I am always happy to hear from people across the world about how much Improv Nerd has helped them with their improv, especially in remote countries that have little or no exposure to formal improv training. I am really humbled by how much of an impact Improv Nerd has had on so many improvisers. Now, after […]
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In this special bonus episode, "The World According to Jimmy," Jimmy sits down with his producer, Dan Schiffmacher, and answers questions about improv, career and life submitted by our listeners and some of Jimmy's students.
In an ideal world, you always want to improvise with people who are better and more experienced than you because they make you better. But realistically, that doesn’t always happen. And sometimes improvising with people who aren't as experienced can not only help with your confidence, it can also be fun, and a great learning […]
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Jill Valentine is the executive director of The Chicago Women's Funny Festival at Stage 773 and an original member of The Cupid Players. We talked about how women's roles in improv have changed since she started in 1999, why she likes to make bold choices in her improv, and why she doesn't give herself notes […]
One thing I have learned along the way is if you want to keep what you have learned, you need to give it away on a regular basis. That’s why teaching others how to do improv is such a privilege. I am grateful to have gotten to study, work and perform with some of the […]
A weird thing has happened to me in the last couple of years. I had realized that I like teaching improv far more than I like improvising. It seems when I am up on stage improvising, I still put a lot of pressure on myself, something I don't do often when I’m teaching it. In fact, […]
This Sunday is Father's Day, and except for the fact that I already know Lauren’s going to give me a present, I am not really that excited about it. Actually, I am embarrassed. As a father, I feel like a fraud. I feel like I’m not a real father, because in the first year since Betsy […]
My wife, Lauren, and I were lying on the living room rug playing with our 11-month-old daughter, Betsy. She was playing quietly with these wooden blocks, and I was holding one in my hand when Lauren said, "Give it to her. Give her the block." As you might suspect I don't like to be told […]
When people first work with me, especially after the first class, they say things like, "Your class is like therapy," or "That scene was not funny," or "Oh my God, in that exercise you made that person cry." Generally, people view this as a bad thing. I get it; emotions are scary and it’s not […]
(Who's the funniest one in the pic above? Hint: I'm the one with the sunglasses). When I started out in improv my goal was to be the funniest one on stage. In retrospect, that wasn’t a very noble one goal. At the time, it seemed important to me for many reasons — primarily, if I […]