When designing my latest R&D Show XVIII centered on interruptions, my mind wandered to this game – a variant of the oft-played (at Sak Comedy Lab) Columns which I need to add to my Game Library shortly as well.
The Basics
During a regular improv scene, whenever a player pauses mid-sentence (and perhaps offers a predetermined signal) the audience en masse yells out possible dialogue choices, one of which becomes repeated and then immediately used in the action. The story continues onward with escalating interruptions and adjustments.
Example
Two players begin a scene inspired by “turtles” and are seen walking a beach as the lights rise.
Player A: “If we’re lucky, we should see some coming ashore. They tend to approach the beach at dusk.”
Player B: (taking A’s hand, though somewhat awkwardly) “I know this place is special to you. Thanks for bringing me here.”
Player A: (a little embarrassed) “Well, Tom, you’ve clearly become special to me lately, too. Ever since we met at the…”
Player A places their hand to their brow, prompting the audience to chime in with several possibilties.
Player A: (finishing their thought by repeating the clearest audience suggestion) “AA meeting.”
Player B: “I’d rather you didn’t so casually mention that when we’re out and about…”
The Focus
A justification game at its core, work to make sense of the audience-elicited madness that typically ensues!
Traps and Tips
1.) Model. Especially in larger (and therefore likely louder or more unruly) crowds, be sure to rehearse what is expected from your audience collaborators. In most circumstances, it’s helpful for players to establish some sort of physical signal to prompt offers as a pause alone can lead to anxious (or unhelpful) members of the audience yelling things out after the slightest provocation or encouragement. Generally, a hand or finger to the forehead does the trick, but if you’ve got a bigger house, you could be even more specific with the side of the forehead determining which side of the auditorium can yell out, for example. A quick demonstration can make these ideas concrete while also giving the players a chance to tackle and overcome the wall of sound that might result from each gesture.
2.) Anchor. This has become standard advice for called or justification-based games, but it is worth repeating: make sure you are making clear and grounded choices on which to build your sandcastle. If no one in the scene knows who anyone else is or what they want or where the action is set, the randomness of the audience remarks will scuttle the creative ship before it’s even left the dock. Don’t be afraid to make a few strong establishing moves of your own before handing over the rudder to the masses. Such a strategy will also give the audience some context to inspire their own choices which, in turn, will likely result in some options that are at least vaguely connected or helpful. Similarly, you can do the scene a lot of good by offering leading phrases that steer the audience’s creativity. Asking for the identity of an object, or character’s name, or a particular quality, for example, will typically garner simpler and more contained (and containable) options. If things are going well, by all means take the risk of letting the crowd make a less framed choice. But especially as the scene starts up, it’s wise to test the waters and encourage smaller, bite-sized contributions.
3.) Filter. This game tends to be either feast or famine in terms of audience involvement. With less involved patrons, players might only have a handful of thoughts to choose from. If the opposite is true, it’s important not to sit in the multitude of potentials too long but rather grab at the first (venue-appropriate) phrase that you can readily discern. It’s unlikely if players wait too long that they will hear anything markedly more useful than the first chaotic round of ideas! That being said, deploy good judgment and don’t repeat the mean-spirited, offensive, or pimping offer (or if you find the need to do so, at least add a fitting amount of commentary and framing with your tone and performance). If you’re able, it’s also nice to try to feature different voices or areas from the crowd so that one loud fellow in the front row doesn’t end up writing the majority of your scene.
4.) Sculpt. Lastly, don’t expect the audience to do your scene building work for you. If you just put your hand to your brow time and again without actually tending to any of the bizarre gifts your collaborators provide, the story will result in little more than an odd zigzag of untapped potentials. Strive to weave in each odd twist and turn so that it is a meaningful component of the greater tapestry and then risk overturning the apple cart all over again with another strategic hesitation. At the end of the day (and improv scene) the players should ultimately driving the action (at least to some degree). Don’t expect multiple signals to the audience to pull you out of drowning currents if you never built a shore in the first place.
The R&D Twist
Consider glancing at Hesitation Speech (here) for other pertinent pointers. (Columns should be coming soon too and this is a more controlled version of the same concept!) I like this slightly more chaotic version for its potential for including a vaster swathe of the auditorium. In a nutshell, that’s both the blessing and the curse of Hesitation.
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Cheers, David Charles.
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Photo Credit: Tony Firriolo
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