I’ve been considering getting a bentwood chair tattoo but I feel like I haven’t been doing improv long enough nor am I successful enough to warrant a tattoo for it.
But even if I’m never successful it could be a reminder of the years I pursued it? Idk.
Is it cringe? Objectively probably.
If you have an improv/comedy related tattoo what is it? What inspired you to get it?
I'm doing an improv games workshop in a few weeks at a hypnosis conference. The workshop is about using improv to overcome failure.
I really love the premise lawyer game.
"One improviser suggests an out-there or completely nonsense belief and the other improviser comes up with a reason why this is true to help it feel as believable as possible"
Usually with premise lawyer someone states a whacky premise such as "microphones should be made out of pennies"
Then people justify the hell out of that premise.
I'm trying to think of a way to modify lawyer premise to help people reframe negative beliefs.
I think the best way to do it is to have someone come up with a limiting belief they have, then slightly reframe it. Then have people justify the hell out of it.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!
So I had the opportunity to sign up for improv classes and am nervous about it for this reason-It's a four week course that is set up for you to get an idea of how future fall classes are going to be set up and continue-1 hour once a week. I however consider myself to being a beginner only taking a handful of classes but still having fun with short form.
I was encouraged by a couple of acquaintances in a local improv group to sign up for the Longform instead of the beginner improv course. Truly the most improv experience I have is playing Table Top RPG games where only some of those skills come into play.
The instructor in the classes I took did say I had a natural talent for improv and if there were more advanced classes to pop up in our area then I should take them. My acquaintances were in the same class.
With that context, would I be wasting my time jumping into Longform as a beginner who still gets nervous about performing with strangers and deals with a bit of social anxiety or would I do well with taking Longform classes for this month? I've heard that shortform isn't necessary to take Longform if you are comfortable with the overall structure of short form.
Thank you for reading. Apologies that this is a bit disjointed.
I’ve heard that improv is a great thing to do to build confidence and think quick on your feet. I’m thinking of starting to improve in my personal and professional life. Is that true? What has been your guys experience and journey when it comes to improv?
In our theatre I have identified every ensemble members’ goto mime and body work. And when they change I always compliment and ask what inspired them to venture
What advice do you have for making it work? I just tried it (in my apartment) with one of my friends who does stage acting and it was so much more challenging than regular two prov. I’ve seen gravid water & and scene sets. I know the improvisers doing them are very seasoned but they make it look so easy.
See my blog post for a full recap. Here’s 4 lessons, though, from Yes, Ann Fest, which just wrapped in Ann Arbor.
You just have to ask, but be okay with no.
Good things come to those who ask. One of the headliners I really wanted initially asked for well over six figures to come to Ann Arbor. That was not in the cards! However, as we met more people, big Yes responses came from Anna, Casey, Suzi, and Blaine Swen (of The Improvised Shakespeare Company).
Trade things with unequal value to each party.
A lot of our festival support was in-kind. Remember that not everything has to be a strict monetary transaction. We got tons of help with printing, room blocks, party support, and more by being creative. In some cases, premium show tickets were worth more to someone than face value. Marquee Arts gave us a massive discount on the space in exchange for hosting community discussions at our brewery.
Ask for help!
I would have burned out and failed trying to do this solo. Our extended fest team played a key role in making this all happen.
Take risks, have a safety net.
We were able to make pretty aggressive offers to our headliners given the reasonable cost of our venue and the capacity to sell up to 1,600 tickets. We had contractual pieces in place where if we had to cancel with more than 30 days notice, we could do so. This gave me the confidence to push forward, as we limited our downside risk.
https://www.heardotsay.com/blog/thats-a-wrap-on-yes-ann-year-one
What is a great theater for sketch comedy and improv training outside the U.S.?
I heard that Dad’s Garage is exploring the idea of launching an improv/comedy festival next year, and it got me wondering what people actually want from a festival these days.
If you travel to festivals (or would consider it), what makes one worth your time and money?
Some things I’m curious about:
Would you rather see a festival focused mostly on improv, or one that also includes sketch, stand-up, clown, musical improv, podcasts, etc.?
Are there things that immediately make you decide not to attend a festival?
I’d love to hear from performers, teachers, producers, and audience members. If you could build your ideal festival, what would it include?
Hey gang. I just wanted to introduce my book on Improv to those who are not familiar with it. I’ve been doing Improv comedy professionally for 30 years, I’m the winner of best male improviser at the Canadian Comedy Awards, and I lived on a cruise ship for over a year doing Improv sketch for The Second City. In this book, I tried to deconstruct what is happening on stage when Improv is really soaring. The book is for those who have some Improv experience, and includes a number of exercises, lots of examples, and I think it really gets to the heart of what makes good Improv comedy. I hope you pick up a copy, and I hope you enjoy it. Thanks.
https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Improv-Deconstruction-Drew-McCreadie/dp/B0GXYH46P9
Update on this post. I lost my job today. And it was confirmed that my sister does have breast cancer again. Thankfully stage 3 and not stage 4. I have some improv on the calendar over the next few months, which I think will help! Going to give myself lots of grace.
Welcome to summer camp in fool's paradise! 750 + performers. 200+ shows. 3 Stages. Workshops galore. It’s one of the largest improv fests in the world.
July 9-12 @ The Brooklyn Comedy Collective
More info: www.brooklyncc.com/fad
Day & Festival Passes: www.eventbrite.com/e/fun-and-dumb-improv-festival-2026-tickets-1988691612146
Workshops with veteran instructors: www.brooklyncc.com/fad-workshops
Hey everyone!
I'll be visiting Chicago for the Summer intensive at iO Theater and I wanna know where all the musical improv jams are in the city.
Can anyone help me out with this?
Sometimes we work our shit out on the fretboard
I have pretty severe adhd and I’m toying with starting medication. But I was wondering what effect it might have on my improvisational skills. I would love to hear the good and bad of how they impacted you.
Disclaimer: this isn’t asking for medical advice and has no bearing on whether I start meds. I’m just curious about how people in my situations reacted to meds.
I have been working on this one for a while.
We all learn 'Yes, And' as Day 1 improv. And rightly so, it's the FOUNDATION. But I've also noticed that a lot of intermediate improvisers (myself included, back in the day when improv was in black and white) hit a plateau because they’re almost TOO GOOD at “yes, and…”. The scenes can become these polite, agreeable loops where nothing actually happens.
BUT, in this video I break down the concept of testing and I pulled the best examples I could find: Monty Python.
I think this technique is going to be especially useful for people with a couple of years in the game.
Why 'Yes, And' is killing your scenes — and the Monty Python technique that fixes it
Folks, the days of Theatre 99 being housed at 280 Meeting St are numbered. The exact close date is unknown, but we’re probably in the final months (possibly 2-3) at this location.
Hopefully the theatre will find a new home as soon as possible. So many people in the Charleston area come here for entertainment and to take classes. If you’ve never been, you absolutely should check out this magical place.
Charleston’s home for improv comedy. Wednesdays are established house long form groups. Thursday is for up-an—coming groups. Friday and Saturday nights are kind of the flagship shows with first act short form (games) and second half long form (get a suggestion and go for a half hour). There’s also usually a clean, family-friendly show once a month.
Shows and classes will continue as the space problem is worked. Please come out and show Theatre 99 some love from the community.
I'm working on a project that involves Solo Improv, both from the performance standpoint and the practicing standpoint. I'm putting together a panel for an improv festival and want to have my research dialed in.
I would really appreciate some names of people who are:
a) known to perform solo improv (like Brian James O'Connell, Andy Eninger etc).
b) teachers of improv who discuss or advocate solo practice for improving a student's skills
Any and all names would be helpful. No name too small! Thanks in advance.
I run an afterschool RPG game at a local library for children 14-9. The kids are super creative and after a few games I petitioned a youth improv workshop to the library event coordinator and it got approved.
I have a rough curriculum of simple games and I think it’ll go ok as is. But I would love any advice on workshops, improv with children or both. I’ve never put on a work shop before, but I’ve been improvising with children for a while if you count these RPG games.
My rough curriculum is a round of silly gestures to warm them up and get rid of any jitters. Then maybe explain Imorov a bit and do a simple thought train/ok what does this make you think of?
From there I think 1 word story would be a good transition.
And I think gibberish would be fun for the kids. Trying to converse with made up words.
For anyone curious the current game we’re playing is Daggerheart. I think it’s a bit simpler than DnD and open to more creativity which is great since while I do have 2-3 consistent kids I also have a few new kids pretty much every time. I’ve also run Mission ImPAWsible, Tales from the Loop, and Kids on Brooms.
