THE
BEST OF THE BEST SKETCH FEST 2004
THE BEST
OF THE BEST SKETCH FEST
Thursday, July 14th, 2004
Justin Wescoat Sanders
“Sketch comedy is the
thing that doesn't quite fit in. It doesn’t get
listed with theater, but it's definitely not improv either.
We like to say it's like Saturday Night Live, but funny."
So says Ted Douglass, cast member of Portland's 3rd Floor
sketch troupe, and also, along with fellow cast member Andy
Buzan, mastermind behind this weekend's second annual Best
of the Best Sketch Fest. Last year, to combat their chosen
art form's outsider status, the duo brought together eight
practitioners of the craft from around the country, for one
big weekend of sharing and camaraderie.
"We thought we were going to get 30 people and be
embarrassed in front of our national friends," says
Douglass. Instead, both nights of the show were sold out,
and this year should be no different, as six of the
original eight groups will be back, with a ninth one thrown
in for good measure. Quality, however, has not been
sacrificed in the name of quantity. Douglass and Buzan
didn't use "best" in their event's title just because it
rhymes with "fest"; it has practical value, too.
"We've gone out to all these various festivals [with The
3rd Floor]," says Douglass, "and the good to bad ratio is
oftentimes less than favorable because the festivals accept
taped submissions and on tape you can make yourselves look
as good as you want. So we picked groups that we have seen
in person, and can attest to being great."
Said groups include the Chicago group Cupid Players, whose
every sketch is performed as a musical; and the two-man Los
Angeles act Brychael, whom Douglass describes as "a sketch
comic's favorite" because "they're so weird and out there."
Every group is of course guaranteed to be good, however, so
you can't really go wrong. Or you can just buy a festival
pass and see all of them.