I know two vastly different games that go by this title. The first, a ComedySportz mainstay, is a high-octane charades-style contest that has performers trying to decipher five ludicrously ornate activities. (Bungee jumping off the Eiffel Tower into a vat of a variable Jello flavor was an oppressively common audience favorite during my tenure in the early 90s.) The second, outlined below, provides an only slightly lower octane brainstorming exercise for exploring archetypes, dialogue, and generating spontaneous content.
The Basics
There are several ways you can tinker with the game basics (explicated below). Typically, players form a circle, and one performer challenges another by offering the prompt, “Five Things a [blank] might say…” Improvisers must then quickly concoct five answers to that implied question. The ensemble boisterously counts off each response, “One!” “Two!” “Three…!” Each round culminates with a celebratory chant of “And that’s five things!” And then a new suggestion is offered so that the joyful process can continue.
Variation One
Play moves sequentially around the circle. Player A turns to Player B and offers inspiration, such as “Five things an astronaut might say…” Player B provides the first response – “Houston, we have a problem…,” and the ensemble counts off, “One!” Player C then provides a second possibility – “It’s a pleasure to talk to all of you in Ms. Dygan’s third grade class from 250 miles above the earth!” A lively “Two” follows… After the fifth improviser provides the fifth original line of dialogue, the round is capped with the joyful “And that’s five things,” and the next player (G in this case) begins a new round. Alternatively, depending on your number of participants or available time to play, you might return to Player B to imitate the next sequence so that everyone gets to play in every position.
Variation Two
The mechanics from above remain the same; however, one player must now provide all five unique responses in a row, pausing only briefly between each sentence to allow for their teammates’ supportive counting. When they’ve completed the challenge, they issue the next original role to a different player (so, nothing space related if Player B has just been an astronaut for five one-line vignettes). Play can just continue sequentially around the circle with Player B now inspiring Player C’s flight of fancy, or the previous player in the hot seat can point to a random participant across the circle to even further increase the unpredictability of the whole experience (though making sure everyone gets a turn in the listing position eventually).
Example
The ensemble forms a circle and Player A turns to Player B to issue the first challenge.
Player A: “Five things an improv teacher might say…”
Player B: “Alright, everyone, let’s get into a circle for a warm-up…”
Everyone: “One!”
Player B: “Whatever you do, team, go out there and have fun tonight!”
Everyone: “Two!”
Player B: “I’m going to the Celt and Harp after class today if anyone wants to join me to hear more of my stories about when I studied in Chicago with…”
Everyone: “Three!”
Player B: (with a bold arm movement) “Zip…”
Everyone: “Four!”
Player B: “That scene showed promise, but let’s be careful of rehashng needlessly insular and theatre-y material as it tends to alternate an audience.”
Everyone: “Five! And that’s five things!”
Player B now turns to offer an identity to Player C…
The Focus
This fast-paced game invites players to immediately adopt a clear character and point of view through the use of confident and specific dialogue. If you’re working on a genre-based piece or a performance that utilizes stock characters or archetypes, this exercise is a great way to get your company into the right frame of mind in terms of show-appropriate content. “Five things a Shakespearean king might say,” “Five things a star fleet caption might say,” “Five things a werewolf might say…,” and the like.
Traps and Tips
1.) One. Take a breath, but then leap. It can be daunting to face the gauntlet, especially if you’re playing the second variant, but you don’t want to retreat into your head. Say your first word – any first word – trusting that you’ll formulate the second and then third… Accept the messiness of spontaneity and that your fellow teammates will delight in seeing you figure out your idea externally and in real time.
2.) Two. Embrace specificity. This exercise snugs nicely with the concept of experts – characters that use language with confidence and precision. You may need to slow down your vocal patterns initially to accomplish this level of finesse but avoid mundane dialogue that doesn’t incorporate some unique aspect of the proffered identity. “I like broccoli” could likely be said by any character, so it probably isn’t the most full-throated acceptance of the challenge. (Unless you’re a butcher, in which case that might be quite novel and playful.)
3.) Three. Consider archetypes. In many ways, this game invites incorporating well-known tropes and familiar caricatures. It’s fine to start there, mining what you know or think you know about a personality type as a way of launching your vignette. That being said, be sure you’re playing at the top of your intelligence (creatively, emotionally, politically, socially…), while also allowing your own experiences to infuse your dialogue. If you treat your five things as “five punchlines” or “five gags” then you’re probably not pushing yourself out of limiting comfort zones.
4.) Four. Question archetypes. This drill is a uniquely powerful way to launch a strong character with a stated deal, energy, or attitude towards life. Subsequently, it’s a shame to settle for five similar astronauts, or improv teachers, or politicians, or “whatevers” in a row. Seek variety within your characters. By doing so, an inelegant or clichéd first choice can lead you into a less expected or less stereotypical second or third choice (hence the necessity for working in a playful and judgment free environment). In my incredibly self-indulgent improv teacher example above, it’s tempting to make every choice creepier or sillier or more satirical than its predecessor, but you’ll get more out of the experience if you truly endeavor to discover the widest possible assortment of people who could belong in that category.
5.) Five. Play the scene. Sure, these are generally incredibly brief one-line vignettes, but it’ll further enrich your turn at bat if you don’t just think of these as five panicked and rattled off disembodied lines devoid of any context or physicality. You can inspire and focus your creativity (that can easily become jangled by this challenge) simply through the incorporation of a defining activity, or the endowing of a suitable scene partner, or consideration of the potentials or restrictions of any paradigmatic clothing or location. Perform your five things rather than just reciting them.
In Performance
I love that this swift exercise allows you to quickly leap from one character to another with the liberating knowledge that they will all live and die in that one sentence. It is disposable improv at its finest. When you’re in the setup position, be wary of needlessly modifying the prompt as this can limit the resulting diversity of characters. Facts tend to be more helpful than feelings or emotions – so “a third-grade math teacher” will promote more playful variety than “an out-of-their depth” or “past-their-prime teacher.” Allow the latter types of energies to become discovered by the player organically. (Unless, that is, you’re workshopping a particular set of characters defined by emotional climates and textures, in which case Five Things can help you find varied launching points within a smaller archetype subset.)
I’ve talked a little about the potential for stereotypical portrayals above and would advise being vigilant for recurring and problematic patterns of performance (as always) while also acknowledging that some first instincts may not be the most nuanced and savvy. If any small perceived infraction is pounced upon, the game will struggle to breathe and grow, so be judicious with the timing and tone of any content critique.
Thanks to my improv colleague Chelsea Hilend for helping me recall some of the details of this game as it had fallen out of my regular teaching rotation.
Cheers, David Charles.
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Photo Credit: Sarasota Improv Fest
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