Arianna Griffiths, Editor-in-Chief —-

Hundreds of alumni, family, and students filled the pews in Swasey Chapel on Nov. 2 for the 45th Anniversary performance of The Burpee’s Seedy Theatrical Company. Roughly 70 Burpee alumni traveled back to The Hill to join the current Burpees onstage for a night of improv games and college nostalgia as laughter rang throughout the full house. 

The Burpee’s Seedy Theatrical Company is the oldest collegiate improv group in the nation. It was founded in 1979 and has continued its legacy with auditions every spring and traditions such as their 24-hour improv show that raises money for charity and their Halloween show that always takes place in Denison’s cemetery. 

The current Burpees began the anniversary performance by rushing the stage while waving red-and-white pom poms and honking their iconic horn. They then introduced the many classes of Burpee alumni in reverse chronological order as each group of classes ran out on stage to join them, striking poses and jumping in the air with excitement. Among the returning Burpee alumni was Steve Carell ‘84, who had the opportunity to reconnect with his Denison classmates and fellow Burpees throughout the weekend.

“It was incredible to watch different generations of Burpees improvise together and to see how the ethos of going ‘out on a limb’ has carried on over decades,” said Burpee Jess Cohen ‘25. 

The performance included a variety of improv games such as “Story, Story, Die,” “Slides,” “Questions,” and “Town Hall,” with various alumni taking turns welcoming the audience to shout out locations, occupations, activities and more in order to compose an improvisational scene.

In the “Town Hall” improv game, the mayor, played by Burpee alum Phoebe Martin ‘24, was faced with the satirically pressing problem that the Cadbury chocolate bunny is not a real bunny. The audience’s suggestions comprised the ideal solution: This problem could only be solved by convincing everyone in the town to eat more Jell-O. The Burpees alumni improvised as they came up with hints for the “mayor” to guess what the problem was as bursts of laughter echoed throughout the room. 

“I loved how the Burpees experimented with unique characters while maintaining determination to collectively guide our guesser towards the correct answer,” Cohen said. 

At one point during the performance, the co-chairs of the event, Erin Roberts ‘02 and Michael Piper-Younie ‘00, asked for a popular movie and an activity to prompt Burpees to act out an imaginary scene based on the movie.

After the suggestions of backgammon and “Despicable Me,” Carell sprung into action and addressed the crowd as the character of Gru, whom he voiced in the actual movie, as he commanded his crowd of minions. Burpee alumni knelt on stage as minions as they listened to his improvised instructions to put their goggles on and collect backgammon sets in order to achieve Gru’s famous goal of taking over the moon. 

“The audience was lively in their interactions with the Burpee alumni, so it made it much more enjoyable! Overall, seeing Steve Carell improvise a short scene from ‘Despicable Me’ was epic as it reminded me of the joy the movie brought to me as a kid,” said Teresa Collins ‘28. 

The current president of Burpee’s Seedy Theatrical Company, Caroline Concannon ‘25, said, “This reunion has been an experience that this group will never forget.”

“Feeling how intrinsically alike we all are, especially the 80s Burpees and the current Burpees, brought out the unconditional Burpee’s bond in the most heartwarming way. Having friends return and getting to meet the friends that we never knew we always had allowed us to fully realize the feeling we’ve had our whole time being in the group: being a Burpee is a lifelong privilege that we’re extraordinarily lucky to have,” Concannon said.

James Anderson ‘85 was among the returning Burpees and also is on the Board of Trustees for the university. 

“[It felt] exciting, exhilarating, [and] a little daunting since I had not been onstage in 40 years, but the fun of doing Burpees when I was here as a student immediately came back,” said Anderson. 

Burpee Lilah Landsman ‘25 said, “Reuniting with the Burpees this weekend was a remarkable experience. It made me very grateful that I get to be a part of this particular group on campus. Watching my alumni friends get up onstage and do improv again was so special, and getting to meet so many other burpee alumni was fulfilling. As new members come in, our improv traditions persist. The biggest gift I received this weekend was realizing that I get to continue to be a part of this community for the rest of my life.”

This reunion of the Burpees is an example of an affinity reunion, which is available for any student organization to gather its alumni and reunite as a group to bond over their shared college experiences and the love for their organization. Strengthening the traditions and bonds between alumni through family-friendly experiences has remained a main goal of the Office of Alumni and Family engagement. The Burpees anniversary performance was just one of several affinity reunions this Big Red Weekend, with another being BSU’s 55th Anniversary.

Heather Maciejunes, Associate Director of Signature Events in the Office of Alumni and Family Engagement said, “It was a really good turnout. I think there was a lot of energy behind it, and, honestly, I think Steve is just, kind of, the icing on the cake. I think, honestly, they are all there to see each other and see their friends, and he is just one of their crew, and so it was great to see it all come together.”

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Cover Photo: The Burpee’s Seedy Theatrical Company performed onstage in Swasey Chapel on Nov. 2. Red sweatshirts denote alumni status, and those wearing colorful bowling shirts are current Burpees.

VINTAGE PHOTOS OF BURPEE’S SEEDY THEATRICAL COMPANY:

As a celebration of the 45th anniversary, here are some historic photos of the oldest collegiate improv group in the nation, founded in 1979 at Denison. Photos courtesy of Heather Maciejunes.

Above: 1980’s Burpees holding the original Burpee horn.

Above: The Burpees in 1988 pose as a group on South Quad.

Above: the original horn used by the Burpees. A similar horn is still used today as a way to signal the end and beginning of each improv game.

Above: The Burpees in the 1980’s, featuring Steve Carell ’84, all performing together.