Improv Tips

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. If you ever receive an actual gift onstage as a character, not a great offering as an actor, don’t open it. Come up with distractions, excuses, and stall tactics so that you never actually open the gift. You don’t need to. The gift to the scene is the gift, and it doesn’t really matter what’s inside it. The act of giving a gift immediately tells you something about the relationship between the characters, which is way more interesting to explore than what’s in the box. Focus on that. Besides, isn’t being mysterious fun? That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. My father can and has told me the same stories over and over in my life. I’m interested in hearing them every time because he can flat-out tell a story. Remember that as an improviser you’re also a storyteller. The more enthusiasm and heart you pour into the story you’re telling onstage, the more engaging it will be, and the less likely it will be that I roll my eyes when you tell it. Plus, you won’t forget the details because you’re making them up, anyhow. Love you, Dad. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, happy belated Fathers’ Day to you dads out there, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. A very long time ago, when I was in college, my improv and sketch comedy group operated under the assumption that louder equaled funnier. We were wrong. No matter how hilarious the things you’re saying on stage are, saying them louder doesn’t necessarily make them funnier. There’s no need to always be the screaming character in a scene drowning out your scene partners and demanding all the attention. The role of the silent assassin who speaks softly and carries a hilarious blackout line can be just as satisfying. Pay attention to your volume, and try turning it up or down for a change of pace. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. The more direct you are onstage, the easier you’re going to make your improv life. Dancing around an issue onstage both delays the inevitable and prevents you from progressing the scene. And watching people uncomfortably avoid a topic is for family gatherings, not improv scenes. Address the elephants in the room sooner rather than later so you can move your scene to the next logical step. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Though it’s not a common occurrence, there’s a chance every time you start a scene that you might be all alone onstage for a while. Don’t look offstage for help. Rather, keep the idea you had in mind, and act as your character would in the context of that idea. Do object work, move around the space, hum, whistle, talk to yourself about the idea. Until someone joins you onstage, you have free rein to make any of the scene choices you want to. Go ahead and start making the choices you can without a scene partner. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. I’ve stressed time and again that improv is not a competition, and it isn’t. But if you’re one of those people who can’t help but compete, I would challenge you to compete with yourself. Each day, try to be a better improviser than you were the day before. If you make a mistake today, focus on not repeating that mistake tomorrow. Only by getting better every day will you ever be the best, you competitive nut. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. One of the big mistakes new improv students make is to always try to be funny and to say funny things. I get it. You’re trying to impress your teacher and your classmates by being the funniest person in the room. But don’t do that. At best, you’re not impressing anyone. At worst, you’re a distraction to the class. Focus on playing real when you’re first learning improv. If you focus on learning how to improvise from a real place, the funny will eventually come. I’d much rather teach a student who plays real to be funny than teach a funny person how to be real. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Ultimately, most of the decisions you’ll have to make onstage are binary. If someone accuses you of stealing their wallet, you did or you didn’t. If someone confesses their love for you, you’re either happy or unhappy about it. If you’re doing your job, you’re either good at it or bad at it. If you break down your scenes into a series of binary choices, you might find it easier to free up your brain to focus on reacting to those choices. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. Of course the things that are said onstage are important to you as an improviser. You need to hear and be aware of all those things. In addition, if everything that happens in a scene is important to your character, that will invariably make for a more interesting scene. In and of itself, your character’s car breaking down could be interesting, but if your character needed the car to drive across the country in a race against an eccentric millionaire, that’s instantly more interesting. Everything should be important. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.

I’m Michael Bradt for The Bit Theater. One of my favorite improv teams I’ve played with is called Bad Improv Gun. It’s named after the way some rookie improvisers form a gun, by pointing their index finger in front of them and their thumb up in the air. Bad Improv Phone would be sticking your thumb in your ear and talking into your pinky finger. When you’re manipulating an improvised object, it should look just like you’re manipulating a real object, but you can’t see the object. Don’t use bad improv guns. That’s your improv tip for the day. Stay safe, stay healthy, love each other, and I will see you next time.