Improv, Beat by Beat

UCB has recently shut down its last permanent theater and training center. I asked people to share what UCB NY meant to […]

I asked many of the people I interviewed the same question: what advice would you give an improvisor in their first year […]

This episode focuses on a fun, but often difficult form, the Movie. One of the original forms developed by Del Close, the […]

This episode focuses on the form of many names, the Spokane / Pretty Flower / Delicate Little Flower / Gadget / Family […]

How should a coach structure a practice session? What are some exercises to use? How is coaching a house team different from […]

What makes a great coach? How do you become a great coach? How do you give helpful notes? None of those questions […]

Once again, each improvisor recounts the notes that shaped their understanding of improv or their understanding of themselves as improvisors. Featuring John […]

I asked a bunch of improvisors a simple question: “Why do you do improv?” Featuring answers from Nicole Drespel, Kevin Hines, Devin Ritchie, Achilles Stamatelaky, David […]

19 different improvisors discuss the cliches they are tired of seeing and the gaps between the improvised worlds we create and the […]

An improv jam is basically an open mic for improv: anyone who goes can throw their name in a bucket to do […]

Musical improv is exactly what it sounds like: an improvised musical. A bit of dialogue, and then a lot of singing and […]

A house team is a team that is created to perform regularly at a particular theater. At UCB NY, there are 3 […]

Your first several years of learning long form improv will likely focus on scenework, the Harold, montages, and perhaps another form or […]

The Monoscene is a form in which the location never changes: there are no edits. In this episode, we talk about how […]

Improv scenes should be more than just reciting lines. In this episode, we talk about how acting influences improv, and how to […]

In a Harold, after the first beats and the first group game, the team returns to the first 3 games for second […]

Most theaters hold auditions to add people to their house teams. Every year around 600 people audition for UCBNY house teams. Molly […]

In a Harold, in between each set of beats is a group scene. These scenes can be tough if the entire team […]

Each improvisor recounts the notes that shaped their understanding of improv or their understanding of themselves as improvisors. Featuring Jessica Morgan, Lydia Hensler, Jesse Lee, Jenny […]

The 1st beats of the Harold are the most important part of the Harold. In each 1st beat, the ideas from the […]

The Pattern Game is one of the fundamental Harold openings. It can seem intimidating at first, but once mastered it can be […]

The Invocation is an opening developed by Del Close for the Harold. In this episode, Will Hines and Achilles Stamatelaky convince me […]

After a team gets a suggestion, they typically do an opening of some sort to generate the ideas they will explore within […]

The Harold is one of the fundamental longform improv structures, but it isn’t easy, at least at first. But once it’s mastered, […]

The next several episodes will focus on the Harold, one piece at a time. This episode focuses on what happens before the […]

Now that everyone in the scene has identified the game, it’s time to have fun. This episode goes into the different approaches […]

Identifying and playing the game of a scene is the foundation of long-form improv: the improvisors must agree on what’s fun about […]