Improv Everywhere founder on their latest Spontaneous Musical viral video
(CBS/What's Trending) - The web's favorite improv troupe, Improv Everywhere, delivered another viral hit today with their impromptu musical at the GEL Conference in New York City.
If you haven't heard or scene anything about the group, this "Gotta Share" video is definitely the place to start. Poking fun at our social media obsessed culture, the Improv Everywhere crew surprised the tech conference when they broke out into a song about our digital lives.
Founder Charlie Todd answered our questions over email about their latest stunt. What's Trending: What was the idea behind this Improv Everywhere video?Charlie Todd: This was the fourth in our series of Spontaneous Musical projects. I'm friends with Mark Hurst, who runs the GEL Conference in New York, and I pitched him on the idea of staging a musical at the conference, surprising the audience. He agreed!
WT: How long does it take to orchestrate something like this?
CT: We worked on the project over the course of about two months. I met with my super talented songwriters, Scott Brown and Anthony King, and we brainstormed ideas. Then they went off and wrote the hilarious song. We had three rehearsals with the cast the week of the performance.
WT: Are you ever nervous of something or someone messing up the entire thing?
CT: We were definitely more nervous for this one than for our past three musicals. Usually we are in a public place with lots of turnover, so we're able to run it multiple times. For the conference we only had one shot to surprise the crowd. Fortunately we worked with awesome actors who didn't let us down.
WT: At this point, is this a full time job for you?
CT: I do manage Improv Everywhere full time, yes. I support myself mostly through touring to college campuses and international festivals.