UCB Cofounder Matt Walsh on Amy Poehler's Ascent, Improv, and His New Show Players

The comedian Natasha Leggero tweeted recently that "Stand-up comics did not get enough love from at least one parent. Funny people who were thoroughly loved by their parents become improvisers." Is that accurate?

Ha! That's a funny way of putting it. I'm going to guess that what she means is that... a lot of the people who end up doing improv are middle-class, college educated people who don't come from terribly damaged histories. Stand-up is more lonely. It's a little more punishing. You'd have to be tough, or you'd have to like that cruelty at times. At least in improv, you can have a crowd of people to hide behind. I mean, there's dysfunctional drinking and partying that goes on in improv, but I don't think it's as sadistic or masochistic, whichever one applies. It's a little more social. Like in Chicago, lots of people from big families do improv. I guess you're just used to dealing with people. Like, there's a certain social intelligence you need to do improv. I'm not saying you can't, but if you're a loner or you isolate, and you're in your own head a lot, you can write things for yourself and execute them brilliantly onstage. But in an improv show, you're required to deal with other people and build ideas with them.

Most people who go into improv seem to have a revelation after seeing their first show. Do you have a defining moment like that?

As an audience member, I do remember going to Second City, which was the only game in town, when I was a younger man. I feel like I'm sitting in a rocking chair looking out at my porch. "A younger man." I just remember during the improv set, like the sketch performance was brilliant, but during the improv set there was so much unbridled joy and freedom and expressiveness. I knew when I saw that... the aspiration developed then. There was a day where I did my first improv scene, and this was with a friend of mine who now lives in a little comedy ghetto. It just kind of clicked, where we were able to sustain a very funny scene at the time for three our four minutes without any script. It felt kind of magical, it felt kind of like being in tune with what I wanted to do. I remember walking off stage and saying there's no better feeling than being able to do that and make people laugh. I was hooked on it. I always say that's why I'm grateful to have a theater where I can provide that experience for new improvisers.

I've heard standups comics question the vitality of their medium. How would you describe the state of improv?

I feel like it's booming. People who come into our schools in New York or Los Angeles have done three or four years of improv out of college. I didn't have that. I went to Northern Illinois U. I went to one theater event where they opened up for people who wanted to do improv, and it was just dreadful. It was like, birthday party games. I wasn't very good at it either. I was just really bummed out. But now I think they're educated when they come in. They've seen a little bit on TV, they've done it many times on stage.

Amy Poehler co-founded UCB with you, and she starred in the Comedy Central series too. Is it strange to see her on Parks and Recreation, which is an arguably less-wacky acting venture?

On the sketch show, it was all scripted, so I think we all developed our acting ability there. And I think Amy did theater in college, so no, I see it as a logical evolution. And working at SNL is a daunting job. You really learn some invaluable skills, and you've got to build your confidence. If you can soar in this stressful live environment at such an epic pace, you walk away from that like a battlefield. Like, "I can probably do anything now." And Amy still improvises with us occasionally, so she still has her improv chops. Also, I'm sure her voice is in her character [on Parks and Recreation]. They know how to write for her voice. She probably cracks up when she sees it. I'm sure it's not a stretch for her.

Do you get a sense that Saturday Night Live is still the end-all be-all for sketch comedians?

I think now, I don't know of any better venue. It's still the focal point of late night comedy. It incorporates such contemporary performances; whoever is hot or relevant is hosting that show. The fact that they stay relevant to a young culture keeps them alive. I idolized Kids in the Hall when they started out, and they stuck together. I modeled my aspirations after that. Now, The Whitest Kids U Know, the Reno 911 guys to some extent had their own sketch show. That's the dream, if you can write and perform it yourself -- that's what the most fun.

Is there a movement in comedy that annoys you? Like, a certain brand of humor you don't like that maintains popularity?

I guess in terms of annoying or puzzling me -- and this is perhaps a grandpa point of view -- there's a certain ironic detachment that gets old very quickly. This postmodern detachment from doing comedy that comes across on a lot of new comedy. That puzzles me. It's lazy. You have to commit to the reality and you completely sell the reality they create, as opposed to commenting on it. Like, "This is a reality show." To me that's playing it safe. That'd be my annoyance. I don't enjoy that kind of comedy. There's a certain amount of bailing on the material. There's a commenting, "This is a terrible joke. This isn't happening. I'm dressed like a wizard, but I'm not a wizard, I'm just Joe." And that's where the laughs are coming from, the guy selling out the bit.

He's cheating.

Yeah. it's like commenting on the fact that I'm a performer doing a sketch. I'd rather see people really try to commit to that character, or that person, or that scene.

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