In the Destination Imagination Global  Improv Competition in Tennessee, juniors Garrett Wiehler  and  Lincoln Robisch brought home first place and the Da Vinci award for their outstanding performance and creativity. They received a standing ovation at the student awards assembly on July 1.

The two have been friends since third grade. Lincoln and Garrett were part of the D.I. improv group in Green Valley Elementary School.

Wiehler and Robisch were both involved in theater in their freshman and sophomore years. Last year, Dan Henderson, the Regional Director of Maryland Destination Imagination Western Region asked them to participate in the 2015  improv. challenge.

Last year was the boy’s first year back as an improv. team, this time taking the stage with only each other. Each team was given one to two minutes to prepare for the eight-minute skit, and they loved the spontaneity of it.

During Garrett and Lincoln’s first year back to the Destination Imagination community, they placed first at Regionals, second at States, and seventh at Globals.

Even though up to six people can compete together as a team,  due to this year’s challenge of  “Close Encounters,” Lincoln and Garrett stuck with just the two of them.

Every year Destination Imagination gives out an award for extraordinary creativity, the Da Vinci Award. Lincoln said, “I’ve won it in 2nd grade at the States level. Once last year at States. And once this year at Globals.” 

Each team is given three minutes to prepare for their eight minute “Close Encounters” skit. In advance, the teams are given an option of 36 different confined spaces, and each team personally chooses 12  of the confined spaces.

As they are on stage, they are told their confined space and a News Flash of some sort.

The first place team was given the confined space of a shark diving cage off the coast of Australia and their News Flash was that snow would collapse the roof of their cage.

The crowd got a good laugh when Garrett was “warming up” and slowly rolled on the floor as the speaker was starting to explain their challenge.

All the teams have  had time to research the 12 confined spaces they chose. Not knowing which confined space they would get, they had to research all 12.

During their performance, the speaker gives them a “mysterious stranger” to include. Lincoln and Garrett got a “mysterious stranger,” a man on his wedding day. To keep enough room in their confined space, Garrett’s character went out of the cage to try and leash (with a newspaper leash and collar they made in their three minute prep time) the shark . . .Unfortunately Garrett’s character was eaten by the shark.

Wiehler came back into the cage, as the mysterious stranger who was VERY nervous on his wedding day. Lincoln encouraged the new mystery stranger to go out of the cage and catch that shark, “for the rest of his life” and get it to eat the snow off the stage.

With time running out, the mysterious stranger “manned up” and leashed the shark, saving the imaginary lives of both himself and Lincoln in the cage.

Immediately after the performance, the teams meet with the judges to talk about how they incorporated the stranger. There is a 300 point potential that each team can receive.

The categories that the judges think about are Overall Performance, Use of Props (newspaper), Confined Space, News Flash, Mystery Stranger, and Research (the more facts you use from your research about your confined space during your performance, the more points you get.)

Although they excelled past the other teams, the boys felt that they had weak spot in showing their confined space. To show the crowd and judges they were using less room than the regulations, they laid out two newspaper sheets on the ground which represented the space of the shark cage.

When Garrett and Lincoln placed first in the World Championship, the small group from Maryland, out of thousands of people at Globals, went wild.

“It’s a neat experience,” says Wiehler about standing on stage getting the recognition for their outstanding work. Wiehler said that even though it was very cool to have everyone cheer for them at Globals, it was an even greater feeling when his friends, peers, parents–many parents–and staff gave Lincoln and Garrett standing ovation at the awards ceremony on June 1st.

To celebrate all of the teams’ performances, there was a “duct tape ball.” All of the teams were wearing duct tape attire. Garrett and Lincoln were prepared and heading to the ball in style. Decked out in red and black duct tape covered suits, the boys caught the eyes of many.

Garrett’s mother, Marie Wiehler, is a first grade teacher at Green Valley Elementary, and she has helped the boys get to where they are now by supporting them as their Manager.

Finishing their journey in style, the two left a mark on the Destination Imagination Improv community and the community here at Linganore, bringing home a World Championship title to our school.