It's 2020, my friends. And my curriculum needed to get with the times. Goodbye, Dukes Of Hazzard. Goodbye, s/he, his/her, him/her, etc. 2020 brings new exercises, new insights, and new clarifications for teaching. Links have been updated on the Class Materials page, but they're also here. Enjoy!
When asked for a desired focus for a scheduled coaching session, a Duo sent me the following: Mainly character stuff, fleshing them out versus building out more plot. Getting better at finding and sticking to the game of the scene. What follows is some didactic and exercises that filled two hours. DIDACTIC: How do You […]
It's all about the Set move. Remember: Anything's an Offer. A group of improvisers gather pre-show. They take off excess clothes. They empty their pockets. They ask about each other's day. One guy tells a story about an out-of-the-blue run-in with an old friend that happened that day. Another improviser tells her own story about […]
Ask your troupe what they want to work on. A comment by Alan Volmer during a Johnsons rehearsal led to this move being added to the group's bag of tricks. THE BODY SNATCHER: A third player takes over either Player One's or Player Two's character. If Player Three chooses to take on Player Two's character, […]
A "Blackout" is a short scene with one big punchline. In sketch, or in improv with a tuned-in booth operator, the lights would go out on stage after the punchline, designating the end of the scene and earning the name "blackout." Blackouts are fun. They can help vary the pacing of a long-form show. They […]
Breaking the Plane – Players define where their characters are in relation to each other by choosing where to “look” for that character. Using this ability, there are so many different cool ways for us to fracture our improv stage - enabling new heights, depths, distances, and other spatial relationships. For example, in a baseball scene, […]
It's 2015! About time to update the Improv As Improv Does Best curriculum. Enjoy! Intro to Improv Curriculum 2015 (PDF) Character & Emotion Curriculum 2015 (PDF) Patterns & Games Curriculum 2015 (PDF) Long Form Performance Curriculum 2015 (PDF) For links to individual lessons and activities, go to the full Curriculum page.
Objective: To establish and heighten organic group games collaboratively as an ensemble.
Objective: To establish and heighten organic group games collaboratively as an ensemble.
In a long-form improvisational performance that is not a "mono-scene" there is a need to be able to communicate that one scene is ending and another is beginning. An "Edit" is that move communicating a change in scenes. At its core, a "successful" edit need only clearly communicate that transition, but beyond that there are […]