THE Orphans

By Don Weberg
Summer Forty-Niner

Slide by the seat of their pants, off-the-cuff, make-shift and uncharted are all ways to describe The Orphans of Cal State Long Beach. A comedy group worked by CSULB students, The Orphans are a small but up-and-coming improvisational group in the spirit of "Whose Line is it Anyway?"

With no corporate overhead, The Orphans have a little more freedom than its bigger competitors, allowing it a punchier, broader field of comedy. Consisting of nine players each with ties to CSULB, The Orphans started out small and humble in Escondido in the minds of two guys who grew up together.

"We were always goofing off and people loved it," said David Escobido, creator of The Orphans and a CSULB student. "I knew there was a market for us."

Tapping into that market proved easier than he thought it would, he said. Escobido approached the manager of a coffeehouse he frequented asking for the opportunity to have he and his friend perform comedic routines for the patrons and they were hired.

"I was kind of nervous," he said. "I wanted to be professional."

Since the opening stint at the coffeehouse, The Orphans' improvisational work has developed a name for itself and even collected some groupies.

"We have this one girl who has seen every show we've done," Escobido said. "She worked at the coffeehouse where we first performed."

Since the first act, The Orphans have worked its way to larger venues, including the La Jolla Comedy Store and the California Center for Arts Escondido. Its latest stint has been at The Edison Theater of Long Beach, where CSULB students are offered a discount on evening performances.

Part of the attraction to The Orphans is its basic nature.

"It was created with the regular guy in mind," said Escobido. "I saw a play called 'Take Five' and that's what inspired it."

Escobido saw "Take Five" each night it was open, studying differences from night to night.

Success doesn't come alone and when Escobido met up with Brian Kapell the group became stronger.

"I was working on a lot of projects when I met David," said Kapell, player and manger with The Orphans. "And when I started to work with him, he took
over a lot of responsibility, and it was great. It gave me the chance to be an actor again, not a manager."

Kapell took on the job of working in The Orphans and promoting its name with various sponsors and at downtown hotels where guests may want to take in a show.

"Management is not rocket science, but it's using various weapons to do the job," said Kapell. "David has been great to work with doing it, too."

Kapell is a veteran performer, having created the well-known Comedy Sports.

"It's been fun to share some of the lessons I've learned over 15 years," Kapell said.

A major part of the success with The Orphans has been the passion each of the players feel for the craft of comedy.

"It's great to see an actor with passion," Escobido said.

Actor Amy Louise Sebelius recently was accepted into a Shakespearean program in Alabama. She is excited but not looking forward to the leave of absence she will have from her "family."

"I love working with David, he's my cuddle bunny," she laughs. "He's a great coach with a lot of really good suggestions."

The Orphans' next performance will be Aug. 26 at the Hollywood Ha-Ha Store.