Andrew is an improviser, writer and composer. He’s trained at UCB since 2015 and travelled the world doing comedy festivals. He performs Musical Improv, Regular “Talkie” Improv, and writes and performs Hopefully-Better-Than-Regular Musicals.
Heated Rivalry:The Musical Parody! turns the beloved queer hockey love affair between Shane Hollander & Ilya Rosanov into a live stage parody packed with original songs, camp sex jokes, clever stage and sight gags and at it’s heart, a real earnest romance.
This show lovingly spoofs a hugely devoted fandom — how do you balance poking fun at the source material while still giving audiences the romance they’re secretly rooting for?
It helps that we love the source material. With any comedy musical though, there has to be heart. If it’s all jokes then there is nothing for an audience to attach to. And this show has two very adorable and earnest love stories at its heart. While we certainly make fun of the bits that caused an eyebrow raise (banana smoothies, obvious gym romance cues and one-note side characters) we treat the romance as romance.
Quick and Funny Musicals are known for creating shows at breakneck speed; what was the most ridiculous idea that somehow survived the writing room and made it onto the stage?
I’d say top contenders for that were: humans playing Peloton bikes, our Intimacy Coordinator song or our all ensemble number “F*** Him Up the Butt”.
With songs, scandals, sex jokes and a surprising amount of hockey, what element proved the hardest to get right without completely losing control of the chaos?
The simulated sex. It would’ve been easy to have half the show be mostly naked men doing the whole of the Kama Sutra. But finding the right balance took some calibrating.
The show celebrates queer love stories through comedy — why do you think laughter can sometimes be the most effective way to tell heartfelt stories about identity and acceptance?
Identity and its exploration is by default messy. It’s hard and riddled with contradictions and questions. Even when you feel secure, you are still growing. And messy is funny. The human condition IS funny. So comedy allows us to be truthful about that while also making the messy something joyful rather than traumatic. It makes it relatable to someone who may not have your specific experience, but has something close in their own experience.
The cast comes from Broadway, television, comedy clubs and social media; how has that mix of backgrounds shaped the energy and style of the production?
Everyone in the company has trained at the Upright Citizens Brigade. So we are a group of comic performers first and foremost. But the benefit of broadway and television training gives our shows that showmanship that you don’t get from sketch or improv teams. We’re still scrappy, but we choreograph and teach each other. It’s steel sharpening steel.
For audience members who know absolutely nothing about hockey but love a good musical comedy, what is it about this show that will have them cheering from the sidelines by the final curtain?
It’s just a damn good time. You can’t be in the audience without a smile on your face. The songs wink to the show but have their own funny games. The romance will leave everyone rooting for Shane/Ilya & Scott/Kip. The cast is stellar and you can see the joy they have performing this show with each other. And honestly, this show has about the same amount of hockey as the TV version so…not a lot!