The Formative Years of Graceann Dorse

The Clique, IRTE's next show, opened Saturday, August 3rd 2013. The last performance (unless we bring it to a festival) is Saturday, August 17 at 8:00 pm. It's about those high school years we all remember and love so well. At the top of the show, our principal, Jeff O'Leary will interview a member of the audience about their high school experience. So, to be fair, we decided to interview some of the cast members of The Clique before we subjected anyone else to such experiments.

This time we hear from improvisor Graceann Dorse:

BIRTE: Where did you go to high school?

GRACEANN: Bishop Hannan High School in Scranton, PA. It's now a defunct, empty, two-story 60's style building. It was right in the middle of downtown Scranton, so sometimes there were homeless dudes hanging out on the front steps. And because it was a Catholic school, everyone felt bad for them and didn't want to chase them away because Jesus would probably have been cool with homeless guys near 16-year-old kids, right?

Car Bouncing Valedictorian

B: Who were your friends? Were you part of a clique?

G: I guess I was part of a clique in the general sense of the word, but we were not exclusive jerks, which is the intended meaning of the word. I was friendly with everyone. I performed social osmosis with the fluid grace of mitochondria, or whatever performs osmosis. My "clique" consisted of pretty normal people, speckled with some dorks of all kinds: comic books, drama (me), and grunge. It was the 90's and my friends were the type of people who watched The Crow thirty-six times. And we never drank. Instead we would get a Little Ceaser's pizza and some Shasta (I think that's a local thing- it's just really bad and cheap soda) and would drive up to the top of this mountain and look over the city all lit up. One time, another car drove up, which never happened, and we wanted them to leave. So we all got down and started bouncing in the car to make them think there was naughty stuff going on. The other car drove away, probably because they were just lost and not necessarily because they were scared by a bouncing car.

B: Did you ever get bullied/picked on by someone?

G: Just my own fear of failure, and the constant stare of the Virgin Mary.

B: Did you ever get sent to the Principal's office?

G: Once.... to be told I was the valedictorian. Boo ya! High school was great. Everything else since then has been a slow downward spiral.

Check out The Clique Saturdays August 3 - 17 8:00 pm at

Gotham City Improv
48 West 21st, 8th Floor - Buzzer #801
New York, NY 10010
212-367-8222

Tix: $6

Reservations: IRTEinfo@gmail.com

Special Discount!!!: $3.00 for High School / College Students with advance
reservation.
$3.00 for groups of 3 or more with advance
reservation.