Improv Tips artwork

Improv Tips

150 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 3 years ago -

A micro-podcast feed for The Bit Theater featuring (week)daily improv tips. We can also be found on your Amazon Echo devices!

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Episodes

Hiatus

August 17, 2020 07:00 - 2 minutes - 1 MB

Let's call this the end of the first season.

Teammates

August 14, 2020 07:00 - 55 seconds - 506 KB

Set up a system for how you’re going to audition new members to your team, stick to it, and don’t play favorites.

Stranger Things

August 13, 2020 07:00 - 50 seconds - 471 KB

Don’t let the fear that a story is too unbelievable prevent you from ever telling it onstage.

Agree to Disagree

August 12, 2020 07:00 - 52 seconds - 486 KB

Be careful that you’re not defaulting to arguments or that the arguments you have aren’t going on forever.

Warm Ups

August 11, 2020 07:00 - 51 seconds - 482 KB

You might find it useful to physically warm up your mouth before performing.

The Long and Short of It

August 10, 2020 07:00 - 56 seconds - 515 KB

Don’t shut out a particular form of improv, especially if you’ve never tried it.

Giving Suggestions

August 07, 2020 07:00 - 54 seconds - 501 KB

The improvisers onstage would much prefer a suggestion they've never heard before than hear the same jokey suggestions they always get.

Go-To Characters

August 06, 2020 07:00 - 53 seconds - 497 KB

Find some characters you're comfortable with and confident playing that you can pull out at any time during a set.

Fake It 'Til You Make It

August 05, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 584 KB

There are many ways you can still play the scene in a profession you're unfamiliar with.

Characters Exist

August 04, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 547 KB

Even though you’re showing only a moment of a character’s life, they existed prior to your scene, and they’ll exist after your scene.

The Joker

August 03, 2020 07:00 - 54 seconds - 503 KB

It can be exhausting when someone is trying to prove how funny they are all the time.

Planting Plants

July 31, 2020 07:00 - 46 seconds - 442 KB

Don't destroy an audience's trust by planting suggestions.

Think Before You Speak

July 30, 2020 07:00 - 58 seconds - 530 KB

It's better to take a second to think about your response than it is to blurt out anything just to fill space.

Use "We" and "Our"

July 29, 2020 07:00 - 51 seconds - 478 KB

Refer to your shows the way you should for a collaborative art form.

Being On

July 28, 2020 07:00 - 49 seconds - 463 KB

You don’t need to always be on.

Watching Improv

July 27, 2020 07:00 - 47 seconds - 445 KB

Don't allow yourself to sit and critique, nitpick, or second guess every decision that's made onstage.

Delayed Reaction

July 24, 2020 07:00 - 50 seconds - 467 KB

Don’t feel obligated to pay off an audience’s suggestion within the first thirty seconds of your set.

Team Names

July 23, 2020 07:00 - 28 seconds - 298 KB

Stop wasting time agonizing over your improv team’s name.

Safe Space

July 22, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 574 KB

Whether it be playing a silly character, breaking into a song, or getting lost in a big physical activity, find your safe space where you’re confident that everything you’re doing is brilliant.

Simple Changes

July 21, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 573 KB

You can make a tiny change to yourself and be a new character.

Messenging

July 20, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 575 KB

Groups serving the public interest need strong voices, and there are plenty of ways to bring your skill for entertaining to assist those groups, especially on a voluntary basis.

Pace Yourself

July 17, 2020 07:00 - 58 seconds - 529 KB

Just like great movies and television shows have great pacing, so do great improv sets.

Going Blue

July 16, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 598 KB

Shy away from blue humor and get used to working harder for your laughs.

The Perfect Improviser

July 15, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 587 KB

The Ultimate Improviser(TM) is one who can improvise with anyone, anywhere, regardless of their scene partner’s skill level, and regardless of the situation.

A Song in Your Heart

July 14, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 556 KB

Consider adding song into your non-musical improv set, particularly if you have musical accompaniment.

Variety is the Spice of Comedy

July 13, 2020 07:00 - 59 seconds - 543 KB

Always be exploring different ways to make folks laugh.

Self-Promotion

July 10, 2020 07:00 - 45 seconds - 430 KB

You’re the best advocate for getting your work noticed.

Leap of Faith

July 09, 2020 07:00 - 54 seconds - 501 KB

Only by having the bravery to take that first step into the abyss will you know whether that support system will hold you up.

Promoting Shows

July 08, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 664 KB

A website, a Facebook page, a Twitter feed, a mailing list, or some other free form of social media is a simple way to let people know about your shows.

Playing Drunk

July 07, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 672 KB

Improv scenes move quickly and require concentration. Alcohol doesn’t help either one of those skills.

Make Your Way

July 06, 2020 07:00 - 57 seconds - 525 KB

You don’t need to be in Chicago, L.A., or New York to do improv.

Diversity

July 03, 2020 07:00 - 53 seconds - 492 KB

It’s always a good idea to seek out and audition teammates who don’t look and act like you.

Emotional Rescue

July 02, 2020 07:00 - 50 seconds - 467 KB

If you’re having a difficult time investing in the emotion of a scene, pull from your own personal life.

The Chair Up There

July 01, 2020 07:00 - 45 seconds - 430 KB

Those chairs are your only props. Use the heck out of them.

Get Your Heckles Up

June 30, 2020 07:00 - 55 seconds - 509 KB

There are plenty of great ways to deal with hecklers or disruptive audience members.

Sensitive Subjects

June 29, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 593 KB

Play the situation as though everyone in the room is currently going through the sensitive situation or is of the same race, nationality, or gender of the character you might otherwise avoid playing.

Slip of the Tongue

June 26, 2020 07:00 - 51 seconds - 476 KB

What may start as a simple verbal miscue could become a hilarious running joke throughout your entire set.

Get Bad

June 25, 2020 07:00 - 52 seconds - 485 KB

It takes about 100 sets just to get competently bad at improv.

Have Fun

June 24, 2020 07:00 - 49 seconds - 459 KB

Improv is supposed to be fun.

Don't Open the Gift

June 23, 2020 07:00 - 58 seconds - 533 KB

The gift to the scene is the gift, and it doesn’t really matter what’s inside it.

Story Time

June 22, 2020 07:00 - 58 seconds - 531 KB

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. My father can and has told me the same stories over and over in my life. I’m interested in hearing them every time because he can flat-out tell a story. Remember that as an improviser you’re also a storyteller. The more enthusiasm and heart you pour into the story you’re telling onstage, the more engaging it will be, and the less likely it will be that I roll my eyes when you tell it. Plus, you won’t forget the details because you’re making them...

Louder Isn't Always Funnier

June 19, 2020 07:00 - 1 minute - 575 KB

Pay attention to your volume, and try turning it up or down for a change of pace.

Be Direct

June 18, 2020 07:00 - 51 seconds - 476 KB

Address the elephants in the room sooner rather than later so you can move your scene to the next logical step.

I Think You're Alone Now

June 17, 2020 07:00 - 59 seconds - 542 KB

Until someone joins you onstage, you have free rein to make any of the scene choices you want to.

Be Better than Yesterday

June 16, 2020 07:00 - 50 seconds - 469 KB

Only by getting better every day will you ever be the best, you competitive nut.

Real Over Funny

June 15, 2020 07:00 - 59 seconds - 543 KB

If you focus on learning how to improvise from a real place, the funny will eventually come.

Binary Decisions

June 12, 2020 07:00 - 54 seconds - 502 KB

If you break down your scenes into a series of binary choices, you might find it easier to free up your brain to focus on reacting to those choices.

Everything's Important

June 11, 2020 07:00 - 59 seconds - 539 KB

Everything should be important.

Bad Improv Gun

June 10, 2020 07:00 - 54 seconds - 501 KB

When you’re manipulating an improvised object, it should look just like you’re manipulating a real object, but you can’t see the object.

Benefit of the Doubt

June 09, 2020 07:00 - 54 seconds - 498 KB

There’s no need to wink at the audience if you struggle to come up with an idea or stammer over a line.