Truth in Comedy: The Manual of Improvisation

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KEY POINTS FOR CHAPTER NINE *Commit to the physical. *Let your environment affect you. *Be specific with your objects. *Reveal yourself through your character. Notable Quote: “There are people who prefer to say ‘yes’ and there are people who prefer to say ‘no’. Those who say ‘yes’ are rewarded by the adventures they have. Those who say ‘no’ are rewarded by the safety they attain.”

And I think of Maria Bamford, who possesses a sheer technical mastery of so many of the skills at a stand-up’s disposal, but what sets her apart is the level of difficulty of the material. She is driven to talk about things that are hard to talk about. The stigma around mental illness is so prevalent that “stigma around mental illness” is now a phrase everyone is familiar with. But when Bamford was doing material about mental health in the early 2000s — like “I never really thought of myself as depressed, though, as much as [ gets ironically wistful] paralyzed by hope” — it was scary to bring up. Unlike being a perv and sexual abuser, apparently, mental illness has led to people losing work, having difficulty maintaining relationships, and struggling to be considered a full member of society. Del Close (March 9, 1934 – March 4, 1999) was an American actor, writer, and teacher who coached many of the best-known comedians and comic actors of the late twentieth century.[1] In addition to an acting career in television and film, he was one of the influences on modern improvisational theater. Connections are a much more sophisticated way to get laughs. When an audience sees the players start a pattern, they finish the connections in their minds. A SAMPLE HAROLD Describing the structure of a Harold is important, but seeing how an actual Harold develops may be even more helpful. This is a synopsis of the Harold that grew out of the Pattern Game described early in this book, based on the theme of camera. Opening Pattern Game: "Camera" "High s c hoo l... high speed . . . do pe .. . Indy 5 00 . .. Most likely to . . . crash and bur n .. . In Memoriam . . . Viet Nam . . . Don't write on the wall. . . s mo kin'... I caught yo u ... Smile!... I think I got it . . . Clap ... I think I got it .. . The answer is . . . Let's see what de ve lo ps ... I think I got it . . . photo-finish ... by a nose . . . buy a vo wel... by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin . .. buy a bond . . . propaganda . . . buy it . . . Viet Nam . . . bye bye . . . dope . . . speed . . . it happened so f as t... Indy 50 0... highspeed... high school." 86

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Lastly, having taken many improv classes, I believe that we need to participate and play to understand comedy, reading a book with comedy philosophy isn’t enough.

Part of Burnham understands that stand-ups, also often seen from below, are doing this, too, so to shoot them as if it were otherwise might feel dishonest. Inside is not a literal depiction of what the pandemic was like for Burnham (he, for one, probably slept in his actual house) but a real attempt to capture what he wanted to communicate about it. People shouldn’t take it literally and leave the special worried that he is a suicidal recluse now but rather leave it worried for people generally who might have had a hard time during the pandemic. Opposed to the self-interest of C.K.’s “truth,” Burnham offers a “truth” that can help the viewer better understand themselves. The goal for Burnham, like Shandling, is never personal truth but truth — period. KEY POINTS FOR CHAPTER SEVEN *Keep it simple. Less is more. *Avoid exposition. *Start scenes in the middle. *Take the active choice to forward action. *Be specific. Avoid generalities. *Listen for the game move. *Welcome the silences. There is action in thought. The set reminds me of something Early said to me when I first interviewed him: “People who are performing themselves, the way that we see who they really are is in the way that performance fails.” To do a bit like this, where the line between real and fake is ambiguous, in front of a studio audience of tourists and the most middle-American audience at home, is risky. Right away, this audience might not even register any of the performance as comedy, resulting in an excruciating four minutes of televised audience silence. However, it was still better than the alternative. “The weirdness of stand-up is that you have to pretend that it’s off-the-cuff,” Early explained on an episode of You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes, talking about the Tonight Show set. “That is so embarrassing to me.”La segunda ocasión que supe de la importancia de la improvisación, fue con una serie de entrevistas a varios comediantes que admiro. Kristen Wig, Steve Martin, y Dave Chapelle se adentraron al mundo de la comedia a partir del improv y me dije de lo imperativo que era leer este libro.

CREATE AN OBJECT, SAY A LINE This is a simple exercise, in which two players begin a scene. Before each of them speaks a line of dialog, however, they must create and use an object. This is done every time a player delivers a line — he cannot keep using the same object over and over again. In this way, he continues to make discoveries throughout the scene. 65 TOM: Well, I guess we have to start over. We need a president. ROGER: Okay. TOM: I nominate myself. ROGER: I second that. TOM: Does that mean I'm president? ROGER: No, it just means you're nominated. We have to have an election. (They vote, and Roger counts the secret ballots.) ROGER: You lost. I don't know how, either, because I voted for you. TOM: Then I declare a dictatorship. But, I appoint you attorney general. ROGER: Great! Then I get to prosecute someone. (Looks around.) Well, since you're the only one here, I guess I'll prosecute you for the state of the world. TOM: Okay. ROGER: I find you guilty. TOM: But you haven't proven anything yet. ROGER: This is a dictatorship! There's no due process of law. TOM: I'm defecting. As the scene continued, there was a summit in the middle of the highway to discuss trade negotiations. The pair began fighting, and the threat of war was once again at hand. The two players were clearly affected by the desolate environment they had visualized in their heads. Improvisers must totally commit to their environment, because as easily as they create a location for their audience, they can destroy it. It is very jarring to see an elaborate environment created on stage, in which everybody knows where every imaginary object is on stage, only to see an actor walk through a table and destroy everything the players worked so hard to establish. This is one of the most common forms of “breaking reality” one of the worst mistakes an improviser can make; this rccliscussed in detail in the next chapter. Players who commit to the environment respect all objects created on stage as though they were real, because once the performers bring them into existence, they are real. If players don't commit to them 100 per cent, they will not commit to anything. Any audience that has watched enough inexperienced improvisers has seen some truly astonishing things, feats to challenge a Houdini. Drinking glasses vanish and re-appear, telephones magically grow and shrink several times in a few seconds, and people walk through tables, chairs, and walls. Performers who do this are obviously not visualizing their environment. Most audiences stop paying attention to a scene like this, and instead concentrate on the many ways the player has destroyed his reality. This is a form of denial, and it can only be avoided if each player pays close attention to the physical details created by everyone on stage. 63 Improv books are guides that teach the art of improvisational acting and comedy. These books teach participants how to think on their feet, respond to prompts, and react to other actors. The guides relay the fundamentals of improv and lay down best practices so that players have an easier time making up dialogue on the spot and acting in the moment. These books also often show readers how to apply the principles of improv to achieve success in business and life. What are the best improv books for beginners?One of the best ways to achieve this is by listening — paying attention to what is going on at the moment. It's impossible to think about what to say in advance, because one player can Completely change direction, and a player who thinks Baking only delays the story. The response should be reflexive rather than a carefully chosen word (this is in sharp contrast to scenes, where each response is slowly and carefully considered). The word "and" should also be avoided, and players must strive to sound like one voice. As the group becomes more comfortable with the game, there are other devices to enhance its value. One variation has any player who delays in responding to step out of the group, eliminating the slower players one by one, as in a spelling bee; this teaches the group to keep up the pace. Naturally, inappropriate responses also cause players to lose (when played in front of a group or an audience, good-natured jeering often results). When a player fails, he is often forced to stage his own death before the audience and his teammates, preferably in some manner that reflects the story at that point. Another technique, particularly used in a performance (or as an opening exercise) utilizes a theme, a title, or an audience suggestion for the story. Independientemente de esto que les comento, vale mucho la pena leer el libro para entender, en algún momento y si les es posible con una mayor facilidad que la mia, el arte de hacer un "Harold"