 "Photo: SCOTT KINTZEL/Northern Iowan")
A group with no shame met in the Communication Arts Center at the University of Northern Iowa Friday.
The No Shame Theatre meets every other Friday at 10 p.m. to perform poetry, skits and music. According to their Facebook page it’s “the best time you can have on campus without fearing arrest.”
Anyone who wants to perform can sign in with the name of their act before entering the room. The setup of the room is an open space with four chairs available for the use of the performers.
The chalkboard at the back describes the three rules for performing: The act must be 100 percent original, the act must be under five minutes, and the act must be physically harmless.
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/41978792@N07/sets/72157622654977259/show/" title="IMGP1806 by The Northern Iowan, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2663/4094501456_ca73a879bf.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="IMGP1806" /></a>
The lights flash to announce the start of the festivities. There is a welcome to all who came to either watch or perform, an overview of the rules and some announcements. The list of the events to be seen for the night is read by Jens Petersen, the production manager of No Shame Theatre, and then the audience does a loud drum roll. After the drum roll, performances begin. No Shame is informal and encourages the audience to be rowdy and loud.
“Recently I’ve been thinking about various things and it shows up in my writing,” one performer said before reading his poetry.
“No Shame is actually nationwide. It started in the back of someone’s truck,” Peterson said.
Petersen added that the 10th anniversary of UNI’s No Shame Theatre is next year. No Shame was brought to Cedar Falls Sept. 15, 2000 by Luke Pingel. It was originally performed in the Kamerick Art Building auditorium.
The very first performance and establishment of No Shame Theatre was Oct. 3, 1986 by Todd Ristau and Stan Ruth. It was in the parking lot of the E.C. Mabie Theatre in Iowa City in the back of Ristau’s pickup truck.
Ever since then, No Shame Theatre has spread everywhere. After an article in The Drama Review in spring 1990, No Shame spread to New York, Florida, Illinois, Texas, Alaska and even England. In 2002, even Iowa City High School started a “Yes Shame” to be performed weekly. It was deemed “Yes, Shame” because it had to be school appropriate.
The next performance of No Shame Theatre will be Nov. 20 at 10 p.m.
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