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April 18, 2018
How To Know If You Should Pursue Improv Seriously

From time to time, a fan of this blog or the podcast will contact me directly and ask me an improv-related question. Recently, I received a question about how to know if you should pursue improv seriously, and I decided to share it because it's something I believe everyone in improv, comedy and acting has […]

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April 12, 2018
Why Warm-Up Games Should Be Part of Every Improv Class

When it comes to teaching improv, I am old school. Though I have evolved as a teacher and performer over the years, one thing that has not changed since I started teaching is that I love beginning each improv class or workshop with a series of warm-up games. Warm-up games are essential. This is something I learned from one of my […]

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April 4, 2018
What I Learned on Chicago P.D.

Last week, I did it. I finally did it. After five years of auditioning for Chicago P.D., I landed a part, a nice speaking part with lines. It was playing a prison guard. Which is not only in my wheel house, it’s apparently my calling in life. One of my first parts I ever got in TV […]

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March 27, 2018
5 Ways to Give Notes After an Improv Show

As improvisers, we always want to be pushing ourselves to improve and to find ways to continue to up our game. And if you’re interested in improving, there’s nothing that can help more than getting notes after an improv show. But the process of getting and giving notes is not as easy as it seems. […]

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March 14, 2018
3 Things That Get in the Way of Your Improv Scene Work

Lately I’ve been noticing that there are a few basic roadblocks that many improvisers have in their scene work that prevent them from getting ahead in their improv. Each of these things is easy to change, and I guarantee by making a few of these simple adjustments, you’ll be able to take your scenes from […]

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March 7, 2018
What We Can Learn from Jordan Peele

If you were watching the Academy Awards on Sunday, you know that Jordan Peele won an Oscar for Best Original Screen Play for his movie, Get Out. I didn’t get to watch the awards live, but as soon as I found out on Facebook I was really happy for him and proud, since Jordan was part of […]

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February 27, 2018
How to Boost the Energy Before an Improv Show

If you are performing an improv show, you may think that the only thing that will determine whether or not you have a good show is how well your group performs on stage. But the truth is, there is a lot more that goes into having a good show – including the pre-show music, how […]

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February 13, 2018
Prepare to Fail

If there is one thing that is certain in improv, it’s that you are going to fail. Hopefully, you will continue to fail throughout your career, because in improv, if you don't give up, that failure eventually turns into success. No matter how hard you try to avoid it, you cannot have one with other. Unfortunately, […]

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February 12, 2018
244: Scott Goldstein

Scott Goldstein is an improviser, director, teacher and writer. He directed The National Touring Company at Second City and The Annoyance Theater, where he also performed. He was the Artistic Director of Flat Iron Comedy and teaches writing and improv at the Second City Training Center. We talk to him about taking long breaks in […]

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January 31, 2018
Why is Chicago the Mecca of Improv?

Have you ever thought about why Chicago is the mecca of improv? Well, I recently had the chance to explore this question in depth when WBEZ, the public radio station in Chicago, contacted me about doing a story about it for their Curious City show. If you ask me, Chicago really has all the right […]

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