice, a skit with four faces, four keywords and four plotlines. The players line up in a square and the two closest to the audience began playing a skit off a keyword. When the bell rings, the square rotates one corner and another skit ensues.

The young and relatively inexperienced troupe, now rivaling Quipfire!'s improv monopoly, has been making the rounds of the residential colleges this month, bringing what Lace calls their "relatively PG-13, with some lapses into R-rated" shows to Wilson and Rocky study breaks (Forbes, Mathey and Butler will be the troupe's next venues). For each residential college, Fuzzy Dice presents their show during Tuesday night study breaks. While the promise of food lures most students, many stay to watch the group showcase their talents. In fact, according to members of Fuzzy Dice, the exposure has already started to build them a small fan base.

What keeps students coming back for more? Even though the troupe relies on similar improv games during their performances, no two shows are ever alike. The young troupe's energy and willingness to challenge their improvisational skills always promises to amuse. Some of the games they play are standard improve games such as "Fuzzy Dice," "Forward Reverse" (a funny skit where players act off one keyword and every time a bell rings, the players replay the action in reverse), "The Good/The Bad/The Ugly" (audience provides an advice question, which is then answered by three different players in three different ways) and "No, you Didn't" (a game involving a skit, but each time the bell rings, the player must rephrase his most recent statement).

But the highlight of the group's show is its long form. Troupe founder and member, Alex Limpaecher '08 said, "Long form is literally making an entire sitcom on the spot given the show."

The group usually ends its performances with these long forms, composed from a single keyword provided by the audience. At the recent Rockefeller College performance, the word "smorgasbord" evolved into a skit about a struggling sandwich-maker's near demise at the hands of the IRS. The sandwich-maker and his wife attempt to pay off their debts by plotting an Ocean's 11-scale casino heist. What is the connection with "smorgasbord?" Smorgasbord was the name of the man's sandwich shop. During the Wilson show, the audience's suggestion of "golf cart" turned into a heartwarming epic tale of a boy's struggle to overcome the psycho-traumatic childhood experience of being repeatedly hit in the head by his father's golf cart.

Limpaecher originally founded the troupe last September because he felt Princeton housed too few improv groups for a campus of its size. Limpaecher points out that Harvard has at least four short form and one long form troupes. With this goal in mind, Limpaecher, along with a few friends, set out to found the University's second improvisational comedy group.

While Quipfire may claim to be the oldest improv group on campus, "twenty percent of Fuzzy Dice is engaged, giving us the highest engagement percentage among all campus groups," Limpaecher said.

However, the young troupe realizes it still has many areas it needs to develop. The studetns' lack of experience and the skits' of continuity occasionally drags down their performances. Limpaecher is the only student who has any previous experience at improv-comedy; the other four simply share a love of theatrical performance and comedy.

So go see "Fuzzy Dice" and enjoy the newest form of entertainment this side of Nassau. If the promise of comedy and entertainment doesn't persuade you, Ellerbe has one last sales pitch: "plus, we're free."

Fuzzy Dice will be performing in Forbes on March 2nd, Mathey March 8th, and Butler March 15th. For those interested in joining the troupe, a set of auditions will be held either at the end of this year or the beginning of next year.