“I guess this is the place.”
10 minutes walk away from Shinjuku Station on a rainy evening, the dark sky covered the faithful night for all those returning for the call-back audition a couple of weeks later.
Arriving way too early, I walked around the blocks, predicting what will be tossed at us for this final audition.
“Freeze tag is a classic… but no, we did that last time. Repeating it would not make sense… Maybe something with more instant character-building?... Probably something musical as well……”
As my mind was cluttered with all the improv games I have seen on TV over the past decade, the time struck, and I opened the door to the audition that would decide everyone’s fate.
“Hi! Thanks for coming.”
There was no grand welcome upon the door being opened. No loud announcements. In fact, not all the pirates were there yet, as a few trickled in after the group of auditionees.
“Grab a chair, make a big circle, and have a seat. The washroom is in the back.”
The first interaction was with one of the Pirates when he went around to other pirates and then to us auditionees too, passing out a couple of chocolates to us.
“Souvenirs from another Pirate!” Said calmly but with a bright smile.
Some Pirates were slowly putting their jackets away and others sat among us. The famous and fabulous Bill walked in with his coffee in hand. He sat close enough to me that we started chatting about where I had first heard about the group.
Compared with the first round of auditions at the Tokyo Comedy Bar, this was a very different atmosphere. We had as many pirates at auditionees, yet it felt very close and relaxed. Most importantly, I felt like this represented what the Pirates really are like as a group. We had not started the auditions yet. However, the bonds I could observe the Pirates have with each other, how they were reaching their friendliness out to us, and even how we were sitting in a circle as equals, everything reconfirmed my wish to be a part of this group.
Mike as the leader then gathered our attention and began.
“First off, welcome to the call-back auditions. Also, congratulations on passing the first round. This will be the final round with no further call-back call-back auditions. What we want to do today is to get to know all of you better and have a better understanding of your skills, so that we can determine how well you would fit the Pirates.”
All our heads followed his finger as it pointed to a whiteboard behind us.
“We won’t be going through all 13 games on the board, but you will get to try some of them, both with each other but also with the Pirates. Unlike some of the warm-up and practice games we did at the first audition, these are all games we actually play on stage, so you will also get a better understanding of what we do when performing in front of an audience.”
It made sense. Now that we were down to 10 auditionees or so, there was time to closely observe each of us in 5-min games individually. Performing with the Pirates was also to test our compatibility with the group. After all, a group like this was not only about individual skills, but also how well we could work together on stage to create a scene together. While thinking about all of that, I was just excited that the Pirates were going to join in as well. Even if I was to fail the audition, I would have gained the life experience of improvising with a pro. That personal win was a guarantee.
I recognized some of the classic games on the board such as Dating Game and Press Conference, but others like Chain Murder Mystery and Ping Pong Ballad were unknown to me.
“Let’s start with White bread scenes. Who wants to go?”
Rather than assigning people or even explaining what it was, Mike just opened the floor up for volunteers. I popped my hand up immediately. Jumping out of my comfort zone was what I was here for, and I just could not wait to get started. Bill joined in, and it was a scene between a boss and a subordinate. No roles were assigned.
“Go.”
My mind simultaneously went blank and was filled with ideas. The scene went on with ideas bouncing back and forth, each of us reacting to the other. Eventually, the scene reached an endpoint, and the next volunteers were asked up. A couple more scenes happened, then we moved on to another game. Then another. Then another.
The hour flew by after we played four games. The auditionees were tired mentally and physically, but very satisfied. I thought, “this feeling of creative fun is exactly what I have been searching for.”
Mike wrapped the audition up by thanking us once again for attending and letting us know that we will be contacted in a week or so. They had not decided on how many people would get in. It could be everyone, it could be zero, and it was time for us to leave so the Pirates could discuss their thoughts.
Outside the audition space, the sky was dark but the rain had stopped. A couple of other auditionees and I stood outside.
“This was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it!”
“You were all amazing, especially when you responded with that unexpected line.”
“I really like that particular game. It was a challenge, and I want to get better at it.”
As we slowly made our way back to the station, we parted ways with:
“I hope to see you again, together, on stage.”
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With that, here we are.
After years of waiting, here I am.
The two I talked to in the end, I, and a couple of others passed the final audition and became the new Pirates, joining the force of Pirates of Tokyo Bay.
We are practicing every week, identifying our weak points, learning to work with each other, and cultivating our skills. We are slowly earning our spots in games on stage and earning our opportunities to perform for you.
Personally, I am still far from being a good improviser or even being comfortable on stage, but that is exactly why I joined in the first place. It is a brand new experience beyond my comfort zone so that I could discover and appreciate a new part of myself, and I am enjoying every moment of it.
We hope you will come to check out our show and continue to support us. More importantly, we hope you will give us a chance to bring you joy and laughter through our performances.
See you at the next Pirates of Tokyo Bay show!
Get tickets here: www.piratesoftokyobay.com/tickets
