James Murray, Joseph Gatto, Michael Boccio and Salvatore Vulcano want to make you laugh, but they don't want you to think they're funny.

The four Staten Island performers comprise the new comedy improv troupe the Tenderloins, which makes its New York City debut tomorrow night in an original show at the Producers' Club in Manhattan.

"The troupe's a failure if someone's able to pick out who's the funniest," Gatto explains.

"You trust in your fellow improvisers that what happens is going to be funny," Murray, who directs the group, adds. "Improv is about trust, it's not about being wacky on stage. Humor is the by-product, not the goal. What you're trying for is to be real and truthful. Then the scenes will be funny by themselves."

The Tenderloins is made up of front row, from left, Sal Vulcano, and Mike Boccio; and back row, from left, James Murry and Joe Gatto.

(Advance Photo/Hilton Flores)

The quartet met as students at Monsignor Farrell High School (Class of '94), and reconvened post-college last year to form the troupe back on Staten Island.

"Not many people are good at improv," Murray warns. "You need to be extremely open minded, very optimistic and trusting. It's more important than being funny -- if you think you're funny, you won't work in a troupe setting. What you're working toward is group mind, when all members are acting as one individual. You begin to think as one, you just know where the scene is going."

The show includes short sketches and a screening of a 15-minute short comedic film, "Espionage."

And the Tenderloins' specialty, the "meat and potatoes" of their act, is a specific brand of improv comedy, called "long form" improvisation (in particular, the "Armando Diaz" variety), where they improvise a 45-minute-long series of monologues and scenes based on a suggestion from the audience.

They take their inspiration from the New York-based troupe, the Upright Citizens Brigade, and the Chicago-based pioneers of the long-form style, ImprovOlympic. Murray, who led his own improv group at Georgetown University, trained with ImprovOlympic guru Del Close and has passed on the techniques to his cohorts.

"We really don't have anything prepared when we get on stage. It's whatever comes to mind," Gatto promises. "It's all about the rules of what makes good improv."

Tomorrow night's shows are sold out, but the Tenderloins return to the Producers' Club, 358 West 44th St. between Eighth and Ninth avenues, April 15 with shows at 8 and 10 p.m. Tickets are $10, and reservations may be made by calling the director at 212-404-3900, ext. 1830 or visiting the troupe's website at www.thetenderloins.com.