imported>Randy Kryn: /* Shows */ direct link fix (Valentine's Day, not Valentines Day)

2025-02-15T04:52:09Z

Shows: direct link fix (Valentine's Day, not Valentines Day)

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'''SAK Comedy Lab''' (SAK) is a 250-seat [[Improvisational Theater|Improvisational Comedy]] (Improv) theater in [[downtown]] [[Orlando, Florida]]. SAK's most notable alumnus is actor [[Wayne Brady]], who has played as a guest player in several SAK shows since finding fame as a performer on ''[[Whose Line Is It Anyway? (American TV series)|Whose Line Is It Anyway?]]'', ''[[Let's Make a Deal]]'', ''[[Chappelle's Show]]'', and other projects.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sak.com/news.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070101041126/http://sak.com/news.php|url-status=dead|title=More News|archive-date=January 1, 2007}}</ref> SAK's regular performers are referred to as the SAK Ensemble.

SAK runs an improv training [[school]], SAK University (SAK U), which features four levels of core classes and two advanced Conservatory classes <ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.sakcomedylab.com/sakuniversity.php | title=SAK University - Improv Classes for All }}</ref>

== Shows ==
SAK's main show is the ''Duel of Fools.'' This show features two [[team]]s of three improvisers, one host/ [[referee]], and a piano player to add music. SAK will often feature a different ten p.m. show that offers a format other than the standard ''Duel of Fools''.

While ''Duel of Fools'' runs continuously, the club also rotates other temporary shows through its repertoire. These have included the 2007 ''Rub a Dub Dub'', a show in which players [[dubbing (filmmaking)|dub]] their lines over health films and [[silent film|silent movies]]. ''The Lost Comedies of [[William Shakespeare]]'', directed by David Charles in 2006, was a [[parody]] of Shakespeare's work, in which the performers synthesized a five-act play from audience suggestions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/orl-spottheater0806dec08,0,347520.story?coll=orl-calutil|title=Topic Galleries – OrlandoSentinel.com}}</ref> The show received positive reviews<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071001002605/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/orlandosentinel/access/1148680671.html?dids=1148680671:1148680671&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Oct+20,+2006&author=Elizabeth+Maupin,+Sentinel+Theater+Critic&pub=Orlando+Sentinel&edition=&startpage=54&desc=No+holds+barred:+Willing+wits+of+Shakespeare Orlando Sentinel review]</ref> from the [[Orlando Sentinel]]. The players created a [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]]-style musical in ''Fourplay: The Improvised Musical'', which ran during the summer of 2006. Also in 2006 were ''You Bet Your Asterisk'', an improv [[game show]], and ''SAK Request Live''.

Seasonal shows at SAK include variations on ''Duel of Fools'', such as ''Love for Fools'' ([[Valentine's Day]]), ''Yule of Fools'' ([[Christmas]]), ''Midnight [[Halloween]] Torture Show'', and ''[[Mardi Gras]] SAK Style''.

Other continuous programs include ''Lab Rats'', a show for invited graduates of SAK's improv training school, and ''Generation S'' (Gen S), a showcase of the best of ''Lab Rats'' and special invitees who are being trained to join the ensemble. The most recent showcase of SAK is "The Thursday Show" which takes classic improv formats but draws the cast from talent in their development program, consisting of top students from "SAK University". Together with a couple of invited professional performers, this new crew will create comedy on the spot based on audience suggestions.

== Company History ==

SAK Theatre began in [[Buffalo, Minnesota]] when a troupe of four individuals with a background in evangelical street theater began performing at the [[Minnesota Renaissance Festival]] in 1977. After a few years, opportunities arose for SAK to perform at multiple festivals simultaneously. The original troupe trained additional performers, and SAK grew from four members to twelve.

In 1982, while performing at a festival in [[Largo, Florida]], entertainment scouts from the [[Walt Disney Company]] came looking for entertainment acts to populate the World Showcase at the newly opening [[Epcot]] Center. SAK Theatre Company was now an official corporation and moved its base of operations to Florida.

For seven years, SAK produced, performed, and managed live audience participatory comedy shows for [[Walt Disney World]] in the [[United Kingdom Pavilion at Epcot]] and [[Italy Pavilion at Epcot]], as well as other shows performed in and around the parks. SAK also continued to appear at festivals, expos, and fairs worldwide well into the 1990s, employing over 30 full-time performers, production, and office staff.

In 1991 after the Disney contract ended, SAK Theatre Company opened the SAK Comedy Lab on Church Street in downtown Orlando. This first venue was a 99-seat theater dedicated to performing original comedy plays (many developed through improvisation) and improv shows. At this time, the SAK improv comedy competition, the “Duel of Fools," had started. Every Friday and Saturday night for the past 23 years, two teams of improvisers have battled against each other to see who could make up the funniest scenes, sketches, and songs based on audience suggestions.

It currently serves over 30,000 patrons a year, as well as Central Florida organizations such as the [[Orlando Magic]], Florida Hospital, and [[Darden Restaurants]] with its team training and corporate comedy shows.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.sakcomedylab.com/aboutsak.php | title=SAK Comedy Lab - Orlando's Best-Rated Live Improv Comedy Club }}</ref>

== Location ==
The original SAK Theater was located on Church Street in downtown Orlando. The company quickly outgrew the space and moved to its second location at 380 W. Amelia Ave,<ref>[http://orlando.about.com/od/comedy/qt/sakcomdey.htm SAK Comedy Lab]</ref> which led to parking difficulties during events at the [[Amway Arena]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nba.com/magic/fans/200607_Parking_Options_for_Ma-190227-801.html|title=MAGIC: 2006-07 Parking Options for Magic Games|website=[[NBA.com]] |date=November 7, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061107235033/http://www.nba.com/magic/fans/200607_Parking_Options_for_Ma-190227-801.html |archive-date=2006-11-07 }}</ref> In early 2010, SAK moved to 29 S. Orange Ave. in Downtown Orlando. SAK opened its current location in 2024, once again located on Orlando's historic Church Street Station area, in the 55 West complex of downtown Orlando.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2024/06/09/sak-comedy-lab-grand-opening-orlando-church-street/|title=Laughter, confetti mark SAK Comedy Lab's official return to Church Street|date=June 9, 2024}}</ref>

== Notable SAK Alumni ==

Many of SAK's former ensemble members moved on to careers in acting, film, and other performance roles. These include:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sak.com/wherenow.php|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070225110259/http://www.sak.com/wherenow.php|url-status=dead|title=The Extended SAK Family – Where Are They Now?|archive-date=February 25, 2007}}</ref>
* [[Dee Bradley Baker]]
* [[Wayne Brady]]
* [[Karey Kirkpatrick]]
* [[Jonathan Mangum]]
* [[Paula Pell]]
* [[Moira Quirk]]
* [[Aaron Shure]]
* [[Paul C. Vogt]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Official website|http://www.sak.com}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Drama schools in the United States]]
[[Category:Improvisational theatre]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Orlando, Florida]]
[[Category:Theatre in Florida]]
[[Category:1977 establishments in Minnesota]]

SAK Comedy Lab - Revision history

imported>Randy Kryn: /* Shows */ direct link fix (Valentine's Day, not Valentines Day)