Want to know how to become a better improviser, or at least have more fun when you’re improvising? Learn how to improvise with love. Love is the glue. It's the thing that holds a team, a show and even a scene together. It's why the audience is there, even though they don't know it. It's […]
My approach to improv keeps changing. That’s a good thing. When I was younger, I wanted to try to do improv “right.” I wanted to follow all of the rules that my teachers taught me, and when I became the teacher, I wanted my students to “get it” as well. But today, I realize that […]
Most actors think they can't improvise. They are scared. They think can only act if they have a script in their hand. This is a lie. I have taught improv for over 30 years and some of the best improvisers are actors. What an actor brings to improv is the ability to play something straight. […]
When I started in improv, if someone would have said I would make life-long friends in improv, I wouldn’t have cared. I wasn't interested. I was too busy trying to "make it." Relationships were a distraction. I was not a good friend back then, but hopefully I am getting better. Last week, I heard there was going to […]
It doesn't matter if you are an improviser, a stand-up, an actor or a writer -- we all are looking to be more creative. And if you are looking to be more creative one of the best things you can do is find a way to collaborate with others. Thank God I have been brainwashed by […]
How many times have you wanted to give an improviser a compliment, but, out of fear, you didn't? Or have you ever been performing and one of your teammates has been glued to the backline for the entire show and you were afraid to pull them out? Or you’ve had a thought in your head to say […]
I know that 2023 has just started, but before we jump too far into the new year, I wanted to give you my 5 favorite things in entertainment, including books, podcasts, shows, stand-up specials and more, from 2022. I hope you find them as entertaining and as inspiring as I did. Here we go. My […]
Before I put my six-year-old daughter, Betsy, to bed the other night, she said, “Daddy, why are you sad?” “My friend Noah died today,” I said. “Who was Noah?” she asked. I thought for a minute and told her this story. Once upon a time there was a man who lived in a far-off village, and […]
I have been improvising and teaching improv for the last four decades. I don't know what has changed more: improv or me. But since the year is coming to a close, I thought it was a good time to reflect back on the past, so I wanted to go through the decades with you. Are you ready? […]
What I love about improv is that we are part of something that is larger than ourselves. One person will never be bigger than the international improv community. That makes us humble, and it’s one of the reasons I like to hang around improvisers. We speak a slightly different language than the rest of the world. From the outside, people think […]