Learnimprov – Just the first improv game site
learnimprov.com
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In NY's scene there's a surprising amount of software engineers who do improv as a creative outlet. I started taking classes at Magnet Theater about 1.5 years ago and it's been a great way to pull my brain out of work. More specifically, it's nice to enter a mental space where I need to empty out my mind, listen to what my scene partner is saying, and progress a situation that's presented to me- its close to the concept of mushin[1] but in an acting context.
Improv theaters in NYC have (for the most part) been suffering financially, and if you're in the area, once things are in a more normal state, I strongly advise checking out shows, whether it's UCB, Magnet, PIT, or any of the other theaters! Some places (namely Magnet) also do twitch streams if you're looking for something to watch on a random night.
Experience has shown that comedy and "diversity efforts" are negatively correlated
You can keep you "jazz-hands" comedians all to yourself and your "rich" experience.
It is disappointing that improv and all live-theaters perpetually struggle to stay afloat (even without COVID). It should not be a challenging model; a class just requires a teacher, students, and a clear performance space. Unfortunately, that space is a scarce commodity in the largest cities and finding enough students is impossible in a smaller city.
I think the economics are a little weird as well- improv coaches basically are hourly employees, and the sticker price for a class (400+ for 10 3h sessions and a ending show) can get a little daunting especially as you go further along.
Aside: Apparently UCB has a bit of controversy surrounding its finances and paying staff, though I am not super familiar with it and can't speak to it further, but I'll point you here: https://www.vulture.com/2020/03/ucb-layoffs-coronavirus-begi...
Most NYC improv classes before the end of the pandemic crept up to around 450 dollars for a class which met once per week over the course of 8 weeks plus two shows. This is terrible value and flat out unaffordable for aspiring comedians who decided to move to NY. For them to be priced out by software engineers who see improv as some kind of corporate public speaking training is kind of devastating, not least of which because I considered the UCB (at least in the era of the Chelsea theatre) to be a sort of hallowed ground growing up, where I could go see some of the funniest people in the country for free at the 9PM Sunday ASSSSSCAT after waiting the entire afternoon in line.
The pressures of financial mismanagement and the enormous amount of demand from well-paid professionals who wanted to give comedy a go ruined improv comedy in NY. The fact is many of your peers probably “passed” the 201 “graduation“ requirements, despite not having a single funny thought most days, because of the tantalizing incentive of getting these people to pay for more classes. A “school” where some of the greatest comedic minds were once gathered became a cult where people paid tithe, and the result is some of the worst live theatre the world has ever produced.
I sincerely hope the UCB never comes back, and that if improv ever rises again, it does so in more sensible cities like Las Vegas, Atlanta or Miami. What happened in New York was senseless. Also, maybe software engineers should think a little bit about how their money shapes their local economies.
I wouldn't really know though unless UCB is really only sourcing its main-stage talent from their classes, which I highly doubt. because if they were, that'd sound like a pay-to-play type of thing, which happens/happened a lot in places like L.A. for musicians trying to break in a long time ago, and that would be super lame, and likely not lead to their main stage being very funny.
Besides, they probably have massive rent to pay , why not offer classes to the dilettantes/hobbiests who want to try and experience different things and work on their social skills and confidence? Also, I have to assume that they offer classes in rooms that aren't the main stage, and all that. They're just utilizing space and time for revenue.
This is exactly what was happening. You have to understand, this is not a one-off $450 dollar class but a “curriculum” (101, 201, 301, 401). There were requirements after graduation from 201 and 401, where to pass 201 you pretty much had to prove that you didn’t shout racist profanities on stage, and after 401 you had to prove that you were able to carry a bit, and there was a weird tiered culture where improvisers would only associate with people who had attained specific levels.
Once you went through these four classes, you had the opportunity to audition for improv house teams which performed every Tuesday night in a marathon 4ish hour block. I remember there being like 6-8 house teams with 8 members each, but even then competition was incredibly fierce. Sometimes, at the highest levels, comedians who were established elsewhere would be brought in, but talent was mostly internally sourced. I remember being somewhat shocked to learn that the house team members were not only unpaid but also had to pay monthly dues.
It was an incredible opportunity to get on these house teams and there are a lot of wonderful comedians on the national stage who cut their teeth at UCB. I took classes on and off from like 2007-2017ish and remember them being around 200-ish dollars at the start, and I don’t regret any of it. Nothing will ever beat the experience of being in a groove with your fellow improvisers and bringing down a house. I’m also incredibly thankful that I got to meet all the instructors, who are all hilarious comedians in their own right.
I apologize to the OPs; I don’t really know how funny they are or what their classes were like. I just had the sudden image of being a kid who moved to NY for comedy, trying to climb the UCB ladder and saving for classes, only to be in a room where most people literally made five times what you made, sitting and watching two “senior software engineers“ do two person scenes in tinnitus inducing silence, listening to them try to get rise from the room with references to things like Amazon EKS as they pantomimed scrubbing dishes next to each other, and then having to listen to as many minutes of notes on this scene from the instructor. Truly bleak.
In the past, I said the experience was the social equivalent of joining a pickup soccer game thinking you were in shape, and wheezing while out of breath in the first ten minutes. The classes taught me the importance of active listening, the magic of groupthink, and the difference between sincere expression and artificial performance. My own experience leads me to believe learning improv can help the average person practice empathy and understand themselves better. I think the world would be better if improv were approachable to everyone (even those outside of LA and NYC who do not have $450 to blow).
Because I understand the scene better, I consider UCB, especially its "professional track", to be an exploitative clique that mortgaged its reputation for quick growth. Regardless of mission statements or guidance, it has always been obvious that a specific mold of performers are granted any opportunity. Still, there is no way the "old UCB" would have survived the past 20 years, and it is reassuring to hear startup theaters can spread the good word.
I agree with your critique of the "curriculum" gatekeeping setup that a lot of theaters have, and it does give off a weird moneygrabbing vibe. _However_,
- space costs money
- shows are almost always absurdly cheap (and btw, it's not like you can just take two classes and do a show sponsored by the theater. Magnet had a particularly arduous process to get on a house team.)
- don't know about UCB but Magnet held free open improv sessions. PIT charged something small to participate
- it's not heavily advertised but Magnet/PIT will come up with scholarships/volunteer opportunities in exchange for tuition.
I also think it's ridiculous to gatekeep software engineers out of improv (one of the most accepting communities I've been a part of btw), as if we're only allowed to churn out code 8 hours a day, go home, and do nothing that could possibly allow ourselves a creative outlet. While I enjoy some aspects of my job, I don't find it totally stimulating, and I like having creative outlets of expression such as improv. To some end, yes, the money I make as an engineer does fuel my ability to participate in my hobby. I'm not "trashing a local economy". I'm enjoying my fucking hobby. A hobby I have some higher aspirations in, granted, but I'm not expecting to quit my job tomorrow and pivot to comedy.
For all this guff you're making about software engineers being unfunny, I find it incredibly _unfunny_ that you're just declaring who can and can't participate in what is effectively two people telling a story on the fly.
Here’s a thing a guy did about the death of UCB New York: https://youtu.be/rObi3xZTQUk
Comedy that isn’t about politics, memes, or the pandemic is the one frivolous thing that I miss about the before times.
> Toilet Roll: This scene must be completed before a burning length of toilet paper reaches the player’s pants.
I guess you can say that improv is meant to teach you fast reactions rather than "funny" ones.
"Blind Dubbing: Deprecated as we no longer need to use the term blind. Replaced with Reversed Dubbing."
"Blind Stalker: Title of Blind Stalker has been Deprecated because it is insensitive. A fish net stocking may be funny, but stalking is not."
"Corridors: Deprecated because of unnecessary and outdated language: pimping, and slut shaming."
"Deaf Translation: Deprecated due to ableist shenanigans."
The thing about the games is that they're used as both warmups and short form entertainment. There are much more entertaining games than most of the ones that were replaced because they're racist or creepy.
But also, Big Booty is hilarious and still very common in Chicago.
If anyone has any theatres or virtual shows they recommend adding, please let me know either here or via email (found in my profile).
One of my favorite virtual shows is by a team here in Chicago called Cigarette Sandwich (https://www.twitch.tv/videos/931265538). I think they've adapted really well to the virtual medium.
I've been impressed by how legitimately funny a group of total novices can be. Sure, there are plenty of misses, but also times where everything clicks together perfectly and the result gets me laughing as hard as I would at a professional comedy show. I'd recommend it to anyone who could use a pandemic pick-me-up.
Another game in the same vein : assign each player a unique alphabet letter. Starting clockwise, each player states a word starting with their letter.
If someone pauses for more than 3 seconds (6 steps if playing while walking) another person may say a word for that letter. We keep score by how many words you helped with (stole from) others. Each word should be unique, you can’t state a word used before. Continue until at destination.
To increase difficulty: when the initial player is reached (after a full round), reverse the direction (if clockwise, go counterclockwise) of play. When a reversal occurs take the letter from the person who goes after you in the clockwise direction.
I'm in the process of building a virtual tabletop, www.fictionboard.com, that focuses on narrative driven games. I find other VTTs get more in the way and just doing games on Zoom or Discord doesn't provide enough tools for immersion.
Pre-pandemic I would go to the 11am text message show at UCB Franklin in LA and it was consistently amazing.
There are three "big" improv theaters in SF which I know of: Endgames Improv in the Mission, Leela in SoMa, and BATS Improv in the Marina. The show you might've heard of is "Your F'd Up Relationship", which is put on by Endgames Improv's main house team on Fridays at 9 and 10:30. That's a great one to start with. Speaking as an improviser, those performers are especially strong, and the format helps them be consistently funny.
You can also take classes from those theaters, or from a couple other spots, like Thunderbolt Comedy (who actually have a really neat online platform called Pineappl: a web app that's designed specifically for improv, so that performers can simulate being on stage, maintain consistent relative positions to each other, set custom backgrounds, etc. without wrangling any of the messy Zoom stuff like covering up your camera when you're "offscreen".)
Unfortunately the city's comedy scene has taken a massive hit due to the pandemic. I have to imagine that being locked in a crowded room with 50 strangers all laughing is just about the last thing that the city is going to allow to reopen. It seems like Endgames is in financial trouble, since they've put one of their theaters up for rent and the other one is running GoFundMe's. To me, watching Zoom improv really just isn't the same -- really, so much of the improv experience is sharing it with an audience. I really do hope the theaters survive the pandemic so we can have in person shows again when it's safe!
Thunderdome on Wednesdays was also great. It's a "running bracket" competition. Two teams, 25 minutes each, audience votes on which performance they liked better, winning team continues onto the next week.
I went to a Secret Improv Society show at Shelton Theater on Sutter in SF. It was hilarious!