Improv Classes

In this fun and exciting interactive process, you will gain self-confidence, sharpen your communication skills, and learn the type of teamwork necessary to create something original and brilliant from scratch. Right from the start, our students are on their feet exploring hilarious exercises and skill-driven games in an incredibly supportive and fun environment under the guidance of our caring and experienced faculty,

Unexpected Productions’ teachers instruct the basics of improv, which are not only useful to improvisers, but to anybody wanting to work with others, as a member of a team, as an effective communicator, as a good listener, or simply as a friend!

All 100-700 classes are for ages 18+. Get ready to:

• Discover the joy of spontaneous storytelling
• Conquer fears
• Improve your job skills
• Spark creativity
• Meet people/make new friends
• Become a better listener
• Be a better problem solver
• HAVE A BLAST

Our celebrated education program is the most established improv school in the region. We host classes in two locations in downtown Seattle and in Redmond. We offer 7 levels of classes with 4 quarters a year. We also offer specialty improv classes, storytelling, sketch and stand-up comedy classes from renowned teachers from around the globe.

Unexpected Productions’ Market Theater

1428 Post Alley
Seattle, WA 98101

The Improv School – Georgetown Studios

650 South Orcas, Suite 101
Seattle WA 98108

Redmond Community Center at Marymoor

6505 176th Ave NE
Redmond, WA 98052

Redmond Senior Center

8703 160th Ave NE
Redmond, WA 98052

Storytelling with Margot Leitman

April 27, 10:00AM – 5:00PM

Learn how to use your untapped humanity and embarrassing moments in a way that can reach a wide audience. Each student should leave class with a basic concept of how to make painful, strange or even mundane experiences from their life funny. The students learn to dig inside their own lives to find humorous, relatable material, which unifies an audience making them laugh at their own experiences through the student’s performance.  Instructor, Moth Grandslam winner and best-selling author of “Long Story Short, the Only Storytelling Guide You’ll Ever Need”  Leitman will work with each student honing their stories to work better on stage. Students will leave class with a strong direction of how to structure a story for the stage, office, first date or wherever they choose to put it to use. Additional focus will be on getting through the fear of being judged for our honesty. In the past, many students have left saying, “I can’t believe I told a room full of strangers about that and I can’t believe they all laughed!”

Intro to Mime with Jay Hitt

April 27. 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM

Mimes are able to create full environments and objects using only their skill and imagination. How do they do it? This class will show you. You’ll learn the basic skills a mime uses to transform an empty space into a full world of endless possibilities.

Jay Hitt is the creator and director of Mouth Wide Shut, a completely non-verbal improvised show that uses Pantomime, Figurative mime, Corporeal mime, and various types of dance to create scenes based on the spectators’ suggestions. these suggestions are also retrieved non-verbally. those who enroll in this class will also receive a free pass to see the closing night of Mouth Wide Shut later that evening, 4/27 – 8:30 pm at the Market Theater.

Jay is also the Managing Director of Unexpected Productions and has been with this improv company since 1993. He has performed and directed a variety of short and long-form improv shows since 1988. He created the Duo Improv Showcase in 2008. He has studied with great coaches from America and Europe and has been teaching and coaching improv since 1998. He is well known for his fearless approach to physical improv and his precision when it comes to object work and environment creation.

Physical Comedy and Clown with Mick Holsbeke

May 20 – June 24 Mondays 7:00PM – 9:30PM

Ever since we were able to stand, we were able to fall, and humans love to laugh at someone who stumbles, trips, bobbles, bumps into, gets hit by or struggles with problems that should be easily avoidable, or otherwise simple to solve. Following in the traditions of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Red Skelton, the internationally renowned clown, Mick Holsbeke, will guide students through an introduction to the foundations of Physical Comedy and Clowning, giving participants a broad range of experience in these complex art forms. Participants will learn how to execute classic one-shot gags, and pratfalls safely, plus how to build endless combinations of slapstick shortcomings. Participants will also explore elements of presence, play, improv, timing, tension, rhythm, focus, emotional endurance, physical precision, character development, working with a partner, and status, in order to gently approach the elusive state of Clown.

Fundamentals of Improvised Hip Hop

May 28 – June 18, 7:00PM – 9:30PM

An improvised introduction to the foundations of Hip-Hop, and ways to infuse elements of rhythm and poetry into your improv scenes. Utilizing improv games as gateways to the fundamental Five Pillars of Hip-Hop. Students learn how to create fully improvised hip-hop songs. Applying the fundamentals of improv, coupled with freestyling, beatboxing and crowd techniques, students gain a deeper understanding of hip-hop, its roots and how to utilize these elements to amplify scene work and have even more fun on stage living the improviser’s dream.

Ant Power – Emergent Improvisation with Beatrix Brunschko

Sat, June 22, 12:00 PM – 5:30

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to study with one of Europe’s best improvisers. Unexpected Productions has the honor of having Beatrix Brunschko as a guest teacher for this workshop. She is part of this year’s Seattle International Festival Improv and has taught at Unexpected Productions on multiple occasions.

Ant Power – Emergent Improvisation. If you give a colony of ants a week and a pile of dirt they will transform it into skyscrapers in an ant-scaled city. Without a blueprint or a leader, millions of little individual ants create a complex, fascinating, functioning society. It turns out that ants perform these complex tasks by obeying a few simple rules, responding to outside cues and each other, resulting in this amazing final structure, without the individual ants even being aware of the great creation they bring into being.

Because of this, ants are a popular source of inspiration for design in software engineering, robotics, industrial design, and other fields involving many simple parts working together to perform complex tasks.
In this workshop let ants be an inspiration for the collaboration of us improvisers on stage.

Let them be our role models for working together on stage when we are using our improv power to create a piece of theatre from nothing.
We will focus on our true improv powers and just simply do our job as improvisers and as we practice our best improv skills while we spend time on stage together.

• Let´s truly listen to our fellow player.
• Let´s open up and look into each other’s eyes for real.
• Let´s unconditionally follow each other’
• Let´s honestly respond to our fellow players in every single moment of our connection

And at the end of the day let´s step aside and look back at the complex, fascinating pieces of theatre we left behind.

Kevin McDonald-Kids In The Hall Method Improv to Sketch Workshop

Sat. 7/27 10am-5:30pm $180 Sat. Only
Sun. 7/28 10am-5:30pm $250 Sat. & Sun.

In this workshop, Kevin McDonald will teach the Kids in the Hall method of writing sketch comedy through improv. Students have the option of attending the workshop on Saturday ONLY or both Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday’s focus will be a writing workshop in which Kevin will teach the students the Kids in the Hall method of writing comedy sketches through improv. Through warm-up games and improvised scene work, the group and Kevin work all day to develop 4 to 7 completely new comedy sketches.

On Sunday, the students who continue will have the opportunity to craft new sketches during the first half of the day. Then, in the afternoon, the class will spend the rest of the day preparing to perform their work in a Sunday night sketch show hosted and directed by Kevin McDonald himself.

Times:
7/27 Saturday workshop: 10am-5:30pm (with a one-hour lunch break midsession)
7/28 Sunday workshop: 10am-5:30pm (with a one-hour lunch break midsession)
Sunday show at 8:30pm
NOTE: The show is on Sunday night and only the students who take the 2-day workshop are eligible to be in it.

Sketch Comedy Writing Through Improvisation with Joe Guppy

August 3 – Sept. 14, 10:00AM – 1:00PM

Learn to write comedy with fun and energizing improv games, as taught by Emmy-award-winning comedy writer, Joe Guppy. Students will learn basic improv skills, and how to build a comedy premise. We will gather around a supportive and encouraging writer’s table to rewrite using story structure, and study scenes from Saturday Night Live, Key & Peele, and comedy films. Perfect for aspiring or experienced improvisers, actors, comedy writers, screenwriters, playwrights. The class culminates with a writers’ showcase at Unexpected Productions’ Market Theater (performance optional).

Musical Improv with Laura Hall from Whose Line is it Anyway

September 8, 1019  10:00AM -1:00PM

Have you always wondered, “How do they improvise the songs on “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” If so then join with “Whose Line’s” musical director Laura Hall, and veteran Second City improviser Rick Hall for an Intro to Music Improv Workshop.

Laura & Rick have taught Music Improv all over the U.S. and Canada. They create a supportive, playful environment, starting with games and warm-ups to ease into singing.

Even if you’ve never done song improv before, you’ll build vocal confidence and learn to listen to each other and the accompaniment. And if you’re already experienced with song improv, we’ll stretch your skills and help you explore all sorts of fun new ways to use music. Before you know it, you’ll be belting out your own great improvised songs!

Spend a week working with Seattle’ premiere improv company. Our professionally-trained instructors represent some of Seattle’s best and most experienced improv teachers and performers. We create a fun and supportive environment within which you will explore, develop, and succeed (and have a blast). For years, Unexpected Productions has produced the Hogan Cup, the first High School improvisation tournament. We are taking 35 years of experience and creating a camp just for you! The week will culminate on with a performance at Unexpected Productions’ Market Theater!

Age: Teens 12 and up.
Experience: No previous improv or theater experience is required or necessary.
When: Aug. 19 – 23
Each session runs Monday-Thursday from 9:00 am – 3:00 pm, at the Georgetown Studios.
Friday, 8/23 from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm, with the performance at 5:30 pm AT THE MARKET THEATER.

Improvisers will:

• • Study the fundamentals of improvisation.
  • Develop strong ensemble and character skills.
  • Develop stage presence.
  • Build patience, self-confidence, good communication skills, and a respect for other performers and their creativity.