Improv is easy! People just try to make it unnecessarily hard. Learn a methodical and repeatable framework to discover everything you need to do great improv scenes – no prep needed! Cut through the 🐂💩, make it easy, and let your natural talent do the heavy lifting.
See Workshop DetailsPreferred Skill Level of Students: Beginner – Expert
Workshop Student Limit: 15
Length of Workshop: 3-4 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
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- Explore environment and object work to create a personal safe space to work from.
- Explore using reactions to develop stakes and investment
- Explore using movement to define characters and character wants & needs.
- Establish memorable connections that both players and audiences can believe in and be invested into.
Special Instructions: Wear comfortable clothing and shoes that one can easily move in. .
Take your improv game to the next level by seamlessly weaving short-form games into long-form scenes. In this workshop, we’ll explore how to incorporate the quickness and structure of short-form into the storytelling and character development of long-form improv. Learn how to use short-form games as a tool to heighten and advance your long-form pieces, creating engaging, dynamic performances that keep the audience on their toes.
See Workshop DetailsPreferred Skill Level of Students: Beginner– Advanced
Workshop Student Limit: 12
Length of Workshop: 3 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Physical Warm Up
- Learn/Play short-form improv games
- Learn/Play different long-form forms
- Integrate short-form games within long-form.
Special Instructions: None
New to long-form improv? Looking for some simple and fun formats you can perform right away? Great! In this workshop, you’ll learn a handful of easy-to-pick-up forms that fit your skill level while helping you build strong, memorable scenes. Add some variety to your next show with a form you never thought you could pull off!
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Preferred Skill Level of Students: Intermediate – Expert
Workshop Student Limit: 15
Length of Workshop: 3-6 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
List of Forms:
The workshop will cover some of the following forms in addition to some that may not be listed:
- La Ronde
- Slacker
- Pretty Flower
- Commando
- Armando
- 5-4-3-2-1
- Goon River
- Montage
- Musicals
Workshop Outline:
- Establish the overall format of a given form.
- Focus on types of scenes are involved in making the form successful.
- Concentrate on the building blocks that will allow each scenic moment of a form to be successful.
- Performing each form in its entirety multiple times.
Special Instructions:
- Wear comfortable clothing and shoes that one can easily move in.
- Bring writing materials (paper, pen, laptop, etc.) to take notes.
- Number of forms to be covered depends on the time allotted for the workshop, the goals of the client, and the experience level of the students. The goal is to cover at least 3 forms if possible.
- If a musical form is in play, a weighted keyboard/piano should be made available.
Discover how to transform spontaneous improv scenes into polished, hilarious sketches in From Improv to Sketch: The Windy City Way. This workshop explores the art of generating sketch ideas through improvisation, honing your comedic instincts, and crafting scripts that capture the energy and authenticity of live performance. Perfect for performers and writers of all levels, this session will equip you with the tools to develop memorable sketches rooted in collaboration, creativity, and the vibrant tradition of Chicago comedy.
See Workshop DetailsPreferred Skill Level of Students: Beginner – Intermediate
Workshop Student Limit: 12
Length of Workshop: 3-4 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Introduction
- Welcome and workshop objectives
- Overview of Chicago’s improv-to-sketch tradition
- Warm-Up Exercises
- Group improvisation to build energy and collaboration
- Quick “Yes, And” games to spark creativity
- Improvised Scene Work
- Partner and group scenes
- Focus on generating strong characters, relationships, and premises
- Identifying Sketch Ideas
- Discuss how to spot sketch-worthy moments in improv
- Select standout premises from the scene work
- Sketch Writing Fundamentals
- Structure of a sketch:exposition, game, escalation, punchline, and button
- Tips for translating improvised moments into a script
- Collaborative Writing Exercise
- Break into small groups to write a sketch based on earlier scenes
- Incorporate feedback and refine ideas
- Sharing and Feedback (30 min)
- Perform or read through sketches in progress
- Constructive feedback from the group
- Closing and Takeaways (10 min)
- Key lessons and tips for continuing to develop sketches
- Q&A and next steps for participants
Special Instructions: Wear comfortable clothing and shoes that one can easily move in. Bring writing materials (paper, pen, laptop, etc.) Please no cellphones to capture notes or ideas.
Words – they can get in the way of delivering excellent scenes. So throw them away! This unique workshop uses physical theater improvisation and speechless scenes along with mask work and music to discover communication through body language and silent interactions. Develop new characters & initiations and sustain deeper interactions with players of all skill levels using these techniques.
See Workshop DetailsPreferred Skill Level of Students: Intermediate – Advanced
Workshop Student Limit: 12
Length of Workshop: 3 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
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- Unchanged:
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- Perform physical warmups to connect body & mind
- Explore effectiveness of action in a scene
- Determine the what & why of a scene through objects
- Perform scene work with less & less words using physicality, objects, and emotion
- Perform improvisational silent pieces
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Special Instructions: Participants should wear comfortable clothes to move around in. Participants should wear athletic shoes (sandals, open-toed shoes, and boots/heels are strongly discouraged).
OK. You can sing. You can improvise. You can even improvise a song or two. Now it’s time to learn how to marry your scene work to support your newly minted song so the story you’re telling before, during, and after the song is cohesive and strong. We explore the fundamental building blocks of doing long-form improvised musicals here!
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Preferred Skill Level of Potential Students: Intermediate
Workshop Student Limit: 12
Length of Workshop: 3 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Physical & Vocal Warm Up
- Learn advanced MI song concepts Learn fundamental song structures (Verses, Chorus)
- Learn more advanced song structures (I Wish, Love/HateDuet, Fugues, Variety numbers, Revolution Numbers, etc.)
- (Re)Visiting exploring/heightening regular scene work .
- Work on establishing meaning relationships at top of the scene.
- Quickly determining the who/what/where/why of the scene.
- Chase the “what” of the scene to such a point song is required.
Special Instructions: A musical director will be required for this.
Hip-hop has influenced everything from the radio to the TV to the big screen. It has also become part of the theatre scene as well! Learn the basics of what it takes to do improvised hip-hop from the streetz on up! We learn the fundamentals of building your rhyme catalog to putting together a cypher to going from scene into hip-hop in one dope workshop!
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Preferred Skill Level of Students: Beginner – Advanced
Workshop Student Limit: 12
Length of Workshop: 3-4 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Develop a sense of presentation & commitment to the performance of rap
- Work on building a rhyming catalog and techniques to keep it fresh and current
- Explore different rhyme flows and tips & tricvks that can be used when freestyle rhyming
- Practice give and take of focus within a hip-hop based cypher/song
- Play short-form games and long-form scenes that include rap
- Use supportive techniques for the back-line to use during a show
- Take a look at existing “hip-hoperas” and show how they use these techniques
Special Instructions: Would like access to a sound system to connect devices with pre-recorded music to play if possible.
Have you ever felt you’ve worked really hard with your partners to explore and heighten your scene and you feel like you have nowhere to go? Guess what? YOU DO! Go into song and let the laughs continue! This workshop will introduce the fundamentals of musical improv and how you can use basic musical direction & performance to take your scenes to a new level!!
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Preferred Skill Level of Students: Intermediate – Advanced
Workshop Student Limit: 12 Length of Workshop: 3 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Physical Warm Up Vocal Technique overview
- Discuss how to vocalize with the body
- Perform vocalization warm-ups. Basic “singprov” overview
- Performing rhyming exercises
- Learn basic rhyming song structures
- Perform scenes into song Learn advanced MI concepts
- Learn fundamental song structures (Verses, Chorus)
- Learn basic chord progressions/styles (12 bar blues, I-IV-V songs, reggae)
Special Instructions: None
Musical directors – they’re like unicorns – you always hear about them but can never capture them for your show! Why not become your own unicorn and learn the secrets behind the techniques of musical direction?
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Preferred Skill Level of Students: Beginner
Workshop Student Limit: 12
Length of Workshop: 3-4 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Discuss the role of a musical director (MD)
- Explore the art of underscoring scenes
- Explore different genres of music and how to emulate them.
- Work on supporting common musical improv structured songs (choruses, tagline numbers, variety numbers, revolution numbers,rap battles, etc.)
- Improvising with multiple musicians (if applicable)
Special Instructions: Students should bring their own instruments – preferable acoustic instruments or keyboards.
People paid good money and time to be at your show. Give them the best experience through effective, concise, and powerful hosting. Whether you have to emcee an entire show or just go out and get a suggestion, learn the skills necessary to effectively open a show, run games, get good suggestions, and support your fellow actors through great hosting!
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Preferred Skill Level of Students: Beginner– Advanced
Workshop Student Limit: 12 Length of Workshop: 2 hrs.
Acceptable payment arrangements: 50/50 split, Flat Fee, Per Student
Workshop Outline:
- Discussion of role of an emcee.
- Explore power dynamics between audience & performer.
- Work on endless committment to engaging the audience.
- Learn how to “warm up” the crowd.
- Explore getting suggestions (steering the audience to good suggestions, rejecting/ignoring bad ones).
- Using techniques when the audience is not receptive to the team/host.
- Incorporating “crowd work” into the show.
- Learn how breaking the 4th wall consistently can actually have the audience feel they’re a part of the show.
- Learn how to interview an audience member to get suggestions
- Identify and use strong editing of short-form games as a host.
Special Instructions: None