Exercises
Drill skills, sharpen instincts, and guide your team through purpose-built reps.
Refine
-
"Yes ... And" scene work
Literal “Yes, and” drill where two players build a scene by repeating and adding new information with every line.
-
4 Experts
4 Players up in 4 chairs.
-
60 Seconds Of Silence
Think of your brain as an excited puppy, trying to race ahead to the future. Here’s an exercise to get it back to the present.
-
A Round of Rhythm and Movement
Everyone stands in a circle. One person gets into the middle and starts making sounds and movements.
-
Adjective, Adjective, Name
Improvisers deliver one-minute monologues with key character traits gifted by the players on the backline.
-
An lot of object work
Students find a space anywhere in the room and the instructor yells out different scenarios they have to mime.
-
Bippity Bippity Bop!
This is an everyone in the circle type game where the aim is not to be in the center, encourages listening, zero-second reaction and fun.
-
Bird Turd
Think of 2 words that rhyme, like Bird Turd.
-
Blow Them Away
Do scenes where the goal is to blow the audience away.
-
Character Circle
Character Circle is an exercise where players stand in a circle and create characters, passing them around with gestures, voices, or movement.
-
Character Diamond
4 players up. Players stand in a diamond formation on the stage.
-
Character Matching
Everyone in a circle. The teacher picks someone to start. That person walks across the circle and speaks as a character for a line or two.
-
Character of the space
An exercise to agree without words, with one improviser initiating some object work to establish a space and a scene partner building on that.
-
Character Tagline
Prepare strips of paper. Ask everyone to write a tagline that describes a character on it.
-
Character Walk
Whole group walks while the instructor shifts focus on physicality, emotions, or environmental reactions.
-
Character Wheel
For the whole group.
-
Cocktail Party
Improvisers share the stage to act out a split focus scene with the instructor conducting the focus and moving from one pair to another.
-
Compliment / Boast
This is an exercise to boost the confidence and vulnerability of members of a group.
-
Conducted story
Three or more improvisers stand in a line.
-
Conducted Story
Conducted Story is an exercise where a leader points to different players to continue telling a story, switching speakers at will.
-
Confessions
Two person scenes which include a confessions. We are trying to focus on the characters and the impact of what is being confessed.
-
Creating characters from beliefs
Share personal beliefs as a group, then launch scenes embodying someone else’s point of view.
-
Deal based training wheels pretty flower
Two people start a scene and then after a few lines we pause to figure out what each character's deal is.
-
Emotional Rollercoaster
Emotional Rollercoaster is an exercise where players act out a scene and change emotions on a signal, building emotional range and adaptability.
-
Experts
Work back to a character based on a profession. Players start seated but then have time to work out a character by moving around the space.
-
Fact, Opinion, False Belief
Players move around the space and are directed to state facts about themselves, opinions they actually hold or crazy beliefs and lies about themselves.
-
Find yes and in a real conversation
Watch out for improv patterns in the real world.
-
Focus on the wrong thing
Players act out a scene where one improviser focuses on the wrong thing in a crisis.
-
Follow the follower
This is a good way to practice getting in sync with other improvisers when using sound and movement to generate information.
-
Freeze Tag
Classic tag-in game where players freeze a scene, replace a performer, and launch a new premise from the pose.
-
Fun Accusations
Here’s an exercise I’ve been doing to let people practice being a fool in scenes. - Two people up. Give them a suggestion.
-
Fun Gift, Internal Why
Two people up. Give a suggestion.
-
Game In Sketch
View sketch comedy, either alone or with other improvisers.
-
Gibberish Conversation
Gibberish Conversation is an exercise where two players communicate using only gibberish, focusing on emotion, intent, and physicality.
-
Give the setup
**PART 1** - Two improvisers take the stage.
-
Good Wedding
For all players. One person says "I'm having a [blank] themed wedding" say, "I'm having a Nintendo themed wedding".
-
Haduken
Bounder-style circle warm-up that swaps in Street Fighter-inspired commands like Haduken, Tiger Uppercut, Double Dagger, Zen Arrow, and Zen Shield.
-
Heighten a specific trait
2 up and start a 2 person scene with a suggestion.
-
Heighten to monologue
5 up. The first person comes up with a character and a mantra/catchphrase.
-
How Did You Become A [BLANK]?
This is an exercise in taking a situation that seems impossible and making it seem plausible. Two people up.
-
I, You, We
A good shortcut to knowing, caring, and saying is to make the scene about the people in the scene.
-
I'm Home
This exercise is for duos. Stand around six feet apart, facing each other.
-
Identifying information from the opening
Pull premise ideas from an opening monologue and initiate scenes that honor that information.
-
Initiating from monologues
This exercise requires a group of at least three or more improvisers. A suggestion will be thrown out by one of the improvisers.
-
Kitty-cat career
To the tune of Meaow Mix (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTunhRVyREU) everyone sings Meaow Meaow ending in Kitty-cat career.
-
La Ronde
This is a common form or exercise, but here we’re going to do it with a focus on being changeable.
-
Morning Routine
8 up, 4 on stage, 4 facing them sat on chairs (backs to the audience).
-
Name Mnemonic
Name game for the whole group. Each student comes up with a mnemonic and action for their name, EG "Silly Sara!" (waggle fingers).
-
Name... yes
Circle up! players point at someone in the circle and say their own name, the subject says "yes".
-
Object Point Of View
A strong point of view underlies an authentic scene.
-
One Word Emotional Reaction
Two players up, one word suggestion. Each player states their instant, gut reaction to that suggestion in one word.
-
Only Numbers
Two people up. No suggestion. They do a scene where they only say numbers, in order, to each other.
-
Park Bench
Park Bench is an exercise where one player sits on a bench as a character, and others join one at a time, creating new interactions.
-
Party Quirks
Party Quirks is an exercise where one player hosts a party and others arrive with assigned quirks.
-
Pass The Card
This is an exercise from teacher Corey Brown to practice giving and receiving offers. Two people up.
-
Pass the present
Player mimes an object and gives it to the player to their left.
-
Pass the snap
For the entire group. Stand in a circle and pass a "snap" eg snapping your fingers.
-
Practice Tough Beginnings
Here are some tough beginnings, acting-wise, to practice.
-
Practising A to C
Circle drill for practicing the associative A-to-C thinking used in openings.
-
Premise Lawyer
Justify wild premises on the spot like a lawyer defending an absurd case.
-
Protect the freak
Coach scene partners to legitimize the wild character instead of calling them out—elevate the freak’s worldview.
-
Quick initiation scenes
All players form a backline.
-
Recognizing the first unusual thing
Two improvisers take the stage. Give them a one-word suggestion.
-
Repeat the first unusual thing
Two-person scene drill that repeats the first unusual line four times to spotlight the game.
-
Selected Emotion Scenes
Mechanics: 2-Person Scenes. Suggestion provided. All players select emotion before entering scenes. Player 1 initiates normally.
-
Silent Tennis
2 up.
-
Snakes
A bit like tic-tac-toe, the group forms a circle and one person gwarmoes in to the middle. There are 3 actions illustrated above (kind of).
-
Someone ate my chocolate bunny!
Circle call-and-response that passes a big emotional choice around the group.
-
Sound And Movement
Circle warm-up to mirror and heighten shared movements before layering sound.
-
Space Jump
Space Jump is an exercise where players jump into a scene and change the environment or action, building on what came before.
-
Start General, Get Specific
Begin a scene with broad character choices, then layer in personal specifics to ground the performance.
-
Status Switch
Status Switch is an exercise where players act out a scene and periodically switch status (high/low), exploring power dynamics and character choices.
-
Superhero / Supervillan
For the whole group.
-
Supervillan / Mastermind
Two people up. Player A makes an accusation. Player B deliberately acts like a supervillain or mastermind in response.
-
Talk about something else
Two improvisers take the stage. One improviser will initiate with some sort of physical activity that caP.
-
The "I am" game
Players step out to personify objects with “I am…” declarations, locking into a shared pattern of boasts or traits.
-
The Ad Game
Build an improvised ad campaign for an unusual product, yes-anding every pitch as a group.
-
The chameleon
One player becomes a chameleon, matching each partner’s bold character in a string of quick scenes.
-
The Heckler
1 up, in a chair.
-
The Montang Jefferson
Start with two players back to back without touching each other. Give the suggestion.
-
The Samurai
Practicing being funny is tough.
-
The T-Shirt Game
One student describes a fantasy T-Shirt the other student is wearing creatively with detail.
-
Three Line Scene
Three Line Scene is an exercise where two players create a complete scene using only three lines of dialogue.
-
Three-line scenes
Rotate fast three-line scenes to drill initiations, responses, and quick commitments.
-
Tropes aka Mile Markers, Plot Points
2-Person Scenes.
-
True/False statement deal
2 up. The players are given a location. Each player has to think of a genuine belief they have.
-
Truthful At All Costs
Try doing a series of scenes like this. Two people up. Whoever initiates must make a big choice. Something unusual, fantastical, or strange.
-
Understudies
Tag-in rehearsal where new players inherit existing characters and continue the discovered game.
-
Understudies - Reprise
Tag-run scene drill where replacements step into existing characters and must explore the last game move before heightening.
-
Using people you know to create characters
Build characters from real acquaintances’ behavior, then drop them into a fresh scene.
-
Using physical characteristics to create characters
Discover characters by leading with different body parts, then bring that physicality into scenes.
-
Using status to build a character
Explore high and low status physically as a group, then replay scenes with status swaps to feel the difference.
-
Vroom!
Circle up! A remix of the classic Next person, Change direction, Skip person, Across the circle type warm ups: Vroom! _next person_ Honk!
-
Where have your fingers been?
RAP: Where have your fingers been tell me were have your fingers been, say whaat!
-
Word at a Time Story
Word at a Time Story is an exercise where players sit or stand in a circle and build a story by adding one word at a time.
-
Workplace Documentary
4 up.
-
Would you?
Scene lab for emotional realism: play intense scenarios, record them, then ask “Would you really react that way?”
-
Yes And Box
Pairs pass an imaginary gift box, restating and heightening each attribute with a clear “yes, and.”
-
Yes, Let's!
Yes, Let's!
-
You wanted to see me?
Two-person scene where a boss makes an absurd ask and the employee stays grounded.