Tyler plays in Improv Sportz and our award-winning MainStage show. You can also see him performing at some local stand up venues. This Friday, he will be opening for an actress and comedian Loni Love at the Gillioz at 7:30 PM.
Where are you from and how did you end up in Springfield?
I got here by being born here and never leaving. There’s not much more to it than that. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life after high school so I stayed in town and went to MSU. I’m still here and still don’t know what to do with my life and I’m very happy.
Why did you decide to start doing improv?
Open auditions! I knew some of the mainstagers at this time from doing stand-up at The Skinny a while back, including Leah Gunn, who I forced into talking me into auditioning. And I made it and have been doing shows since.
More than anything, I like not having to prepare. I hate memorizing things. I also like getting to work with my friends (adorable!), and getting to come up with characters (ie The Popcorn Peddler, Gary Garrison, and Fat Tyler).
I don’t quite have this issue anymore, but when I first started I thought there were so many things I had to remember while performing. There are a lot of rules and necessities that go into certain games, and improv in general, that one typically would not realize just by watching others perform.
This is a tough question. I don’t really know which one I like more. My first love is stand-up comedy, though. That was my start in comedy, assuming anyone thinks I’m funny. It is hard to compare the two: it’s like comparing apples and David Bowie. They are very different formats, the inspiration comes from different places, the presentation is different, and the preparation processes are nothing alike.
The absurd. I like wild references/connections, the more ridiculous the better. If something makes me laugh and I can’t quite explain why it’s funny, then to me, that is REALLY funny. Arrested Development (the TV show, not the hip hop group), Stella, and really bad action movies (especially ones with Nicolas Cage) do a great job at making me laugh out loud.
In comedy, I’ve definitely studied a number of people and are continually influenced by them. This includes Zach Galifianakis, Mitch Hedburg, Daniel Tosh, Mike Birbiglia, David Sedaris, Jeff Houghton, as well as the other mainstagers and people I’m lucky enough to perform improv with. Oh, and my parents and grandparents. They are great people and are pretty freaking funny, too.
Pumpkin Pie concrete. Is that ice cream?
