Recently, I had a student in one of my improv classes who was asking a lot of questions in their scene. They were rapid-firing questions as if they were interviewing the person rather than improvising with them. After the scene was over, we talked about all the questions. By the way, I don't believe in "you can't ask […]
When I first started improvising, I had an idea of the type of improv I aspired to do. It was more slow and grounded than other types of improv, made up of relationship-based scenes like the kind I teach today in my classes and workshops. It was an ideal that took decades to achieve. In my head, I […]
For me as a performer, I always want the audience to love me, and all the other kinds of love don't matter. This month I turned 60, and my wife and I gathered 12 of my friends for a party at our house to celebrate my birthday. After dinner, and before they brought the cake out to sing […]
The inner critic is that part of your brain that, when your improv show is over, finds all of the things you did wrong. It is ruthless. It is rooted in fear and wants to convince you that you are worthless. Its voice is so loud, you believe every word it says. The Inner Critic is a big […]
Some improv teachers (including myself) will say over and over again “Don’t try to be funny.” That can be confusing. A better approach is, “play the reality of the scene.” When improviser do that, especially when they are given a certain task, the funny will show up without them trying. In improv, the more believable you […]
Like many of you, I love to catch up on entertainment late at night before bed, and lately, I've seen some really great TV shows, movies, stand-up specials and documentaries that have reminded me of my own journey as an improviser. So if you're looking for a little creative inspiration, here are a few things […]
A lot of times when people are improvising, people think they have to keep going no matter what. Oftentimes improvisers feel so much pressure to keep a scene going that they will muscle ahead in a scene even when they don’t know what’s going on. But confusion without clarity just leads to more confusion. If […]
To be a master, you must remain the student. We all want to master improv. But a true master accepts that he's never going to master what he's trying to master. Shunryu Suzuki explains it better in his book Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: “If your mind is empty… it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are […]
Kim Greene is the owner of The Laughing Academy in Glenview, and she’s someone I have known in the improv scene in Chicago since the ’90s. We first met doing a business theater gig for Second City, and today, I teach classes for her at her theater. What I love about Kim is that not only […]
When we watch an improv team or a person on stage who loves improvising, it can be contagious. If we are having fun, the audience is having fun. But often, I forget to bring the joy and bring the love to what I am doing, both on stage and in life. In my improv classes and workshops, we […]