Professional marathon runners run marathons for 26 miles and 385 yards. In a similarly impressive feat, a group of expert improvisers got together on Red Nose Day to create a 26 hour, 385 second show – an Improv Marathon, in aid of Comic Relief.

For twenty-six hours the Bristol Improv Theatre on St Paul’s street became home to over thirty performers; the team behind the Wardrobe’s long running soap-opera Closer Each Day were joined by a collection of improv veterans from The Bristol Improv Society, Watch this Space, Bath Improv and various other groups from what seems to be a growing Improvisational scene around the South West.

The show was broken down into a series of two-hour ‘episodes.’ Audience members were invited to buy tickets for each episode, or – if they could hack it – the entire event. The setting of the show was the sleepy, strange town of Glastonbury, inhabited by a broad range of even stranger characters, from Storm Cloud, the chivalric Greenpeace protester, to Eloise, a timid novelist. By Episode 3, Midnight on Friday, the story was already in full swing, full of recurring gags, conflicts and interweaving narratives. The premise of the show was that the fictional BBC show Time Busters had come to do an archaeological dig in Glastonbury in search of Arthurian treasures.

The episode was partially controlled and cleverly punctuated by a narrator at the lighting desk who kept track of the story and made suggestions for each scene. The actors on-stage would begin each scene with no idea of how their actions would shape the narrative and the scene would only finish when the lights were brought down. The narrator would also make suggestions within the scene to create strange new settings, flashbacks and fantasies, always with hilarious, and often ridiculous, consequences. For example, the heroic flashback scene in which Storm Cloud saves a squid from a harpooning, or a glimpse into the novel Eloise is writing… “It seems to be coming to life before her very eyes,” says the narrator and several characters jump up on-stage to enact her story as she writes.

The sometimes chaotic nature of the improvisation was grounded by the narrator who kept tabs on every love-triangle, every uncovered relic and every single character progression as the play hurtled on. And the sheer dedication of the improvisers to their individual characters made the story believable and gripping to watch. They barely faltered and were constantly inventing and entertaining.

A keyboard player also gave the piece a lively and engaging element, creating ambiance when needed – from gentle romantic music to protest marches.

In all, the Improv Marathon was an impressive display of the beauty and uncertainty of improvised theatre, as well as an impressive display of the actors sheer stamina and creativity. It was extremely entertaining to watch.   ★★★☆☆   Chris White   15/03/15