Hyprov review — bizarre hypnosis show gets the audience improvising Just for Laughs festival, London Comedian Colin Mochrie and mesmerist Asad Mecci pitch suggestible stooges into sleepy routines - but though the format is promising, the results are uneven. It ’ s standard for improvisers to begin by saying, “ I have no idea what the hell is going to happen. ” This time, it may be truer than usual, as Whose Line Is It Anyway? stalwart Colin Mochrie kickstarts a new format combining improv and hypnotism. The first third finds Toronto mesmerist Asad Mecci casting his spell over audience volunteers. The four most suggestible stooges are then pitched - while half - asleep - into improvised scenes with Mochrie. If you ’ ve ever watched improv and wished the performers were on quaaludes, this is the show for you. That ’ s not to suggest it ’ s not funny; it sometimes is. But there are significant teething problems. A hefty portion of the show is devoted to Mecci hypnotising his subjects, a process that - because he speaks in meditation - tape cliches; because his weird cadences suggest a Muppet impersonating a robot - I for one found profoundly unrelaxing. More of a problem is that hypnotised audience members don ’ t make particularly effective improvisers. There are flashes of comic life: a volunteer expressing surprise, to Mochrie ’ s mock - horror, that Canada has a military; another getting maudlin when it ’ s suggested his lame horse be put down. These are the moments the show needs to mainline: the innocence and artlessness are distinctively comic. No one ’ s trying too hard to be witty. But - tonight at least - they ’ re few and far between. More often, the volunteers are docile, obliging Mecci to keep issuing instructions or new ideas from the sidelines. Elsewhere - perhaps wary of seeming exploitative, or concerned the hypnosis might wear off - he brings sketches to an end just as they ’ re coming to life. That the whole thing stays afloat is down mainly to Mochrie ’ s amused good cheer, as he engineers opportunities for the stooges to be funny, and sustains a running commentary on the oddity of the event. It certainly is odd, and may yet work. The theory - that subjects of hypnosis are uniquely open and suggestible, just like the best improvisers - is credible. But tonight, they mainly seem sleepy. Read more reviews about Hyprov: • Showscore.com: https://www.show - score.com/off - broadway - shows/hyprov • Nytimes.com: https://www.nytimes.com/ 2022 / 08 / 15 /theater/hyprov - comedy.html • Wsj.com: https://www.wsj.com/articles/hyprov - review - improv - under - hypnosis - asad - mecci - colin - mochrie - jeff - andrews - jo - winiarski - rufus - wainwright - stan - zimmerman - 11661463122