When you take improv classes, you start off by learning the rules. The first, and most famous, rule is to say “Yes, And.” You may have heard of it if you’ve seen Yes Man, read Bossypants by Tina Fey, or ever had a friend take an improv class. There are a lot of principles encapsulated in this phrase – agreement, [&hellip
I’d like to preface this by saying this is a much longer post than usual, but it is 100% worth the read. As promised, I would like to share a technique for creating new characters for each scene you do. I’ve heard many improv instructors provide this simple instruction for creating a character: make a physical [&hellip
I’ve seen two main approaches to characters in improv scenes: playing characters that are just slightly different versions of ourselves (“Excited Randall” or “Despondent Randall” or “Sensual Randall”), or playing characters that are physically and vocally distinct from ourselves. The latter are generally more memorable, but can often devolve into caricatures that are difficult for [&hellip
I just saw this video tonight and thought it warranted sharing, for all the other improvisers out there who might not have seen it yet. Enjoy and apply! 3am Improv Thoughts from Jill Bernard from Jill Bernard on Vimeo.  
About a month ago, I went out for a walk. Early on, I passed a stranger on the street who held eye contact for slightly longer than normal, so I said “Hello” and he said “Hi” back. Even something as simple as that, just being acknowledged by a stranger, had a significant impact on my [&hellip
About a month ago, I went out for a walk. Early on, I passed a stranger on the street who held eye contact for slightly longer than normal, so I said “Hello” and he said “Hi” back. Even something as simple as that, just being acknowledged by a stranger, had a significant impact on my [&hellip
The following is an except from the book Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind: “When you listen to someone, you should give up all your preconceived ideas and your subjective opinions; you should just listen to him, just observe what his way is. We [practitioners of Zen] put very little emphasis on right and wrong or good [&hellip
This is the conclusion of a 4 part series. These 32 items are compiled from a list that I brainstormed, and include principles that I learned in workshops from David Koechner, Micah Sherman, Mandy Butler, Kevin Patrick Robbins, Armando Diaz, Dad’s Garage, The Village Theatre, and Automatic Improv, as well as a few of my own thoughts. Don’t fight; if the scene has already [&hellip
This is part 3 of a 4 part series. These 32 items are compiled from a list that I brainstormed, and include principles that I learned in workshops from David Koechner, Micah Sherman, Mandy Butler, Kevin Patrick Robbins, Armando Diaz, Dad’s Garage, The Village Theatre, and Automatic Improv, as well as a few of my own thoughts. Don’t be boring; be interesting. Don’t spend [&hellip
This is part 2 of a 4 part series. These 32 items are compiled from a list that I brainstormed, and include principles that I learned in workshops from David Koechner, Micah Sherman, Mandy Butler, Kevin Patrick Robbins, Armando Diaz, Dad’s Garage, The Village Theatre, and Automatic Improv, as well as a few of my own thoughts. Reconnect to your scene partner. Focus on [&hellip
