Pirates of the Dotombori

By Japanzine Staff

Hey Mike! First off, introduce yourself and tell me what you’re up to in Japan.

Born and raised in Minnesota, Mike Staffa is hardly the sea-faring vagabond you'd expect to find captaining a pirating vessel. A veteran of the international comedy scene, however, he is the perfect helmsman for an improv comedy troupe, and that's exactly what he's been doing for the last 3 years in the comedy basin of downtown Osaka. Founder and performer with the celebrated Pirates of the Dotombori group, we successfully boarded his mighty schooner (all euphemisms unintended) and made him walk his own plank (seriously...)

So your group is called...

Pirates of the Dotombori, yes. We had some other ideas for names like Death by Squirrels, Clockwork Banana or Studio 805. In the end we chose Pirates of the Dotombori because Pirates of the Caribbean is so popular here, and we put in Dotombori to give it a local Osaka flavor. We wanted the Japanese translation of the name to be quick and easy to read. 

When did it start?  

I started the group with an initial ad asking for anyone interested in learning improv back in December of 2005. I remember meeting a few people in Ame-Mura and talking about their interest. There were 7 original members (of which 4 are still performing). I initially thought I would be teaching improv to beginners, but I quickly realized that we could actually put on a show. Our first show was May 14th, 2006 at Balabushka’s in Ame-Mura.

Can you explain improv comedy a little? Not everyone's hip to the lingo!

Improv comedy is completely unscripted (improvised). We perform short-form improv (similar to the old TV show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?). Short-form improv works in short, 5-minute scenes based on audience suggestions. The audience gets involved with each short scene, yelling out words and ideas that we use to inform our performance. The more active the audience, the more fun the show, and each show is completely different. The unique thing about our group is that we are the only bilingual improv group in Japan. This means, at the same show, the audience will hear Japanese and English games. Our paid shows are bilingual and 2 hours long, a perfect place to take a date. At these paid shows, we have also introduced a Japanese manzai group called Nijuumaru to open for us. We also have free experimental shows that are in English only. At these shows we practice new games with new performers.

Is improv big in Japan?

Improv itself is not very big here. Tokyo has The Comedy Store, which is a great group, and we represent the Kansai area. There are also some strictly Japanese groups too, but improv is very new to Japan. Comedy itself has a large base in Osaka and lots of comedians speak the Osaka dialect, something we have worked hard to learn as well.

How many people are in the troupe?  

Currently there are 12 members.

What kind of people? Only Gaijin?  

There are 7 countries represented in our group - Canada, Chile, China, England, Japan, New Zealand, The USA. 3 of the 12 members are not native English speakers. 

What kind of people come out to the shows?

The fans are always a mixed group. At the biggest show we had 185 people crammed into Balabushka’s. 60% of our audience are female, and there are always lots of Japanese that come to our shows. I have seen 7 year-olds at our free shows and 85 year-old guys at our paid shows! We have done shows at Osaka Castle, US Army bases, the Osaka Mayor’s Mansion, and throughout Japan. We have also done some fun promotional events.  We had 175 people freeze for 5 minutes at the Hankyu Umeda station and put a video from it on our website.  

Any big events readers should watch out for?

We have a bilingual comedy show at Club Pure in Soemoncho, Osaka on Sunday January 18th. The doors open at 7:30pm and the show starts at 8pm.  It’s ¥1500 to get in, and you will get a free drink! Grab a free beer from the great Club Pure staff when you enter, or get a mixed drink with a Shark Energy Drink with Vodka from our sponsor. We are also always trying to get more people involved with our promotional events. We are planning a giant Capture the Flag in Osaka in the spring with two teams spread out across Osaka playing a massive urban capture the flag. Check Facebook for our page. 

Lastly, how can people get in touch with you or find out more information? Any websites or email addresses etc?   

Check our website, and go find us on Facebook. We are also on Mixi and the other networking sites. Anyone can email us at piratesquestions@me.com. 

www.piratesofthedotombori.com

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