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Short
Form
I need
three players…
Short
form is simply the most familiar form of improvisation. Have you ever “played an improv game?” Then you were probably doing Short Form. Shows like Whose Line is it Anyways? and Wild ‘N Out, though they
have elements of Theatersports, are based around Short Form improv.
Short form improv
usually takes the form of games with set rules for how the scene will proceed.
The improvisers might be limited to sentences three words long, or required to
avoid a particular letter of the alphabet, or assigned a specific character
quirk to act out over the course of the scene. Hundreds of these games and
their variations are passed from troupe to troupe and from person to
person. Here are some of the short-form
games we like to play:
·
Party Quirks – One player hosts a party. Three
other players are the guests, and are each secretly assigned a quirk,
character, or strange way of behaving that is known to the audience, but not
the host. By interacting with the other players, the host must figure out what
the guests’ quirks are.
·
Change – Two or more players begin a scene.
A third player periodically gives an agreed-upon signal (perhaps ringing a
bell, or simply calling out, “Change!”). When the signal is given, the players
must redo their last line, action, or gesture differently.
·
Film, TV, and Theater Styles – A scene is begun. Someone shouts
out names of different styles of movies, television, and theater, and the scene
is adapted to each style in turn.
·
Dr. Know-It-All – Three players become the
three-headed genius Dr. Know-It-All, who answers questions with one word from
each head at a time.
·
Freeze – Two players perform a scene. At any
point, another improviser can shout, “Freeze!”, at which point the improvisers
performing immediately freeze into position. The third player selects one
improviser and replaces him or her, taking his or her exact position and
beginning a new and different scene.
·
Foreign Speaker – One player presents a speech in
gibberish while another “translates.”
·
Moving People – Two players are performing a scene,
but are not allowed to move on their own. Each player has a helper, who moves
the player’s body like a giant puppet as the scene progresses.
·
World’s Worst – A panel of improvisers are
challenged to come up with as many examples as possible of the world’s worst .
. . something. Some examples: World’s Worst President, Doctor, Lawyer,
Neighbor, Thing to say at a wedding, etc.
For
more games, and other helpful links, visit www.humanpingpongball.com
and read Impro for Storytellers by
Keith Johnstone, available in most bookstores.