"Now I'm the mayor of Superior! I don't give a f---!"
Welcome to the world of Renegade Improv.
Scenes like this were present all throughout the night on Saturday, March 30. Jody Kujawa, Evan Kelly, Tony Mayer, Cory Anderson and Mallory Berg were all on the stage. The five of them, along with their referee, Jordan Curtis, performed on stage before a sold-out audience.
The night was rambunctious and energetic, with the audience screaming out suggestions for the players to use.
Renegade Improv had very humble beginnings. Kelly said that the show first began outside of an old store called Pageant Works back in 2008. After the store closed down, the Teatro Zuccone picked up the group, and the rest is history.
"It's fun because it's so cooperative," Mayer said.
Kelly talked about the freedom he has when he's up on stage. Improvisational comedy means that there is no script, no pre-set sequence of events. Everything that happens on stage comes from the moment.
"You can get up there and do whatever," Kelly said.
The basic rules of the game are this: There are two teams competing for points. Points are doled out based on audience response. Whichever team the audience laughs and cheers for the most receives the points. Whoever has the most points at the end of the night wins.
On Saturday, the Blue Team won, which consisted of Jody Kujawa and Evan Kelly. They played against the Red Team, consisting of Tony Mayer and Cory Anderson. Mallory Berg was the floater, which means she was free to play on either team, depending on the circumstances.
The jokes ranged from sex jokes to jokes poking fun at Superior, Wisc., to a joke where Kelly had to play a black-again Michael Jackson. It's a show that has to be seen to believe.
You know you have something special when the night ends in a freestyle rap re-telling of the story of Curious George.
When asked if he thinks improv comedy is easier or harder than scripted comedy, Kelly paused for a moment, thinking.
"It's easier in the sense that people don't really have expectations," Kelly said.
Even after the show, the comedy didn't end. The group has a very friendly relationship, consistently able to joke around with each other and have fun. At one point during the night, they said the troupe was actually from the year 2015.
"We started an improv troupe that traveled back in time," Kelly joked.
Renegade Improv has shows every Friday and Saturday night at 10:30 p.m. at the Teatro Zuccone in Duluth. Tickets are five dollars per person. They also have a Facebook page, which includes the players for each night of improv.