Learn New Improv Skills
Learn the secrets of improv, stand up, sketch and storytelling from some of the most established teachers in the Puget Sound.
First Offer, Best Offer with Brandon Felker 8/25
This is an intensive workshop that focuses on exactly that, the first offer in an improv scene. Too often in scenes… the first, the second, the third, even the fourth offer goes floating on by without the improviser grabbing hold of the first offer, the offer that unlocks the entire scene. When an improviser masters the ability to recognize the importance of the first offer and to build on it, they move further into complex and satisfying narratives without pushing for them.
Creating Instant & Lasting Characters with Troy Mink 9/6
Learn how to create characters from various inspirations like body movement, sound, costume & other outside sources. You will learn ways of “capturing” & committing to original character choices for long & short form improv scenes. Learn how to write through your characters both for solo work & group settings.
Improvised Song and Music Intensive with Ron Hippe 9/17
This class is an intensive study on Musical Improv that will review classic song forms in a way that relates to improv, and allow participants to learn, practice and perform in a constructive group setting. We examine rhyming, timing, counting and “feeling” sections of a song. Learn to create songs & stories on the spot. This class runs the musical gamut; Gregorian chants, over the top pop songs, high-energy Broadway musicals, smoky jazz tunes and dropped beats.
Comedy Class with Emmett Montgomery: Stand-up, Storytelling & Other Weirdness 9/18
Seattle’s comedy legend, Emmett Montgomery will help students develop five to ten minutes of “something funny.” Emphasis will be placed on stand-up and storytelling techniques and also explore techniques like character development, as well as, other types of sharing through performance and discussion.
Sketchfest Weekend Special
Sketch & Character Weekend Comedy Workshops with Rich Talarico 9/22-9/23
Day One: Sketch Comedy
Learn to conceive and grow your ideas into undeniable pitches, pitch to draft and re-write.
Day Two: Character Work
Learn how to line up your own choices with gifts from your teammates as you create each other’s characters instantly on stage.
Brainstorming and Pitching Sketch Comedy Workshop with Rich Talarico 9/22
Sketch writers! Learn to conceive and grow your ideas into undeniable pitches, pitch to draft and re-write. Learn how to conceive and gestate your ideas into undeniable pitches. This class will show you how to wring the most out of that first flash of an idea so that you are able to fully explore all the possibilities available. You’ll also learn how to contribute to other’s ideas in a writer’s room.
Character/Point of View Improv Class with Rich Talarico 9/23
Character = choice. Learn how to line up your own choices with gifts from your teammates as you create each other’s characters instantly on stage. Feel the power of POV – the choice that guides all choices. See how easy it is to discover your character’s world view, the filter through which only you look, and how to keep “playing the game” of your character throughout a scene and a show.
Creating Stage-Worthy Personal Stories Workshop with Kent Whipple 9/23
Tell your personal story. Get comfortable on stage. This intensive workshop explores the art of oral storytelling. Learn simple practical story guidelines and step-by-step tools, to create incredible honest stories from your life experience. Learn how to share stories that are genuine, generous, and vulnerable in a fun creative space.
Fundamentals of Improvised Hip Hop with Dre Anderson and Tiffany Swanson 10/15
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. Utilizing the fundamentals of improv, coupled with free-styling, beatboxing and crowd techniques, students gain a deeper understanding of hip-hop, its roots and how to utilize the elements of rhythm and poetry to amplify scene work and have even more fun on stage living the improviser’s dream.
Fearless Physical Improv Workshop with Jay Hitt 10/18
Improving your physicality will help you be more comfortable on stage from mime and object work to your physical presence. Communicate emotion, story, character and utilizing the scene’s environment. Prepare to laugh and sweat as Jay guides you to take your scene from talking heads to fully embodied characters that communicate through action. As an improviser your body is your instrument – Play it!
Improvising with the Heart, Body and Mind with Liz Brammer and Tony Beeman 11/18
Being truly present means a lot more than listening with the mind. Most experienced improvisers have learned to be intellectually present, but we too often fail to be simultaneously present at a physical and/or emotional level. This workshop will explore the sort of authentic presence that allows us to receive and make offers from the heart and body, not just the mind. We will explore the sort of mindfulness required to combine these three levels of presence through exercises, scene work, and exploration.
