Usles: Difference between revisions

USLES are the University of Sheffield Light Entertainment Society. They put on lightly entertaining shows bi-annually. Shows are most often [[Pantomime|pantomimes]], but have also included [[Sketch Comedy|sketch shows]] and comedy plays. All proceeds are donated to a charity chosen by the members of the society. Pantomimes are often performed to local children, including schools and special needs groups, with a [[Bowdlerise|somewhat edited script]] <ref> This generally involves removing the profanity and the more obvious penis gags.</ref>

In 2008 they started performing plays written by members of the society, and have continued this practice to the present day.

=== Shows USLES have written and performed: ===

* ''[[Peter Pan]]'' (Spring 2009, by Sam O'nion & Colin Whittle)

* ''[[The Little Mermaid]]'' (Spring 2011, by Tim Skew & Sarah Browncross)

* ''[[Trapped in TV Land|Beware of the Story Book Wolves]]'' (Spring 2012, by Amy Claire Thompson)

As most society members (and especially the writers) are total nerds, USLES plays are full of tropes.

* [[Abhorrent Admirer]]: In the grand tradition of pantomime dames, almost every man in a dress in a USLES production becomes this. Not to mention male villains such as Abanazar from ''Aladdin'', who are often this in their pursuit of the female lead.

* [[Absent-Minded Professor]]: ''Cinderella'' 's father, Jimothy Jamworth, was pretty much a [[Futurama|Professor Farnsworth]] [[Captain Ersatz]]. Professor Banbury from 2011's ''Frankenstein'' also epitomises this trope.

* [[Breaking the Fourth Wall]]: Frequently happens when [[Pantomime]] characters talk to the audience. "Hello, boys and girls!" is probably one of the most commonly used phrases in USLES scripts (and even when the audience is made up of students and the casts' parents, they are still 'boys and girls'). Sometimes subverted, as in 2010's ''Cinderella'' when Prince Charming and Dandini describe things which the audience can't see because they are "conveniently located by the fourth wall."

* [[Covered in Gunge]]: Slosh scenes are a staple of USLES pantomimes (and indeed most traditional pantomimes) - a scene in which two or more comic relief characters do something perfectly innocent like bake a cake or put on make-up, but end up covered in whatever messy stuff they're using.

* [[Deadpan Snarker]]: Advisors to flamboyant, oversexed or just plain stupid royals tend to be this. Dandini from 2010's ''Cinderella'' is probably the most notable.

* [[Double Entendre]]: Although a lot of the humour in USLES student pantos tends more towards single entendre, notable examples include:

{{quote| "Quiet, or I'll show you my JLS."}}

** When ''Cinderella'' 's sisters, one played by a woman and one by a man, are arguing over which is the cleverer of the two, the sister played by a woman claims that her pet cat (a graduation gift) is proof that she's the more intelligent: