By Terry Massey

The decision is in, and it is unanimous: mixed martial arts is a huge hit on the Grand Strand, and not just the haymakers that are thrown in the cage.

More than 3,400 fight fans packed the Myrtle Beach Convention Center on Saturday night to see the Bash at the Beach, MMA's first foray on the Strand.

MMA, which pits fighters from various fighting disciplines, such as kick boxing, wrestling, karate and jujitsu, is the fastest-growing sport in the world.

The sport only became legal in South Carolina in 2010 and promoters were lining up to be the first to cash in on MMA's booming popularity in Myrtle Beach. Judging from the sellout crowd and the warm welcome the event received, there appears to be a new sport in town, and it isn't going away soon.

”We are thrilled with the turnout and the reception we've received in Myrtle Beach,” said Joel White, director of sales and marketing for Carolina Fight Promotions, which put on the event. “We had about 3,500 and the local sponsors were so good to us. We'll definitely be back in the near future.”

By Lauren Poster

Gina Trimarco is not your average transplant. Relatively new to the area, she has brought with her not the desire to wait tables, or go to college, or even to complain about the native southerners while she relaxes in a “more bang for your northern buck” condo. Gina instead comes with an infectious desire to spread some creativity on the Strand, leaving it better than she found it, and maybe just a little bit funnier, too. Founding the Carolina Improv Company in November 2008 with a class of three students, Gina pinned her life on a shoestring and a dream. Performing “like gypsies” wherever they could over the next year, the company has grown to include a cast of 12 regular comedians, finding a new home at the Uptown Theater inside the Myrtle Beach Mall. This is 100 percent Gina’s baby. In addition to hosting comedy events, she hopes to offer live music and art exhibitions in order to foster local talent.

When I arrive at Uptown to view a performance of the troupe, Gina approaches me immediately with a friendly, “I’m at your disposal!” She carries with her a permanent little radius of warmth that makes you instantly receptive to whatever she has to offer. This approachability is well earned. Over the course of her career, Gina has worked on the business end of all types of entertainment venues, including extensive work with live theater. Studying at the Second City conservatory in Chicago during college (Second City is famed for producing a string of successful Saturday Night Live performers), she became enamored of improvisational comedy. Loathe to commit to a life as a “starving artist,” she turned her interest in the arts to more practical matters, like promotion and business accounting.

Perhaps her arrival in Myrtle Beach catalyzed a sort of “sea-change” in Gina; just a year after arriving on the Strand, she left a steady job behind and set her sights on realizing her dream. Clearly missing the lively entertainment scene of her native Chicago, she wanted to apply her business expertise to making something happen locally.

“People kept telling me, ‘this is the beach; it won’t work,’” Gina said. But she wasn’t buying it. Her refusal to settle is paying off. Since their opening in November of last year, performances at the Uptown (which seats about 50 people) have been selling out, even turning patrons away once or twice. At this stage, Carolina Improv Company is not a huge moneymaker. Whatever is earned from the shows gets reinvested into operations. In fact, tips donated to the volunteer staff behind the modest bar go to a rotating list of local charities. Currently, most of CIC’s revenue is generated from the classes Gina teaches throughout the week. Individuals can sign up for a six-week course in improv for $150. Performers at the shows are volunteers selected from Gina’s pool of promising students, all of whom have day jobs in a variety of demanding professional careers. The cast features everything from educators to pediatricians and I.T. workers.