This Saturday at NCT: A Morning Improv Workshop, an Evening Comedy Show, One Mesa Stage
At 11 a.m. this Saturday, a small group of improvisers will walk into NCT’s theater in downtown Mesa, pick one imaginary room, and refuse to leave it for thirty minutes. At 7:30 that same night, a different crowd will fill the same seats for a show we ourselves have described as “slightly bonkers.” Same stage. Same Saturday. Two completely different reasons to be there.
That’s the thing people don’t always realize about a an improv theater: it runs on two engines. One is the shows — the ticketed nights where you sit back, suggestion in hand, and let the performers do the hard part. The other is the classroom — the workshops and classes where the people who’ll be on that stage someday actually learn the craft. Most weeks at NCT those two worlds run on separate tracks. This Saturday, May 30, they happen twelve hours apart in the same room. If you’ve been hunting for comedy shows in Mesa, AZ — or you’ve been meaning to finally try improv yourself — this is a great place to start. Here’s the show, the workshop, and how to tell which one is for you.
The show: The *Slightly Uncensored Show, Saturday at 7:30
NCT’s improv runs all-ages most weekends — the Competitive Comedy Show is usually all ages and very suggestion-driven. The *Slightly Uncensored Show is its saucier cousin, and it only comes around once a month. It’s still improv: still built entirely from audience suggestions, still unscripted, still no two shows alike. To picture what that actually produces: recent NCT shows have given audiences a gorilla trying to hide its fur on a first date, a power ballad titled “Five Minute Pee,” and a detective scene built end to end around the line “I need your gun and your badge” — none of it planned, all of it pulled out of a one-word suggestion. The Uncensored version keeps that same engine running and just loosens the collar. “Slightly bonkers, because there’s still a line” is how we put it. Doors open at 7:00, the show starts at 7:30, you’re out by 9:00pm…ish — an easy date-night length. Bring someone Bring a friend, bring an enemy, just dont sit with them ; audience participation means you are part of the show.
The workshop: The Monoscene, Saturday at 11
Earlier that same day, NCT runs a workshop called The Monoscene: Staying In. A monoscene is a long-form improv exercise: one location, one stretch of real time, no scene edits, no blackouts. You and your scene partners commit to a single room — a kitchen, a hospital waiting room — and build a whole story without ever cutting away. It sounds simple. It is not. The entire skill is in the staying: when a moment lands awkward, you sit in the awkward instead of bailing to a quick joke. This one is aimed at people who’ve done at least a little improv and want to stretch — NCT slots it on the “Performers” track, not the total-beginner track. Expect a couple of focused hours, one form, and real feedback in the room. Sign-up runs through NCT’s class page, linked below.
Watching and doing are the same muscle
Here’s why these two share a post: they’re closer than they look. The thing that makes The *Slightly Uncensored Show land at 7:30 — performers listening hard, building on each other, never bailing on a scene — is the exact thing the Monoscene workshop drills at 11. Watch a show and you start to see the moves. Take a workshop and you start to feel what’s happening. It’s no accident that a lot of NCT’s audience members eventually wander into a class, and a lot of students keep their seats on show nights. So which Saturday is yours? If you want a night out — low commitment, lots of laughs — take in the show. If you’ve already got a little improv under your belt and you’re itching to actually do the thing, take the workshop. And, if you’re brand new and a workshop feels like a big swing, start in a seat on Saturday night, then check the calendar for a Level 1 class.
Where is NCT located?
NCT shares a space with The Sacred Pint Taproom in Downtown Mesa.
When head in and look for the secret door marked with our logo.
You’re exactly where you need to be!”
Can we get tickets at the door?
Yup, but its always way faster to buy them online.
Is there a drink minimum?
Nope, there is no drink minimum but supporting the sacred pint would be cool.
Where do we park?
There are over 5,000 FREE parking spaces available in Downtown Mesa every day!
Is there places to eat downtown?
Heck Ya! Here are some awesome restaurants in our Neighborhood.
Wanna learn more about NCT?
Check out all the cool live shows and Improv classes we do.