Emotional Context: Committed emotion is all the “what” and “why” a scene needs. What’s extra fun is that, when we do have emotion, that emotion can add/change the meaning of our words and heighten the depth of our scenes. EMOTIONAL NURSERY RHYME – Around a circle, a player recites a common nursery rhyme with an […]
Emotional Character Development: We don’t need it “all figured out” the moment we step on stage. Make one choice and then build other choices on top of that choice. We can start with emotion and build the details of our character around that. Or, we can start with a detail and build an emotional character […]
Emotional Matching: If we agree, we can just be; we don’t have to explain or defend. Have fun just being emotional together, trusting that your commitment to the same emotion is all the context for your relationship that’s needed. EMOTIONAL CHAIR PASS – It’s like hitchhiker, but just two people, and the suggestion is an […]
Emotional Scenes: “How we feel about who we are, where we are and what we’re doing,” and “How we feel about who our scene is, where they are and what they’re doing” should be our focus in improv scenes. Let “How we feel” trump all else, especially plot and “sense.” Suggested Exercises: “I [FEELING] YOU.” […]
Objective: When we see, touch, smell and REACT to our environment, the audience can, too. If nothing else, be deliberate - your commitment to engaging the environment will enable the audience to accept any weird ass thing you do.
Mime: Weight, volume and tension are the key characteristics of a mimed object that help players and the audience “see” the object. If nothing else, be deliberate - your commitment to engaging the environment will enable the audience to accept any weird ass thing you do. Suggested Exercises: INVISIBLE TUG OF WAR - Everybody has […]
You Are Not What You Do: Let your miming inspire a scene but do not let it dictate the scene. When you and a friend engage an activity, how much dialogue goes to discussing that activity? Do you talk about doing the dishes while doing the dishes? Mime gives us something to do so we're […]
Beyond Objects: Environment is about more than objects. What sounds fill the space? Ambient noises? Loud music? A series of unexpected explosions? What about the atmosphere? Is it hot? Raining? Low gravity? Suggested Exercises: SOUNDSCAPE – Sit players in a circle, give them a location and have them build out the noises of that location. […]
Objective: How we feel about our scene partners determines a lot of our scene. Emotional agreement is strong default. But our characters needn’t always align. We love tension. We can do conflict. But we should be wary of argument, negotiation and head-butting. Active scene elements, relationship stakes and a willingness to lose ensure our scenes […]
Relationship Stakes: Our “What” is emotional reactions to active elements. Commitment and repetition are the only “why” we need. But “Because” can elevate the emotional stakes of a scene with context. “Stakes” come in many forms – and we want to apply emotion to all of them. “I’m embarrassed to be seen in this Slayer […]