Sketch troupe Thank You, Kiss is doing two live shows at the ESL Rochester Fringe Festival — Friday, September 18th and Saturday, September 26th at 7pm at the Focus Theater (Sibley Building) — grab tickets for $18 at rochesterfringe.com and come laugh with them. What you’ll see is sketch comedy — everything is written, rehearsed, memorized and blocked — but a lot of those sketches were born out of improv jams, so the spirit of “in the moment” is still there even when the lines are not. For folks who aren’t deep into the lingo, improv can mean short-form games or long-form formats like the Die Hard Herald style John loves (think recurring scenes and theatrical storytelling), whereas sketch is more like a mini-play — planted, pruned and polished. We chat about how the group formed back in 2013, how we write together (bring your five-page “same joke” drafts and we’ll lovingly murder half of it), and why trust and tiny moments — timing, eye contact, that perfect grunt — make the whole thing sing. The Focus is a real hub for local comedy and classes — there’s even a free “improv plate” the first Saturday of every month where anyone can jump on stage — so after Fringe, consider taking a class; improv teaches listening, confidence, spontaneity and how to be less freaked out in real life. Come support local art, enjoy some weird meme-y sketches (our show’s title never quite matches the content — it’s our running gag), and bring your friends — parking’s easy nearby and the elevator noises are part of the ambience. Seriously, go to rochesterfringe.com, buy too many tickets, and they’ll see you at the Focus — they’ll promise to be funny, heartfelt, and mildly selfish with their favorite inside jokes.
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