If the American version of ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' is anything like the original British improvisation show, expect the unexpected and be prepared to laugh.
"'Anything can happen,'' said Ryan Stiles, a comedian who has appeared on the British show, stars in the American version and is co-executive producing the new show with Drew Carey. ''It's an odd thing that here we are with a new show about improvisation and that's all TV was 40 years ago.''
Laura Hall will provide musical accompaniment for sketches such as when guests are asked to sing a song about plumbers to a reggae beat.
The new show was devised when Carey went to see Stiles - who plays Lewis on ABC's ''The Drew Carey Show'' - improvising at a Los Angeles comedy club a few months ago. Carey and Stiles began talking to their mutual friend, Dan Patterson, who created the British show with Mark Leveson (originally, for radio).
''From there, it took off real quick,'' Stiles said, calling recently from his California home. Within two months, ABC had picked the show up for a summer run after Carey's Wednesday night sitcom. News that the show was going into production here spread quickly among ''Whose Line?'' fans on the Internet. "'They're fanatical,'' said Stiles. ''They're mostly college kids, with the odd housewife thrown in.
They flew in from all over to be in on the taping of the shows.'' In fact, he said, there was room for 300 fans, but there were 700 requests for tickets. "It's kind of neat, but kind of scary,'' he said about the show's loyal following. ''I mean, they even know my kids' names.''
Stiles has made contact with several of the online ''Whose Line?'' Web sites, but since he doesn't own a computer, his interactions are infrequent. Much more Web-savvy is fellow Canadian comedian Mochrie. On one Web site devoted to Stiles and Mochrie, ''Two Tall Guys'', Mochrie even took the time to answer fans' questions.
Stiles has been doing stand-up comedy since 1979 in Vancouver. By 1989, he was a member of the acclaimed Second City improvisation troupe when he heard about auditions for the British ''Whose Line?'' show.
The British version of ''Whose Line?'' has won four CableACE Awards (Best International Comedy and an International Emmy. ''Whose Line?'' suits Stiles' comedic style. ''I really prefer physical comedy and the energy you get from it,'' said the lanky, 6-foot-6 Stiles. The shows feature different games that the contestants perform. Carey, playing the counterpart to British host Clive Anderson - will rate the performances and declare a winner at the end of the show.
For tomorrow's episode, games include the popular ''Party Quirks,'' where Carey will name a party host who must guess the quirks of his ''guests'' based on suggestions from the audience. The premiere show features Brady and Proops. Other segments include ''Let's Make a Date,'' where one performer tries to guess the odd characteristics of the other performers through ''Dating Game''-like questions; ''Sound Effects,'' where Mochrie must act out a scene while Stiles provides improvised sound effects; ''Hats,'' in which the performers take turns ad-libbing lines inspired by a variety of weird, wacky and outrageous hats; and ''Greatest Hits,'' in which Brady must spontaneously sing songs based on a certain topic, much like a greatest-hits record commercial.
The shows are taped live, meaning that whatever goes wrong, goes on tape.
''Everything you're seeing is exactly how we did it,'' said Stiles. ''There's not second time or third time to get it right. If something doesn't work, you just have to live with it." Stiles, who enjoys the ''Whose Line?'' games involving music, said trusting the other performers is the key to good improvisation.
Each half-hour episode takes about two hours to tape. The best games are selected for the show that airs.
Stiles said Carey, who got his start in stand-up comedy, has been getting more and more into improvisation. Carey even is trying his hand by performing improv at L.A. comedy clubs.
