by Jay Gish
In general, the people of Anchorage, Alaska display no discernible accent. I have to admit that disappointed me, just a little. Travel’s that much more interesting if things sound different, in addition to looking and feeling different, in my opinion.
But beyond that, Alaska does not disappoint.
Jill Fenstermaker, Tom McMahon and I were sent up there a couple weeks ago as the long form trio Yippee Kayak, on behalf of C.I.C., to perform a weekend of shows with Anchorage’s leading resident improv troupe, Scared Scriptless.
Scared Scriptless primarily performs short form improv, but the group has recently begun wading into the immense waters of long form. As you might imagine, with Alaska’s remote location, there’s not a whole lot of improv to experience up there. That’s why they’ve been arranging to bring groups up from the long form mecca of Chicago this summer, to perform with them at the Wild Berry Theater.
And it’s a blast. If anyone else gets a similar opportunity, I recommend it. The people of Anchorage, and especially our hosts in Scared Scriptless, could hardly have been nicer. One of them actually volunteered as our guide for a day-long glacier trip. And when Jill and Tom insisted on visiting a “genuine Alaskan dive bar,” they helped us satisfy the quest, while also managing to limit the likelihood of anyone getting knifed. (No, I never felt threatened, while we were there. But I also can’t name a knife particular to Chicago, while all Alaskans can readily name the “ulu” as their unofficial state cutting tool. Makes you think.)
And, to further illustrate the niceness – our performance was attended by both the woman who ran our bed & breakfast (Irene, who could’ve easily decided she was too busy to spend her evening at a show, especially on a weekend), and another couple who happened to also be staying there. Granted, the couple was actually from Portland, and Irene is Dutch. But I think that just goes to show how the Anchorage sociability infects everybody.
This is to say nothing of Alaska’s crisp, wild beauty. If anyone needs a reference point from here in the “Lower 48”…the Anchorage area roughly compares to Lake Tahoe, I guess – only more diverse, more authentic, more laid-back, and far less annoying. Which is to say, awesome.
Big thanks to our Alaskan friends for the experience, and I hope to see some of them down here, sometime. Maybe we can’t match their mountains or abundant seafood. But we can try to nourish them another way…we can show ‘em a heck of a lot of improv.
