This week, I had a chat with a very funny improviser, sketch performer, stand-up comedian and co-creator of Soda Fountain, Nathan Hare. We talked about his journey through comedy, taking his work on the road, and which bombs are best.

A Student of Comedy

Growing up in Kelowna, Nathan discovered his love for comedy by watching SNL and listening to comedy podcasts throughout high-school. As the end of these studies grew near, his passion grew until he left home and began his post-secondary journey at The University of British Columbia. He chose to major in English Literature and minor in Creative Writing, but more holistically Nathan said, “I just remember coming into university being like, I want to do comedy”. In addition to honing his writing through his formal studies, Nathan also joined the UBC Improv team in his first year to begin exploring his own comedic style. He admits that while he was excited to make the team, it “hadn’t really clicked” for him over his first few shows. This changed when Nathan turned 19 and was able to see improv by The Sunday Service.

I don’t think I could properly sum up all they have accomplished, but if you’re not familiar with The Sunday Service I highly recommend you check them out. I’ll also mention that while they haven’t been able to host their weekly shows at the Fox Cabaret, they have been putting on some great digital shows throughout social isolation. Watching them for the first time was a formative moment for Nathan; he shares that after this performance he realized that “this is the sort of improv I want to do”. With this fresh in his mind, he began evolving his own improv at UBC and enrolled in both improv and sketch classes at Blind Tiger Comedy. All things considered, Nathan is one of the most comedically educated people I know. When I asked what drew him to try sketch comedy, he said that much like The Sunday Service was a huge influence on his improv, watching The Hero Show was an equally inspirational push to explore sketch. Things have come full circle as he has now performed at both of these shows, as well as creating, producing and hosting his own monthly show, Soda Fountain.

Soda Fountain

During his time studying at Blind Tiger, Nathan met fellow student Graeme Achurch. After collaborating with one another throughout the program, they decided to continue working together after classes ended. Eventually, this led to their desire to create their own monthly show: Soda Fountain. When I asked Nathan the story behind this name, he told me that they were “brainstorming off of nostalgic words” to find something “fun and youthful”. However, he remarks that their struggles to capture this spirit felt like a bad marketing meeting because they were “so out of touch” with the values they were trying to embody. Graciously he also offered up some names that were left on the cutting room floor, including “Good Times” and “Heaven”; the latter rejected because they “thought it sounded too much like a rave from the early 2000s”. Cue boots and cats.

Soda Fountain would have celebrated its 2 year anniversary show a few weeks ago, but due to the obvious circumstances, it had to be postponed. However, running a show for 2 years is definitely something to be celebrated. They have also taken their show on the road to Toronto, and Nathan cites this as one of the highlights of his journey in comedy. Being able to travel and have success in a new place with fresh audiences showed him that “I’m not limited to the city I’m from,” and this is something he would like to do again in the future. I’ve seen their show several times and was fortunate enough to have a spot on their show last year. Nathan and Graeme have a comedic style and flow that is truly unique, and I highly recommend checking out Soda Fountain upon its return. They have put their blood, sweat, and tears into this show, and how dare you think this was a cliché?

If you were in doubt, Nathan shared a story that will put to bed any suspicion of hyperbole. He tells me that prior to one edition of Soda Fountain, he was unloading beer from Graeme’s car. As Graeme went to close the trunk and go back inside, Nathan’s head was still in the swing path of the door. Gravity and mass did their thing and Nathan was left with a gash on the top of his head, moments before the doors were slated to open. After a quick visit from an ambulance, Nathan was checked out and eventually cleared to perform. However, he admits that “we sounded insane” as they recanted this story to an audience who was not prepared for an anatomy-themed opening set. However, this turned into a one-of-a-kind show as they decided to forego the written material they had prepared, and instead “made the whole thing about how I had cut the top of my head with this car door”. You just never know what you’re going to see with live comedy.

Improv v Sketch v Stand-Up

With experience in several realms of performing, I asked Nathan about his favourite and least favourite aspects of improv, stand-up and sketch comedy. Perhaps non-surprisingly, bombing was a common con between all three, but he tells me that not all bombs are built equal. For example, Nathan says that in sketch, audiences can be less forgiving to a bomb due to the written nature. He says that some particularly critical audiences have reacted as if to say “why did you think this was funny, you had [an] infinite amount of time to prepare”. However, managing a bomb in improv comes with a completely different set of difficulties. Nathan says that while audiences may be more forgiving due to the format, it can be “especially humiliating because you’re pretending to be like an alien or something like that”. Lastly, we agreed that the individual aspect inherent to stand-up made this bomb uniquely difficult. He says that since “you don’t have someone to share the highs and the lows,” it can be tough to bounce back from.

However, we did not dwell on the lows and moved to Nathan’s favourite aspects of these styles. Out of the three, stand-up is his newest pursuit as he began performing in the fall of 2018. He tells me that the ownership he feels with his tested and proven material is what he likes best, along with the simplicity of the presentation. Moving to sketch, his favourite part is the collaborative nature of workshopping sketches with his fellow writers and performers. He enjoys fleshing out every nuance of a scene and working together to create a story as a team. This collaborative aspect is also Nathan’s favourite part of improv comedy; he simply says that “when you’re on a roll in improv, that’s the greatest feeling”.

When we discussed his personal style of comedy, Nathan admitted that “I don’t know if my stuff is really that traditional,” but that is my favourite part about watching him. Whether its improv, stand-up, or sketch, go check him out as soon as you can. He told me that he hopes to venture into film in the future and add yet another feather to his comedic cap. Hopefully, we will see the return of both himself and Soda Fountain soon, but in the meantime find him on Twitter and Instagram to stay updated and entertained. Thanks for reading this week, and we’ll see you at the next one!

-BF

If you missed last week’s article with Skye Portman, here is the link!

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