Whimprov 2: The Re-Whimprovening

Hey gang

I don't remember entirely what we came up with on Monday, as a result of the...oh, what's the word. Fire Alarm! That's it. But here's what I remember.

1) Freeze - Everyone

2) Slideshow - Travis, Justin, May (Diane) (Slides), Lucy and Matt (Speakers)

3) Oscar - Herman, Tino, Colin

4) Hitchhiker - Everyone

5) Pan Right - Colin, Tino, Herman, Ben

6) Rap Battle - Whomever wants in

We were supposed to play 7 games, but since we were interrupted, and couldn't decide on our seventh game, I eliminated it entirely. Better to do fewer games that we're more confident with, than a game that we're not entirely versed in.

We can make changes/swaps depending on who shows up at Whidden on wednesday. Even if you're not interested in playing, you should come out and watch (Travis and Victor, who weren't on the set list last time, came and watched, and they ended up playing games too, which was awesome).

Remember, be in front of Whidden at 830 on wednesday evening. Try not to be late.

See y'all then!

Cheers,

Cliff

PS - Student Center Freeze and Commons Rap Battle, albeit not very well executed, were hilarious. I loved doing it. Let's plan/do more of that stuff.

Whimprov 2: The Re-Whimprovening - Preliminary Setlist

Hey gang

Here's what we came up with. We'll do the final setlist next monday, so if you want to be in the wednesday show, it's imperative that you're there on monday. (Unless you're Diane, and you've already spoken to me. Then it's cool. You can also email me if you have some kind of issue)

Anyway, here's what we came up with:

Freeze - Everyone

Slideshow - Travis, Matt, Steve, Martin, Lucy, Diane

Oscar - Herman, Martin, Steve

HitchHiker - Everyone

Pan Right - Colin, Mitch, Hisham, Justin

Foreign Film - (No one yet, but we haven't played this yet. We may swap it out for something we're more familiar with)

RAP BATTLE - Cliff, Martin, Colin, Lucy, Matt, Andrew (If he's around?), Herman, Carlyn (if she's able to make it after Eurydice), Alex
- I'm thinking we could even have 4 teams of 2, and do an elimination-style performance, with one team being the Victor (Trafiak) (If 3 people get that joke, I'll be happy).

So, that's that. If you have questions, email me.

See y'all monday, and once again, great session tonight. You're all wonderful.

Enemy Battlers,

Cliff

Summary of Games for November 10th

Hey internet improvisers (that's not as much fun to type as it is to say)

Here's what we did tonight!

21
- Same as before. Except this time we were lazy and went to 11.
Tips
- If you make it 11 instead of 21 is goes way faster.

Rhyming Circle
- People stand in a circle. One person says a word, and the next person says a word that rhymes with it. May or may not be rhythmic accompanyment. (But it's more slick if there is).
Tips
- It's best not to preconceive your ideas, because if you're later on in the circle, someone might snatch your idea up. If that happens, chances are good you'll panic for a moment, and that's never a pleasant feeling. Since it's only one word, let whatever comes to you come out. Everything's cool as long as it rhymes. Feel free to use multi-syllabic words. Or even words that only slightly rhyme (like rhyming 'McCain' to 'Day')

Beastie Boy
- In a circle, people stand. One person says a line, and emphasizes the final word (i.e. Well I went outside and I looked at the SKY!) The next person says a different line, the last word of which has to rhyme with the last word from the previous line (i.e. When I'm Eighty-Three, probably gonna DIE!) Play continues around the circle. Players are strongly encouraged to 'rap' their lines. If other players are able to guess what the final word of a line is, they are allowed to shout the word alongside the player.
Tips
- Make a commitment. Doesn't matter if it makes sense, it's your rap, so take it to school.
- Try to fill the space. A line that uses as many syllables as possible will sound better and be more successful than one with a lot of open space. You don't hear open space in rap songs, so it shouldn't really be in Beastie Boy.
- It's all about attitude.

Rap Battle - An MIT Original Game
- Based off of Beastie Boy. Play moves similar to 'Questions Only'. Players rap (like in Beastie Boy) back and forth until someone screws up. That person is then replaced by their partner. Players are encouraged to be as hyped up and excited as possible. When not in actual play, players are encouraged to go crazy and be supportive of their rap counterpart.
Tips
- It's all about attitude. You're the greatest rap artist ever. You own the show. Confidence will get you through this game more than rhyming ability will.
- When you're not in play, keep the beat going. Even something simple like clapping will add to the atmosphere of the game.
- Hype up the audience, and hype up your teammates. You're the best rap team ever assembled. Make sure your presence is indicative of this fact.
- Try to use rhymes that are open. You'll want to win, but you should also want the other person to not fail. After all, it is an Improv scene. And even though it is a competition, ultimately the group fails or succeeds together.
- ...Not a good idea to say or do anything racist. I'd call it a rule of thumb, but it's a little more important than that. Let's say it's a rule of arm.

Freeze
- Same
Tips
- You guys blew me away with Freeze tonight. So, I'm implementing a few new tips.
- If you're not in the scene, feel free to come into the scene if you're need (i.e. as the Captain for the Enemy Battlers, or the Zookeeper)
- You can bring in more people into a scene, and you can take out more than one person, as long as you assume someone's exact position.

Anyways, that's it for me guys. I'll post our Whimprov preliminary setlist soon after this.

Great job gang.

Cheers,

Cliff

PS - Still find y'all physically attractive.

Games Summary for October 20th/27th

Hey Improvisers

My arm hurts from drumming (‘Call Me’ Expert, ladies), but here we go anyway.

Last Week (October 20th, 2008)

Freeze
- Same as before
Tips
- Give the who, what or where in the first line of the scene. If you’re going to start with an action, which is fine, make sure the action is very apparent, and not ambiguous.
- Clap when you feel that the scene has run its course, or if you observe that the who/what/where have been established, and have had some time to play out.

Hitchhiker
- Same as before
Tips
- Remember to pick a strong character right from the beginning. Even if your goals or personality aren’t explicit from the beginning, everyone should be able to pick up on your physicality.
- If you’re observing, take note of all the actions done by the hitchhiker, and do your best to emulate them. If you all try to outdo each other, that’s great. It’ll be hilarious

Good, Bad and Ugly
- Three ‘experts’ on an Advice-style talk show. One gives good advice, the next bad advice, and the third person terrible advice.
Tips
- Pick a strong character from the beginning. Introduce yourself with your name and your profession. (i.e. ‘Hey there, I’m Mac Fleetwood from the Institute of Delaware Cutlery…’ etc).
- Keep your responses short; let’s say under a minute in length. It keeps the game moving, and it prevents people from getting bored.

ABCs
- Same as before
Tips
- Start with conflict! Whatever the conflict is, try to stick with it for the entire scene. It’s alright to raise the stakes, so long as the original conflict is preserved. This will prevent the scene from becoming too convoluted.
- You only have 26 lines to wrap up the scene. Make what you say count! Try to avoid saying things like “Alright” or “Okay!”

Genres
- Three people play out a scene. Occasionally, a genre of film, theatre or television will be shouted, and the scene will continue in that genre.
Tips
- It’s a good idea to pick out the ‘Flags’ that occur within each genre. Harking back to easily identifiable trends in that particular genre will allow the audience to connect with the performance more, and probably provide more direction for the scene.(i.e. in a Horror movie, the group always goes towards the danger/spooky mansion, the group decides to split up, characters are killed off, the house is built on some kind of graveyard/burial ground/radioactive waste facility, etc).
- Remember to preserve the original conflict/relationships, just with the new genre layered in over top. Don’t forget the problem just because you’re suddenly a cartoon, or a detective with a shady past.

As far as I can remember, that was it for last week.

21
- Players stand in a circle. With eyes closed, they attempt to count from 1 to 21 one at a time. If players speak at the same time, the whole circle starts from the beginning.
Tips
- Take your time. Someone else will say a number. There’s no need to rush.
- Calm down, don’t get overexcited.

'Yes’
- Players stand in a circle. One person makes eye-contact with another. That person says ‘Yes’ and the first player can start moving towards the second player’s position. The second player then must make eye-contact with another player, and play continues.
Tips
- EYE-CONTACT. ‘Nuff said.
- You can’t move until you’ve been given permission. If you say ‘Yes’, you stay put.

Character Interviews
- One player assumes a character, and undergoes an interview.
Tips
- Don’t worry about prefabricating all of your answers. If you’re caught off guard, just say the first thing that rolls into your head. It’ll often lead to really interesting characters (like Martin’s bodybuilder who has an elderly father in the home).

Special Freeze
- Two people are called into a scene at a time. They each enter with their own ideas, and attempt to ‘marry’ their ideas together into a scene.
Tips
- It doesn’t matter if your ideas are completely different, to you, they are perfectly normal.
- Try to use each other’s suggestions to solve whatever problems arise. It’s best not to start with ‘What are you doing? I thought we were…’

The Dating Game
- Three players are the sexy Bachelorettes, each with their own interesting character trait. One player is the eligible Bachelor. The Bachelor asks the Bachelorettes questions with the ultimate goal of figuring out who the Bachelorettes are supposed to be.
Tips
- If you’re a Bachelorette, try to drop hints, but don’t be too, too apparent. The fun comes from seeing how bizarre the characters are.
- Be physical. If your character trait calls for physicality, then go for it. You’re not confined to your chair.
- Remember, the Bachelor is a character too. Feel free to play it up.

I believe that is everything. Some general things to remember:

- Opportunities for promotion? If you guys have any ideas, let us know. It’d be cool to stage some big ordeal in the middle of the Student Centre.
- More shows? The best place to do Improv is in front of an audience. If you know that your Residence is interested in performers, let us know. We want to get everyone in a show at least once.
- It looks like we’ll be having our final show at Bridges. Maybe we’ll do a couple nights. I’ll look into it.

That’s it for me. Great work today, gang. You’re all wonderful.

Cheers,

Cliff

PS – I find you all physically attractive.

October 6th, 2008 - Games and Summary

Hey Improvisers

Great session last night. I had a blast. You're all wonderful.

Games:

Not really a game, but we started by going around the circle and asking people to say their name and something interesting that happened to them over the week.

Freeze
- Similar to last week.
Things to remember:
- Be strong with your Freezing and Clapping.
- Try to establish either the Who (i.e. your relationship), the What (i.e. the problem), or the Where (i.e. where you at) in your first line.
- Make sure that the Who/What/Where are established before you Freeze.
- Be FAST when you come into the scene, and take the EXACT POSITION that the person your replace had.

Questions Only
- Players attempt to play a scene by only speaking in questions.
Things to remember:
- Start your sentences with a question word. It'll pretty much always ensure you say a question.
- There's no shame in intentionally failing. Sometimes it helps the scene move along. And after all, you'll get a chance to be back in soon.
- Keep the strong character choices.

ABCs
- A scene for three people. Every sentence has to begin with the next letter of the alphabet.
Things to remember:
- You only have 26 lines to go through an entire story. Make the very first sentence about the problem you have to resolve. That way, you can use the rest of the sentences to solve the problem.
- If you can't think of a word, then go to the environment. As long as you're doing something interesting, no one will notice that you're stalling for time.
- Save the tricky letters for names. No point in wasting an easy letter like 'B' on 'Bob', when you have K, X, and Z coming up, too.
- X words: Xaiver, Xylophone, X-Ray, Xerxes, Xena, Xanadu.

Serious Scene
- A game for 8 players. The scene revolves around a very serious subject. Players must remain sincere and serious. If they make the audience, other performers, or themself laugh, then they're out. They must find a reason to leave.
Things to remember:
- Take chances! This game is only interesting when people are talking to each other. Don't remain silent for the purpose of staying in the scene longer.
- Try to keep the focus on one conversation at a time. Everyone talking at the same time gets a little confusing, as we saw. :)
- If you die, try to bring people down with you. Use that last line to great effect. Bring up the puns and jokes that came to you when you heard the suggestion. You have nothing to lose, so why not?


I think that's about all we did. If I missed something, let me know.

Also, a few of us (myself, Martin, Ben, Herman, Kaylan, Hisham, Colin) are performing Improv at Whidden on wednesday. You're all welcome to come and watch. We're meeting in front of Whidden at 8 PM. It should be a good time.

Cheers,

Cliff

Improv Analysis - Maverick Improv All-Stars "Questions Only"

Hey gang

Here's some new Improv to critique. Don't worry though, this one isn't as horrendous as the last one.



Comments. You. Post them.

Cheers,

Cliff

Summary of Games for September 29th

Hey Improvisers

Great session tonight. I had a blast. Sorry my computer wasn't louder. I scolded it and sent it to its room without dinner.

Games:

Acceptance Circle
- Same as last week

Why did we do it?
- Practice makes perfect. And you guys got right back into the swing of things really quickly. Kudos.


“Yes” Circle
- Players are in a circle. One begins by looking at another player. That player must make eye contact, and then say ‘Yes’. The first player then begins moving towards the second player’s position. The second player must make eye-contact with a third person, who must say ‘Yes’, until the second player can move.

Why did we do it?
- Focus on listening and making eye-contact. Saying ‘yes’ is representative of accepting offers.

Tips: Make eye contact! Always be watching everyone else.


What are you doing?
- Two person scene. Player 1 begins by performing an action. Player 2 asks ‘What are you doing?’ Player 1 then says an action completely different than the one he is performing. Player 2 then performs the stated action. Player 1 then asks Player 2 ‘What are you doing?’, and then performs the action stated by Player 2.
- Variation: Get 2 letters, and each word has to start with each letter (i.e. for initials ‘GM’, actions spoken could be ‘Getting Murdered’, ‘Grabbing Money’, ‘Golfing Maggots’, etc)

Why did we do it?
- Focus on listening, being big with actions, association/disassociation.

Tips: Say the first thing that comes to mind. Especially with the Initials variation. It doesn’t matter if it makes sense. A lot of the humour can come from seeing a player’s physical interpretation of something that makes no sense when spoken. i.e. ‘Jerking Water’ ;)


Goalie
- One player in the center (the ‘Goalie). Other players enter as a strong, definitive character. The first sentence spoken must establish the relationship between the characters, and what the scene will be about. (i.e. “Dad, can you teach me how to fish?”) After a few sentences are exchanged, the player who entered must find some logical reason to leave. Another player then enters as a completely different character with a completely different scene.

Why did we do it?
- Although the players who enter have a big role, the focus is on the goalie, and their ability to adapt to new characters and scenes. The goalie is forced to accept the ideas that are presented, because they really have little other option.

Tips: Players – Have a strong character at the beginning, it will help the Goalie respond. Goalie – Try having an emotional reaction to the offers presented.


Master Servant Disaster
- Two players, one is the Master, another is the Servant. The Master has some kind of goal to accomplish at the beginning. Every offer made by the Master must be turned down (preferably in a creative and unique way) by the Servant. Play continues until the Master becomes exasperated, the Servant is tricked into doing something, or the entire world is destroyed.

Why did we do it?
- MSD demonstrates the effect that saying ‘No’ to offers can have on a scene. Every MSD scene goes absolutely nowhere as a result of the Servant’s refusal to do anything.

Tips: This wouldn’t be used as a performance game, but tips are helpful. Master – Be as creative as possible in coming up with solutions to the problem. If you need to, go to your environment! Servant – Be a dick. If you need to, feel free to destroy the entire world, except for the room you’re in.


Freeze
- A game for any number of people, although it tends to get more hectic past eight players. Two are in the center. They begin doing a scene (using big, expressive characters). At any point, a player outside of the scene may clap and shout ‘Freeze!’ When this happens, the players in the scene freeze in their exact positions, and the person who shouted ‘Freeze’ takes the exact position of one of the players, replacing them in the scene. They then begin an entirely different scene, inspired by the position they took from the other player.
- Variations: Blind Pimp Freeze. Players not in the scene face away from the game. At any point, players yell ‘Freeze’ and then shout the name of someone else. The person who is named must go into the scene.

Why did we do it?
- In Freeze, there is no time to say ‘No’ to any offers that are made. You must say ‘Yes’ to everything in order to make the scene interesting. It also stresses the importance of doing big, expressive characters, for the sake of creating more interesting positions to yell ‘Freeze’ upon.

Tips: Try not to get caught up in finding clever positions. Sometimes it’s fun to call Freeze randomly, and go in with what you’re given (i.e. like in Blind Pimp Freeze). Also, it’s good practice to introduce a Who, What, and Where in each scene. Before you call Freeze, check to make sure that the Who What Where have been established. Also, be LOUD when shouting Freeze.


And that's about it for this evening.

Also, remember, we're in JHE 210 next week. I visited it today, and it seems alright. A little small, but it'll be more private.

Yours in HTML,

Cliff

Space, the Final Frontier

Hey Improvisers

We have space booked for the year. I'll let you know what it is at our meeting this evening.

Yours in HTML,

Cliff

ps - Our meeting tonight is still in the Clubspace.
pps - If you're reading this post, you're on top of things. Kudos.

Improv Analysis

Hey Improvisers

Let's play a game. Every so often, I'll post a video of an Improv game being played. I want you to tell me things that they can improve upon. In this week's example, give me reasons why you feel this is excruciating to watch. (Hint: There are many reasons).

Behold, this week's example: Ikkicon 2007 Improv: Freeze Tag. Although we haven't played Freeze yet, see if you can find things that you don't like. We'll discuss it on monday.



Leave a comment. There's no wrong answers.

Cheers,

Cliff

Power Cord

Hey gang

Someone left a laptop power cord in the Clubspace yesterday. If you happened to see one, or even picked it up, give me a shout at the Gmail account.

Cheers,

Cliff

September 22nd, 2008 - Games and Summary

Hey Improvisers

Here's a summary of what we did tonight:

Wupong:
- To pass to the left, you say 'Wupong' and point your fist to the left. Reverse for the right.
- Three drips to a drop, and then the person after continues
- Three Arigatoos, and then everyone says Gozaimasu. The person who Gozaimasu landed on continues
- Ping to a person, the two people on the sides of the person say 'Pong' and point above that person's head.

Why did we do it?
- Focus on listening, and paying attention. Accepting offers from other players, even if the offer comes from across the circle (as 'Ping' often does)

Clap Focus:
- Pass the Clap along. Make EYE CONTACT before passing it to the next person.

Why did we do it?
- Focus on paying attention. A metaphor for accepting offers from other people, and being aware of where the energy is travelling in a scene.

Association/Disassociation Circle:
- Association: Start with a word (i.e. Green). Next person says the first word that comes to mind when hearing that word, and so on. Try to go as quickly as you can. Also try it with eyes closed.
- Disassociation: Start with a word (i.e. Green). Next person says the first word completely unrelated to that word that comes to mind. Try to go as quickly as possible. And with eyes closed.

Why did we do it?
- Focus on relying on your impulses (they're more often than not pretty much on the spot). For association, it doesn't matter what you come up with, because it's whatever you think of first. Forces people to be put on the spot while relying on instincts.
- Disassociation focuses on trying not to preconceive your responses. Just feel what the scene needs and go for it. Channel the energy you feel.
- Both: Don't go for the joke. The point here is to go quickly, and think of the first thing you can. Same thing in Improv. It's not the jokes that get the laughs (they often fall completely flat), it's the relationships and the characters that do (which, as a bonus, are more often than not much more reliable and much more universally accessible than simple jokes).

Character Creation:
- Create a character through one of the following means: Either lead with a different part of your body (i.e. elbow, foot, etc), identify animalistic traits that you can give to a human, or do a poor impersonation of someone (poor impersonations will more often than not create more unique characters than good ones. I've heard that Kirk Van Houten's voice was created when Hank Azaria tried to impersonate Pamela Hayden's voice for Milhouse). This will help with your character's physicality and voice.
- Once you have your character, identify the most appropriate job for them. Then, identify the most inappropriate, or ironic job for that character. This will help give your character a little bit of motivation.

Why did we do it?
- It's important to be able to create a character in little time flat. By adopting easily accessible concepts or traits, you can create interesting characters from almost nothing. It's also interesting (and funny) to take the traits from one profession (i.e. Pro wrestler) and apply them to the most opposite job you can think of (i.e. Doctor).
- Remember, it's not the jokes that lead a scene to success: It's the characters and their relationships to each other. Make interesting characters with conflict inherit in their personalities, and bingo bango, you've got a scene.

Character Dinner:
- Four people out at a dinner. At the beginning, everyone creates a unique character. When switch is called, players move to a different seat, and become the character that was sitting there.

Why did we do it?
- It balances creating strong, unique characters with listening. You can't be too focused on one while sacrificing the other. If you're putting too much focus on your own character, you'll forget who everyone else is. If you're putting too much focus on listening to everyone else, your own character won't be defined enough to be repeated by other players.

Here's something to think about for next week: Think of lots of different animals, and try to identify subtleties in their traits.

Impersonations: Do people say that your impersonation of Bill Cosby is bad? Run with it. Even if your friends hate it, the stage will love it.

Also, it's a good idea to have 3 or 4 default names to go to when you're creating characters. That way, if you need a name for your character, you don't need to give it any excess thought: Just go to one of your stock names. For reference, mine are Mac Fleetwood, Les Zeppelin, Carl Vanderkart, Shades McCool and Cidolfus Brecht. They serve me pretty well (Also, Les can become Leslie, and Carl can become Carly, thus enabling me to do a gender switch if necessary). Just something to think about.

I'll see you all next week.

Here comes my name,

Cliff

The Improg

I guess you could consider this a test post. And it pretty much is. A test post, that is.

So, we're off to a rockin' start.