Imagine all of the funniest people you’ve ever met together in one place and Cale Evans said you’ve got the Lee Street Theatre improv group Now Are the Foxes.
“Everybody’s got that funny friend that they think should be a comedian,” he said. “If you take all the funny friends from different groups, you’ve got us.”
Evans formed the Salisbury-based group after performing improv with Charlotte Comedy Theater.
“I wanted to bring improv to Salisbury because it’s something a little bit different than what we typically offer,” he said. “It’s not a play and it’s not singing.”
Evans originally envisioned members of the Charlotte group traveling to Salisbury to perform, but discovered enough comedic talent right here.
“We’ve got a couple of regulars from Piedmont Players and we’ve got some who have never performed on stage before,” he said. “We’ve got a very diverse group.”
The group, which had no name at the time, performed for the first time about two years ago at Looking Glass Artist Center’s black box theater.
“It was originally only going to be that one show, but the audience had a great reaction,” Evans said. “After every show we’ve done we’ve had people raise their hand and say “Hey, I want to do that too.’”
The group of about 20 includes people from Salisbury, Charlotte, Huntersville, Mooresville, Hickory and Statesville.
“As we’ve grown, we’ve drawn talented people from all around the area,” Evans said.
Evans said the name Now Are The Foxes comes from an ancient Inuit expression that means, roughly, “Not pleasant to look at but has good sense of humor.”
The group will perform at Looking Glass at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 15 and 16.
“Improv is all made up on the spot, so we have no idea what’s going to happen,” Evans said. “It’s all based on what the audience gives us to work with.
“The show is different every night for every audience.”
The show is called “Sweet, Sweet Comedy Love.”
“It’s right after Valentine’s Day, so we’ll have a lot of relationship games, we’ll put member of the audience up on stage and have them talk about relationships, we’ll do musical games focused around love songs,” Evans said. “It can be a date night destination or a night out for the clinically single.”
Evans, who had performed with Piedmont Players, said he got started in improv because of a friend.
“I took a class and it was really a different skill,” he said. “I’ve got a very corporate job and here is a place that encourages you to get out of your own head and create in the moment.”
Evans compares improv to the creative process of writing. The main difference, he said, is that you’re doing it on stage with other people.
“It’s a very collaborative art,” he said. “You really have to be connected with people on a different level because you’re creating the same story at the same time with the same characters, so you have to be in sync.”
Salisbury favorites Jacob Asher and Brian Romans will be returning to the stage, Evans said. The show will also feature newcomers Tyler Weant and Josh Wainright.

Contact Sarah Campbell at 704-797-7683.
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Details

Who: Now Are The Foxes

What: Comedy improv
When: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 15 and 16

Where: Looking Glass Artist Center’s black box theater
Cost: $10 at door or make reservations by calling 704-798-7768.
More info: leestreet.org or email info@leestreet.org
Show sponsored by Cooper’s, The Gathering Place.