Larry Brill & The Next Chapter

On Sunday afternoon we played host to something rather… Brill-iant (sorry, you knew it was coming): an afternoon with author Larry Brill and the frolicsome folks from the Next Chapter improv group. Let’s take a look at some footage from their assorted escapades…

First up, Larry Brill introduced us to his new novel, The Patterer, a satirical tale set in the murky world of 18th-century London journalism. Brill spent twenty-five years as a news anchor, and his experiences in the newsroom inform his comic take on Dickensian media mores. The main character of the novel, the excellently named Leeds Merriweather, is the eponymous “patterer,” someone who sells newspapers by standing on a busy street corner shouting out the horrifying headlines of the day to passersby. To read the part of Mr. Merriweather, Larry called on his friend Bobby Post, who did a suitably tip-top job of channeling the charming Leeds.

Next up, our team of intrepid improvisers explained their process: writers in the audience would be selected at random to read a short excerpt from their work, and Next Chapter would then improvise a skit inspired by the material. First name out of the lucky red cup? Austin icon John Kelso, who has been writing a humor column for the Austin American-Statesman since 1977.

For rounds two and three, please welcome Lester Morris, followed by Janet Christian.

And last but assuredly not least, we have Angela Smith, who read from her forthcoming book, Women Drummers (working title: Badass Lady Drummers). Her piece focused on the legendary Teresa Taylor, aka Teresa Nervosa, a drummer for the Butthole Surfers. It’s safe to say Next Chapter had a lot of fun with their take on Ms. Nervosa…