by Elizabeth Flood

The pandemic forced the University of Maryland’s only improv group online. It’s emerged resilient — and is now gearing up for its 24-hour hour show.

Erasable Inc. has been performing on the fly for 36 years. It is the second oldest university improv group in the country, behind the one at Yale University in Connecticut, said Rahul Jain, one of the group’s creative directors studying aerospace engineering. 

Club member Yair McCoy, a junior computer science major, was looking for improvisation groups when he arrived on UMD’s campus. He said he ran a simple Google search and Erasable Inc. came up. 

“I went to tryouts and was hoping for the best,” McCoy said.

Auditions occur every fall. Auditioners are taught a series of improv games and exercises, and the current members and creative directors look for core values in improvisation in each individual. 

“A question we get a lot is, ‘if you’re an improv group, then why do you need rehearsals?’” said Jain. “Rehearsals are meant for us to come together as a performance group.”

At Erasable Inc., the group considers improv to be not just comedy, but a form of theater. Their rehearsals are meant to hone in on these performative skills and to build off of fellow members’ skills. 

The club doesn’t follow a typical leadership structure.

“The club is very democratic. Everyone gives their input, and a decision is made based on how everyone is feeling,” Jain said. “Creative directors are the closest thing we have to a president, but they are really only responsible for planning the rehearsals.” 

Lesley Porterfield, a sophomore member studying education, said that the bonds between members are cultivated through rehearsals. 

“Our members get very close throughout the process. We all really trust each other,” she said. 

McCoy said that he was really looking for a social circle within Erasable Inc., a place where he could meet friends, and that is exactly what he got. 

“When we perform together we all really support one another. We always interact as close friends outside of rehearsals,” McCoy said. 

Visits from graduates are also frequent. 

“The home within this club is always waiting for them when they return,” McCoy said. 

During the pandemic, far fewer students tried out for the group and restrictions forced the club to miss out on their annual trip to Chicago, where they attend workshops and watch live performances. 

The club continued to practice during the pandemic — but outside and wearing two masks, said Jain.

Erasable Inc. continued to put on a show every Friday afternoon — but outside of the Clarice instead of inside. 

“There weren’t many people on campus, but the performances were more so for us, and the few students who were on campus during the pandemic,” Jain said. “People are sick and tired of Zoom, so it was important to us to continue our performances in person.” 

Now that the campus is back to its usual capacity, its members are looking forward to their longform performance at the end of the semester, which are performances with the entire group that last for a few hours, and collaborative shows with some of the other comedy groups on campus. 

And at the end of the spring semester, Erasable Inc. will perform their annual 24-hour show, which is where they perform for an entire day and night straight to raise money for various charities. 

“It is definitely hard, but it is also extremely rewarding,” Jain said.