Another Man’s Trash is arguably one of the most popular clubs on campus. With 10 uproariously funny members, secret shows and generous contributions to charity, this improv group is going on 4 years of keeping Eckerd College in stitches. While we’re sad to be losing 4 seniors, Luke Jacobs, Elliott McDaniel, Spencer Weiss and Katie Austin, we can’t help but look forward to another painfully funny year of AMT with the addition of Geoff Fella, Michael Hemberger and Matt Walker. AMT has become a household name at Eckerd and with their season finale just around the corner (this Friday) what better time to feature them as our campus celebrities!
How was AMT formed?
Luke: Well, it’s a long story that started on a stormy night back in the fall of 2008…Well it was the fall of 2008. Jake Huzenis and I were in the same improv class where everybody could do improv but there were no shows, it was just kind of hanging outside of the library steps or in the studio. We would also play fun improv games. But he eventually decided, once we started getting more and more turnout, that we should have auditions for a performance group. And so he did that, and took the seven of us with him and six weeks after that we performed our first show and that’s kind of been the minimum, that everyone does six weeks before their first show.
What do you like about improv?
Colleen: Laughter!
Spencer: The people in improv.
Luke: Fame and fortune.
What do you think it is that makes AMT such an important group at Eckerd?
Elliott: I think it’s because we give the student body something to be excited about, something that they haven’t experienced before. We just provide a funny outlet for them to come to, where anything goes. It’s not structured, but it also is structured, so it’s not just people hanging out at Nu.
Luke: And for the people that do come to the shows, they keep coming back because I feel like we consistently deliver a good product.
Spencer: We’re also a little separated from the Eckerd institution and we’re mostly student run. I think that students really like to see fellow students doing something really cool.
Lila: And I think because sporting events aren’t so huge at Eckerd, this is something that is kind of school spirited that we can all do together. You can cheer and be rowdy, but it’s not a sport. So I think that the uniqueness of Eckerd people are the kind that would rally around improv versus a football game.
Alec: And a lot of upperclassmen who don’t go to campus activities or Palmetto events will sometimes come to our event, I think because it’s kind of rowdy but still laid back.
Where did the idea for the AMT grant come from?
Katie: We used to raise money for charities around the world.
Alec: We gave $500 from our last show to Japan.
Katie: So we were all talking one day and we were deciding where we wanted to give our money from our next show and I think Lila said, “Why don’t we ever do something for Eckerd?” And we started thinking about it and we thought yeah, we should make a grant for something at Eckerd. And there’s no money for the arts at Eckerd, so we wanted to incorporate that into something that the students could really use. And he [Vice President of Academic Affairs Breen Eitel] is matching us up to $1,000.
Lila: I think it’s important to not forget the community that you live in just because there are lots of problems all over the world. Not that you shouldn’t give to worthy causes but there are plenty of things artistically at Eckerd that need funding. I guess that’s what I was going for.
Spencer: There are other places that we’ve given to also.
Alec: We donated to Haiti.
Elliott: We donated canned goods to a homeless shelter for pregnant teenagers.
Luke: We’ve given to Haiti, Japan, the light board for the theater and new seats in Bininger. We don’t keep any of the money that we make from shows on campus. The only time we’ve pocketed money was for a professional show at the American Stage.
Lila: And we all got $12.50. It’s still in my car.
Colleen: I used the quarters for laundry.
What makes a successful improv show for you?
Luke: I think at the end of the show when we get a standing ovation that feeling that you rocked it, that they loved it. And we get that pretty often, it feels great. I mean, how many college students can say that they’ve performed in front of 200 or 300 people. Parent’s Weekend it was 400 students. To hear that much applause when you’re standing up on stage, for me personally and I think just for the sake of our group, it’s really an amazing feeling. When our members graduate from college they can say that they’ve performed in front of hundreds of people, I think that’s a pretty neat thing in itself.
If you could be stranded on an aquaglide in Frenchmen’s Creek with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?
Katie:Are they going to still be dead? Well if he could be brought back to life, then Kurt Vonnegut.
What do you sleep in?
Alec:Just my “I love beer boxers.”
Katie:Does it say love, or is it a heart?
Alec:Oh it’s a heart.
What’s your favorite part of an AMT show?
Spencer:It might be getting off…a scene. Getting off a scene.
Luke:We’ll let you figure out the meaning behind that.
Spencer:I like when there’s a snap moment during a scene where the people on the stage are on the same page and they know what’s going on and they begin to have so much fun while they’re performing. Then, coming off the stage when the scene is done and high-fiving, that good feeling that you did something great with another person, that’s always key. I feel like another one of the best things is when you feel that connection to somebody else and that you’re creating something with that other person.
Where is your favorite place on Eckerd’s campus?
Colleen:The picnic tables at Galbriath.
What is your favorite improv game?
Michael:The “Yes, let’s” game. It’s something that involves everybody…it sort of keeps you on your toes. What we do is we say “okay let’s go to the store” and then everybody says, “Yeah! Let’s!” So we all go and each person has their own thing that they do at the store.
Where do you draw your inspiration from? What inspires you to do improv?
Elliott:I guess I draw my inspiration from making people laugh, because it’s fun.
How was the AMT audition process?
Geoff:Pretty painful. I hurt my elbows really bad and the scrapes are still there. I was in a scene with Karate Kevin and the word was peacock. He just screamed peacock and I had no idea what to do, so I just jumped to the floor and I got really bad rug burn on my elbows. So I would just like to point out that I am physically superior to other people. Other than that though, it was a really nervous process. It was nerve-racking. Other than the pain, it was enjoyably nerve-racking and I still get this feeling every time I’m going up, this jump in my stomach that usually goes away after enough times but it’s still kind of there. I love that feeling. It’s sort of an adrenaline rush, a nervous feeling, and it was huge in auditions because you still feel like your work is being judged, your process in a way-it’s a lurch.
What is your perfect date?
Matt: There’s this Hawaiian fusion place down in Tampa, well up in Tampa. It’s so good. And a romantic comedy–anything with Hugh Grant. Nine Months, About a Boy…
Alec: So Outback Steakhouse and anything with Hugh Grant?
Matt: Yes.
What’s your favorite pick-up line?
Lila:Well I’m the kind of person that, literally any pick-up line you try to use one me, just by being a pick-up line, I will reject you for. That’s the kind of girl I am, there’s not a pick-up line I like. I think a guy who can be more original than a pick-up line is attractive
Alec:So you want the first line to never happen?
Spencer:But what if it’s not a pick-up line? What if you’ve just never heard of it before?
Lila:That’s true. I would like the kind of pick-up line that’s original and not cheesy.
Elliott:Hey, shorty!
Don’t forget to check out the Her Campus Eckerd event of the week, the AMT Season 3 finale at Bininger! Like them on Facebook, buy their cool t-shirts and come out and “get trashed” with AMT!