- Duke University Improv
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Duke University Improv (DUI) Name Duke University Improv (DUI) Formed 1990s Location(s) Duke University Website http://www.dukeimprov.com Genre(s) improv Duke University Improv (DUI) is Duke University's only improvisational comedy troupe.
Contents
About the Group
Humble Beginnings
DUI was founded by a handful of freshmen in the fall of 1996. There have been 39 members in DUI's history, with alumni spanning the globe and many still performing. Some of its alums are members of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York, while others are members of The Second City and iO (formerly Improv Olympic) in Chicago. DUI performs roughly 40 improv shows per year for packed crowds. A typical show includes 10-12 short-form improv “games” similar to those performed on the television show Whose Line Is It Anyway? Some of DUI’s larger shows also include a mix of long-form improv scenes, scripted sketch comedy, and videos. The most well known of these shows is the aptly named Big Show, offering an evening of top-quality entertainment to a consistently sold-out crowd of 1,200 people in Duke’s Page Auditorium. Big Show has become famous for incorporating various campus and national celebrities, including basketball stars Shane Battier, Jason Williams, Nolan Smith, Lance Thomas, Kyle Singler, Jon Scheyer ESPN announcer Dick Vitale and Duke President Richard Brodhead. In addition to its performances across campus, DUI has also performed in venues in New York, Washington D.C., Florida and Chicago.
Rise to Fame
In the fall of 2007, sparked by an abundance of creative ideas and several members who were interested in filmmaking, DUI decided to produce original online content for their website and YouTube channel. The first video, “Dumbledore Gimme More” was a breakthrough success both on campus and across the country. DUI’s second online video was "My New Haircut: Asian Edition,” a Far East themed parody of the popular “My New Haircut” video. This video quickly became a viral video sensation on YouTube and across the Internet, spawning dozens of other “Haircut” parodies. The video amassed over 2 million views in its first three months, and to date has been viewed by over 5 million people worldwide. As a result of these and other online videos, DUI has been featured in The New York Times Magazine and Sports Illustrated blogs.
Giving Back
Shortly after DUI began performing regularly on campus, the group was presented with the question of what to do with the money they were raising from their performances. Several of the members’ lives had been touched by cancer. Scott Carter, younger brother of Cason Carter, a founding member of DUI, had died in 1993 after a three-year battle with bone cancer. His parents had founded the Scott Carter Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research, and it was unanimously decided that DUI would donate every dollar that it ever raised to this cause. Each August, DUI presents the Foundation with a check at the annual Scott Carter’s Heroes Golf Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma. All proceeds raised through its performances, approximately $10,000 per year, are donated to the Scott Carter Foundation for Pediatric Cancer Research. Throughout its history, DUI has raised and donated approximately $100,000 to this worthy cause.
Members
Current members
- Wes Peacock (T '12)
- Kyle Glackin (P '12)
- Robert Zaleski (T '13)
- Julianne Kolb (T '13)
- Hunter Douglas (P '13)
- Devon Cottle (T '14)
- Jonathan Wilkins (T '14)
- Keegan Cotton (T '15)
- Nick Chilson (P '15)
- Lawrence Nemeh (T '15)
- Thomas Kavanaugh (T '15)
Alumni
(By Year Joined)
- (1996) Cason Carter, Harris Brodsky, John Grant, Matt Kovalick, Nupe Mehta, Porter Mason, Scott Hecker, Sean Loughlin
- (1997) Flynn Barrison, Andy Cies
- (1998) Bobby Jones, Dana Vachon, Laura Bronner, Tom Cass
- (1999) Bret Runested, Seth Weitberg
- (2000) Greg Anderson, John Marnell, Paul W. Downs
- (2001) Rob Painter, Jeremy Chapman
- (2002) Caroline Haubold, Ryan Welsh, Andrew Humphries
- (2003) Steve Cox, Laura Pyatt
- (2004) Brandon Curl (T'08), Matthew Manocherian (T'08)
- (2005) Lawrence Chen (T'09), Alex Berghorst (P'09), Brett Aresco (T'09), Andrew Tutt (P'09)
External links
- DUI's Homepage News, videos, photos, auditioning information and much more.
- DUI's YouTube Channel All of DUI's hilarious videos.
- In the New York Times Blog
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