Improv Tips

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. The last thing a drunk person wants to do is to appear drunk. The same goes for drunk characters. So while the staggering, stammering, falling-down drunk character you play might get you some laughs on the stage, you might not be playing at the height of your intelligence unless you play that character realistically. Even your most stereotypical characters should have some grounding in reality. Make sure that they do. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. You are, occasionally, going to have to play characters who you don’t like. Don’t write off that character as “bad.” Find something or several things to like about your character. Not only will that give your character more depth, but it will make it much more palatable to play that character. There is always something to like about even the most loathsome character. Find it. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Just like the best villains have many layers, so do the best heroes. Perfect heroes who the audience knows are always going do the right thing no matter the circumstance are boring and unrealistic. Even Superman has been tempted and corrupted. When you’re playing the ultimate hero, that character will be much more interesting if they’re relatable because they have flaws. Give your heroes depth. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. The best villains have many layers. They’re not the melodramatic one-dimensional Snidely Whiplash character tying a victim to the train tracks. They have feelings. They have mothers. They have love interests. Even if they are doing evil things, they’re doing them for reasons that they believe are good and justified. And they’re much more fun to play with, as, and against if they have motivations for their villainy, even if they’re unreasonable. Give your villains depth. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. There’s nothing wrong with choosing to play an inanimate object, an animal, a baby, or something else that under ordinary circumstances doesn’t speak. But remember if you make that choice that you might be limiting your contributions to the scene, at least your verbal contributions. By all means, play those parts, but be aware before you make that decision that your communication and contributions to the scene are going to be affected by that choice. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Keep your head on a swivel. It’s important in improv to know as much as you can what’s happening in the scene you’re in. One of the ways to do that is by constantly checking your surroundings, just like you learned to do in drivers’ education. The more people that are in your scene, the more important it is that you pay as much attention as possible to who they are, where they are, what environment they’re creating, and what they’re doing. So, look around and check your mirrors. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. There’s a classic scene in the NBC version of The Office that finds Michael Scott taking an improv class. At one point, he pulls out his improv gun and shoots all of the characters in the scene with him. It’s almost never a good idea to do that. If you delete someone else’s character or your own character from a scene by killing them off or sending them away, that’s one fewer collaborator helping you to build the scene together. And it’s just not good improv etiquette. Stay in your scenes. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. If I had a roll of toilet paper for every time I’ve seen an improviser reveal that they’re pregnant, get fired from their job, or propose onstage, I’d be in good shape for the next few months. Yes, you want your scenes to be interesting, but there are plenty of other interesting things that happen to ordinary people every day that aren’t life-changing experiences. And those things are often much more relatable to your audience specifically because they are the types of things that happen every day. Go out and find those things so you keep the variety in your scenes. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Oh, what the effing aech is this one all about? Occasionally, your character will need to swear in a scene because it’s what the scene needs at that time. If that’s the case, eff yeah. Do it. But be careful not to dilute the impact of a well-placed swear word by swearing constantly on the stage. Your fucks, shits, god damnits, and cock-sucking twat-washing cumstick dickbags will have much more impact if you use them sparingly and in an appropriate context. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Improvisation is not a competition. Don’t waste your time comparing yourself to the improvisers around you. Improv is a collaborative process, and your improv set or scene is only as good as your worst performer. Instead of trying to be the “best” improviser in the world, strive to raise the level of the performers around you. I would like nothing more than to be the worst improviser on every team I’ve ever been on, because that should mean that the team is pretty darn good. Don’t compete. Collaborate. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe and stay healthy, and I will see you next time.