Game Library: “Shake GPT”

This has become a guilty pleasure at Sak Comedy Lab where we’ve been exploring and polishing the premise for the last few months. A special shout out to Jay Hopkins and Meg Wittman who brainstormed and played the first iteration with me!

The Basics

In a world of artificial intelligence apps, Shake GPT brings a new letter-writing tool to the improv stage. A difficult topic or premise is obtained, and one player (A) enters sections of their draft into a computer which then spits out a Shakespeareanized translation (provided by Player B). Several excerpts are process in this fashion until the new draft of the letter has been completed.

Example

The team receives a breakup letter as the initiation and Player A (the author) places themselves on a chair stage left, while Player B (the Shakespearean GPT translator) stands neutrally stage right awaiting the first text input.

Player A: (by way of a preamble) “This is going to be rough. I really thought this was going to work out, but I just have to pull the cord. Maybe this Shake GPT can help.” (Writing on an imaginary keyboard) “Dear Lisa, I hope you’re having a nice day…”

Player A sits back in their chair as Player B comes to life with a dynamic light change and suitable Shakespearean music…

Player B:

“Oh, fairest Lisa, who makes my heart swell,
“I pray to the gods in your world all is well…”

Player A: (reacting a little nervously) “That’s an okay start, although I don’t want to build her up too much just to let her down.” (Writing again) “I have enjoyed our time together, but I’m realizing we may want different things…”

Player B: (springing back to life)

“When it comes to sweetness, you’re beyond compare,
In times of great need, I find that you’re there.
But though you are perfect, fit for my dreams,
Each river eventually splits into streams…”


Player A: (a bit taken by the language, and faltering) “Lisa really is rather special… But, no, I’ve made up my mind…”

The Focus

Enjoy the language games and surprises. Really take on intended and unintended gifts and discoveries. For example, while a breakup letter was the inspiration for the letter above, the translation might keep reminding the author how special their beloved is and thus cause a change of heart by the end of the correspondence.

Traps and Tips

1.) Exploit context. As we’ve tweaked this game further, I’ve quickly discovered that gathering some choice details from the audience can make all the difference as it gives specifics to weave into the resulting scene. I go out of my way not to use the same premise as prior outings which, in turn, has provided us with some wildly fun prompts – a bank loan denial due to fraud, a Homeowners’ Association response to a complaint, quitting an awful job… Getting names and a little backstory can help both the author and translator snap into clear points of view, and inspire delightful twists and turns. To this end, if you’re taking on the author role, take a little time to set up the device and need for the letter as this can also provide the translator with a little advance warning as to what kind of expectations you might have for the first few salvos.

2.) Author pointers. While I’ve described this dynamic as a letter, it can be helpful to think of each speech act as an instant message or tweet as this prevents the original author from adjusting any translations which, subsequently, raises the stakes of the whole affair. It’s certainly helpful to react and comment if things are going awry but feeling tied to the current trajectory keeps the scene racing forward. (If you have additional players at your disposal, one or more can also serve as a hype man or ally, helping as a sounding board and launching pad – just be careful that you don’t spend too much time between each re-write.) While reactions and preamble can be robust, strive to enter bite-sized pieces of text into the GPT program, especially as the game starts up. This will give the translator a manageable number of targets and hoops for their response, rather than sending them scrambling to try to incorporate a dozen competing elements. Reflecting back accidental or deliberate tonal shifts can also encourage the development of unique found games.

3.) Translator pointers. This game is somewhat reliant upon having someone in your stable who has comfort with and enjoys improvising elevated poetry. I like the feel and convention of iambic pentameter couplets (loosely modeled above) but only as this tends to open up the whimsy and risk for me as a player. If this isn’t the case for you, exploring Shakespeareanesque prose or similar will also land well, especially if you throw in some poetic devices – a little rhyming, alliteration, or word play, for example. As best you’re able, try to use each fragment offering as a roadmap for your response, hitting key specifics and elements in rough sequential order. (Hence the importance of not having huge chunks of text right of the bat, so you have a little space to warm up). I’ll generally have each response become a little longer than its predecessor just so that I can gain some depth and momentum. While it’s more than fine for the translation to honor the general wishes of the writer, don’t be afraid of pushing back a little or getting them into trouble. If you’re inclined to couplets, it’s also helpful to use your quiet scenic time to strategize a few target rhymes, especially so you’ve something in your pocket to provide an out.

In performance

I love language games so perhaps it isn’t surprising that this format has quickly become a favorite. I’m particularly enamored by its flexibility when you take the time to find a truly original launching point. If you know Foreign Poet (coming soonish to the library), the mechanics are loosely similar.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Scott Cook
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Shadows”

Explore the dynamic relationship between what we say and how we say it with the game Shadows.

The Basics

Two players (typically members of the cast) serve as the actors, while two volunteers (typically folks drawn from the audience) serve as playwriting “shadows” who lurk one behind each assigned actor. During the scene, shadows audibly “whisper” each improvised line of dialogue for their partner, who must then repeat it verbatim while imbuing the provided words with subtext, emotion, and meaning. This dynamic continues with a series of freshly interpreted sentences until the scene draws to a close.

Example

After the game has been explained and the audience members coached, volunteers A and B take their positions behind players C and D respectively to begin a scene about working at a pet store. Player D mimes kenneling a frisky dog while C supervises.

Volunteer A: (audibly stage whispering) “I think you’ve done really well today.”

Player C: (with an unsure and slightly judging demeanor as they review their notes) “I think you’ve done really well today.”

Volunteer B: (audibly stage whispering from over D’s shoulder) “I really love working with animals. “

Player D: (standing up nervously after locking the kennel and with an air of desperation) “I really love working with animals. “

Volunteer A: (whispering) “I can see that.”

Player C: (mentally preparing to share the bad news) “I can… see that.”

The Focus

Enjoy the division of labor and exploit the rare opportunity to really consider each provided line before you act it.

Traps and Tips

1.) Speak up. There can be a tendency for audience volunteers to genuinely whisper their ideas so quietly that only the receiving players can hear them, but these scenes thrive from each line also being heard by the audience before they become fully embodied and performed.  It’s worth modeling this preferred dynamic before launching into the game (or sidecoaching volunteers to increase their volume within the scene itself) to avoid this trap. The guest playwrights should also aim to give bite-sized and rather bland readings of their text offerings to show the actors sufficient room to make the dialogue their own as well.

2.) Polish dialogue. In the actor roles, make sure you are earning each speech act and not just parroting lines as soon as they’re offered. These contributors are responsible for selling the scene and making each phrase fully their own. Pay particular attention to inflection, subtext, and operatives (or the most important or juicy word in each line). Every effort should be made to honor the improvised text in terms of the language, but that doesn’t mean phrases shouldn’t be pulled apart and reassembled in interesting or unexpected ways. Don’t just rattle through each offering in the hopes that the next line might be better.

3.) Savor silences. And don’t neglect or underestimate the power and playfulness of your staging, movement, and silences between and within the provided dialogue. Just because a shadow has created the next line, this doesn’t mean that the line must be uttered immediately or quickly. Taking a breath or creating unexpected blocking or stage pictures that reframe your words or intentions can become a delightful way to surprise your partners, shadows, and audience. If your shadows are particularly aggressive, this is also a great way to show down and deepen your scene as well – new lines, after all,  shouldn’t be offered until the prior line has been fully utilized.

4.) Dig deep. There are a lot of surface-y and likely gaggy games that can easily take over the scene, such as making every suggested line sarcastic or an inversion of the audience volunteer’s intention. A little of this can be fun but be cautious of making the shadows the butt of the joke rather than the heroes who have enabled a spellbinding story. When the actors really work to find the weight of the scene, rather than skip carelessly in the shallows, the game will start to feel notably different than other trivial chuckle fests and that can be quite exhilarating. Erring on the side of a more complex relationship or fraught scenario can go a long way to help in this regard.

In performance

I stumbled back into this format as I searched for a new audience game for my R&D Show at Sak Comedy Lab and was struck by its simple elegance and ability to house a host of different energies, genres, and discovered games. I hope you’ll have similar luck if you add it to your performance repertoire.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Olivia Skvarenina
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Sensory Dinner”

I know this game primarily as a skills exercise, although it has immediate helpful applications for all your scenic work as well.

The Basics

Teams preselect a reason for a “family” meal as well as a type of cuisine. For the duration of the scene, players must engage in heated conversation while paying particular attention to the physical and tactile aspects of the meal being shared and consumed. Scenes may be played concurrently or shared before the greater class or ensemble.

Example

Players select a pizza party gathering amongst co-workers celebrating the completion of a rather daunting sales pitch.

Player A: (entering with a heavy and visibly hot stack of pizza in boxes) “I really can’t thank you all enough for putting your noses to the grindstone for the company this last week.”

Player B: (clearing a spot on the communal table for their boss while others happily take a seat and start distributing imaginary plastic cups) “I’m hoping this isn’t the sum total of your appreciation, Joce. We are getting close to bonus season!”

The group laughs somewhat awkwardly as Player C twists off the top to a large bottle of soda and starts filling cups.

Player A: (prying open the first box of pizza to determine its contents) “Let’s just say this is my first act of appreciation…”

Player D: (sliding behind A and grabbing a sticky slice of cheese pizza that doesn’t quite want to let go of the box it came in. After taking a large bite, and with a partially full mouth…) “I’d happily take all my paychecks in pizza if that was an option!”

D tries to bend their slice to prevent the cheese from all sliding off. C raises a cup as others start to descend on the open box.)

Player C: “Here’s to the best quarter yet and charming the socks off those Icelandic investors…”

The Focus

Eat the meal. Explore your senses. Tell a story.

Traps and Tips

1.) Consider touch. How heavy are the various components of the meal – the dinnerware, cutlery, serving dishes and the like – and do these objects change weight as food and beverages are consumed? Is the food particularly sticky, grimy, flaky, or dry? Does the greasy pizza have everyone reaching for napkin after napkin, or did it get here too late and so is now as hard and cold as a board? To assist in the exploration, it’s helpful to select a type of cuisine that everyone has some firsthand experience eating so that these types of details can be discovered and then mirrored and supported by the team.

2.) Consider taste. What are the specific qualities of the various items that you can discover and heighten? Does one character find the food too salty while another keeps adding more to suit their preference? What is the temperature of the foodstuffs – too hot, too cold, just right? Is it an appropriate level of spiciness, or too overwhelming for the less adventurous, sending some participants back time and time again to their water glasses for relief? What changes to the meal are you inclined to make in order to increase your overall enjoyment? Are you inclined to mask your character’s true experience so as not to cause offense?

3.) Consider smell. How does smell influence the whole dining affair and connect you to past experiences that might be pleasant or not so pleasant to recall? What does that first whiff of pizza do to you (and your character) as A carries the boxes through the door? Is cheese one of your favorite smells, or it is mildly triggering? Does something on your plate smell funky, or enticing, or unexpected? Does your nose tell you the contents of one of the serving dishes before your eyes can even perceive the arrival?

4.) Consider sight. In addition to the appearance of the food items themselves, what is the greater geography of the meal? Where are things positioned in relation to each other? What details can you create, maintain, and support as the meal progresses? Is there a keeper of the soda bottle, or a place where the salt and pepper shakers are always stowed, or a corner trash can where each empty pizza box eventually becomes discarded? What visual peculiarities endowed on the meal itself can add nuance, interest, and perhaps even story elements? Is someone picking off all the pepperoni slices before you can even get to the pizza box to claim an unadulterated slice for yourself?

5.) Consider sound. This may be the trickiest of the senses to conjure without an improvising Foley artist embellishing the action, but don’t neglect the soundscape of the whole affair as well. What sounds are you perceiving, and perhaps of even greater value, what sounds are you adding to the scene as you consume, and chew, and sip, and cut, and scrape, and nibble, and belch? While some of these sounds may be imagined – such as a pretend knife clinking against a pretend plate – they are nonetheless fodder for the scene and shouldn’t be ignored. Played with care and abandon, the meal might even take on an orchestrated feel with sounds rhythmically dueling and combining.

In performance

Usually, an emphasis is placed on experiencing the food rather than talking about it incessantly, so avoid having a scene where everyone exclusively announces how they’re eating the available fare! (I don’t think it’s helpful, however, to needlessly police brief references to the activity, as sometimes you just need to ask your neighbor to pass the potatoes…) It can prove quite challenging to develop interesting conversation while also paying extreme attention to the food-related choices and endowments of your scene partners, but n ability to achieve this honed level of multi-tasking will ultimately serve your improv well.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Kalani Senior
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Secret Cross Endowments”

Two characters sit across the table from each other. Their secrets are known, only not to themselves, and yet they must strive to understand their own foibles before the meal is over. This is Secret Cross Endowments.

The Basics

This format generally features two characters. Each actor takes a turn leaving the space (or covering their ears and humming) so that they cannot hear the audience ask-fors which consist of one secret or peculiar mannerism for each persona. When the scene begins, the players meet for a meal, and through careful endowments and clues, must determine what secret they are hiding from the world (perhaps with other team members assisting through strategic side support moments). Ideally, the scene climaxes with both characters revealing and reveling in their formerly unknown behavior.

Example

Player A’s secret is that they are a kleptomaniac, while Player B’s secret is that they are the victim of identity theft. (Note that each secret is privately given to the other player, so A knows B’s deal and vice versa.) The lights rise on the couple arriving at a restaurant with the assistance of C, the waiter.

Player C: (providing fresh waters before exiting) “And just let me know if I can be of any further assistance…”

Player B: (very carefully putting their purse over the back of their chair and out of reach of A) “It’s really been much too long since we’ve done this!”

Player A: (taking a seat) “I know! I was just talking to Kay about that yesterday. This used to be a weekly occurrence. But then again, you’ve had a difficult few months.”

Player B: (sitting down as well) “I’d rather not talk about all of that…”

Player B carefully positions their cutlery in front of them.

Player A: “Understood. I imagine you don’t even really know who you are anymore…”

The Focus

This is an endowment frenzy with characters needing to give and receive clues almost simultaneously.

Traps and Tips

1.) Saunter don’t race. Endowment games can tend to make players prioritize “winning” above all else, but keep in mind that this is a scene and it shouldn’t feel like every choice is a move designed to push your partner closer to success. Invest in the small details, behaviors, and acceptances, trusting that these might unlock new pathways further down the road (or just add interest to the mix in general).

2.) Show don’t tell. While you’re adopting a gentle pace, also explore subtlety in your offers. The audience will pick up and enjoy a much wider array of references – especially earlier in the scene – than your scene partner, and this is, in fact, where much of the fun lies. If B doesn’t want their purse to be stolen, this should begin with a sideways glance rather than an accusatory stare. Take the audience on the journey with you by exploring embodied behaviors rather than overt spoken clues.

3.) Invite don’t overwhelm. Remember that while you’re giving information, you are also receiving information (unless you’re in an assisting role). If you are inclined to monologuing, in addition to probably confusing your scene partner, you’re also preventing them from providing you with any meaningful information regarding your own predicament. The typically important give and take of improv is even more crucial in this simple but challenging dynamic.

4.) Apply don’t guess. And the standard endowment etiquette applies, specifically that the scene degrades if every line of dialogue starts to feel like a thinly veiled (if veiled at all) guess: “Am I a thief?” “Are you afraid of me?” “Why are you hiding your purse like that?” If you experience something suspicious, utilize this knowledge in a scenic way. Reach for the salt and pepper shakers and slide them closer to your side of the table if you believe you might be inclined to thievery and then see what your partner does in response to that choice. Yes, by the end of the scene, both characters will need to offer up rather explicit moves to confirm their ask-fors, but don’t start with that level of transparency.

5.) Support don’t smother. Finally, if you’re playing in the often-pivotal role of side support, make sure you’re closely observing and reflecting back the rhythms of the scene. It can prove quite frustrating for everyone involved if the secret holders are elegantly exploring a fruitful but opaque path only to have a teammate steamroll over that subtlety with some “fill in the blank” prompts. Yes, if the scene is stagnating, the waiter should probably notice something missing from the table in support of A’s kleptomania, but tread carefully when doing so as this could easily erase any prior grace.

In performance

I suppose there’s no reason the scene has to take place in a restaurant or similar, but this tight staging will often allow more subtle clues to flow helpfully back and forth.

Check out the growing array of endowment games in the ImprovDr Game Library by using the search tool here.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: James Berkley
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Scene From Music”

Get the party (scene) started with this jamming game.

The Basics

A team of improvisers scatters across the stage to begin. When the booth begins to play a suitably energetic song, the players dance with abandon. The music then stops abruptly (perhaps on the signal of a host), and the actors must freeze in their current random positions. An unrelated premise or location is then obtained from the audience. During the scene that follows, the team members must all eventually unfreeze and justify their poses in the spirit of the current circumstances and story.

Example

The music blasts, and four players take the stage to dance wildly, only to be stopped by an emcee’s whistle. They are caught in four truly varied poses scattered across the space. Player A is hunched over with their hands resting on their head…

Host: “What’s an outdoor location that you wouldn’t expect to see these positions?”

The audience provides a mountain trail as the starting point. A brief countdown ensues as the lights transition. 

Player A: (swiping at their head) “Someone get these bees off of me. I’m terribly allergic!”

Player D considers how their peculiar pose might assist and eventually unfreezes as their teammates remain at the ready in their dancing stances…

Player D: (wagging their finger with disapproval) “I told you, son, not to mess with that nest…”

The Focus

Find inspiration from the unexpected tableau.

Traps and Tips

1.) Dance. When attacked fearlessly, the dancing preamble to the game can nearly be as entertaining as the scene itself. So, dance joyfully and to the top of your ability. Explore different physical levels, movement styles, rhythms, and partner combinations. If the opening movements feel safe or apathetic, the risk of the game will plummet. When the music stops, the audience should feel that the players have been caught off guard in truly challenging poses (as this should, in fact, be the case).

2.) Prioritize. When I host this game, I’ll always take a moment before the scene starts to instruct the team to have a quick look at each other. This adds a little playful heat to the event as they see the impossible positions they need to utilize – just watching them really see each other can add greatly to the fun! However, there’s also a pragmatic reason for this coaching moment: it’s useful for the players to recognize if a fellow teammate is in a particularly extreme or challenging pose so that this player can be given an opportunity to begin the scene if necessary. To avoid a cluttered start with multiple players talking over each other, default to the most uncomfortable position and/or those who are downstage of you as they’ll be less likely to be able to see you initiate if you’re out of their line of sight.

3.) Incorporate. Standard Freeze Tag techniques and strategies apply. (See here.) Be particularly careful that fun physicalities don’t become instantly dropped, needlessly fudged, or unhelpfully thrown away with blasé quips – “Well, I’m glad my stretching is over…” I like donning an attitude of making these starting positions important for the whole duration of the scene, so actors may take on elements of the opening tableau as parts of their characterization or keep returning to key activities or orientations. This strikes me as a more rewarding approach than just seeing a series of panicked justifications and a resultingly under-energized talking heads scene.

4.) Pace. In my current campus troupe, we tend to play this game as a quick hit that lasts approximately a minute or so. Even (or perhaps, especially) under these tightened parameters, it’s crucial to patiently and generously time the unfreezes. (The accepted concept is that players who have remained frozen aren’t in the world of the scene until they elect to come to life.) Avoid a mass blob of indistinguishable characters all trying to justify their existence in one chaotic improv avalanche. If you’re playing on a four-person team – which works well for this game – it’s helpful to assume that at least one player will remain frozen until the last twenty seconds or so of the action. Often, the first player will need a responsive partner reasonably quickly, but this shouldn’t necessitate remaining team members carelessly jumping on board the improv train as well.

5.) Share. And a last cautionary tale. Oftentimes, a well-intentioned improviser will inelegantly assign a list of roles or functions to their frozen teammates in an effort to quickly define everyone. Unfortunately, this type of move typically deflates the game and robs the audience of seeing the escalating difficulty of one player after another having to weave themselves into the emerging story. Instead, assume that each player will accept the responsibility of defining their own deal when they see the best moment to do so. Sure, there will be occasions when you might be able to see what another improviser can’t and therefore offer a much-needed helping justifying hand. But don’t make this your default setting.

In performance

If the thought of dancing doesn’t inspire confidence or your cast includes members who might not be served by such an energetic opening ritual, consider exploring the similar upcoming game, Statues, as an alternative.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Kalani Senior
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Scene Ending in a Song”

Much like the next alphabetical entry in the Game Library, Scene Ending in I Love You (here), the title of this short-form game essentially provides the key information and parameters.

The Basics

Players perform a scene based on an audience prompt. At the appropriate moment, the scene climaxes and culminates in an improvised song.

Example

Based on the suggestion of a koi pond, Players A and B begin with A gently skimming silt off the surface with a net as B watches on.

Player B: (gently) “I thought I would find you here, Avery.”

Player A: “The fish help calm my mind… and don’t ask me about it…”

Player B: (sitting on a bench) “If you don’t want me to ask you any questions, that’s okay. I can just tell you’ve had a rough day. “

Player A: “I’m not in the mood for any of your parenting book advice, Dad.”

Player B: (with a tender smile) “You’ve made that much clear…”

The scene continues for another minute or so, until Player A cues the song.

Player A: “…But why is the human heart so fragile?”

The improv musician starts to play as Player B sings their response…

Player B:

“So little is known of the human heart,
What makes it stir, tremble, or start,
How in one moment, it can seem so tough,
And yet, in another, it can’t work quite enough…”

The Focus

Create a world in which a song needs happen.

Traps and Tips

1.) Set your scene up for success. There are many fine ways to set up this game, but they generally have one thing in common: the inspirational suggestion creates a world in which a song is likely to happen. If the stakes ae too low or mundane, the conditions for a musical leap will not be ripe. You can build the musicality right into the set-up, asking for the name of an original song, or piece of (good or bad) advice, or a catch phrase that a family member often uses. Here, the general focus of the song becomes gifted, and the players now need to work up to this foreshadowed moment. Or you can seek given circumstances that are rich with potential without predetermining the content or focus of the musical interlude: the reason for an argument, intense prior moment, or dangerous location (or something of this ilk), all provide a strong platform from which to launch.

2.) Set your first singer up for success. As the scene starts to take shape (and hopefully build momentum and energy), you can also do a lot to lay the necessary groundwork for the musical climax. Seek to determine who is the best situated character to sing or at least launch the song. (Songs can be solos, duets, group numbers, or some delightful combination of all of these, but will generally be best served by at least starting with one singer in clear and undisputed focus.) There are lots of great ways of getting the musical ball rolling (one of my favorite workshops is teaching at least five of these techniques!) but regardless of the structural approach, you’ll be served by a strong focus give or take. If you think your partner is well positioned to sing, by all means give them a suitably energized lead-in and pitch. If you feel the music calling you, strive to signal to your fellow players that you’re ready to take the plunge by assuming a bold stage position.

3.) Set your musician up for success. And don’t forget your fellow improvising musician. Be cognizant of their cues and instincts, as they may see the fruitful potential for a song start before the onstage improvisers have come to the same realization. If the music starts, don’t let it peter out, but rather seize the chance to get yourself into a musical mindset. Alternatively, if the musician is patiently awaiting a cue from one of the scenic players, do your best to telescope your intentions (and, possibly, musical preferences). If you deliberately introduce a scenic style or tone, it’s more likely that the musician will be able to honor and gain inspiration from such choices (whether they elect to offer up something in the vein the onstage players expected or provide a playful inversion or contrast).

4.) Set your song up for success. Finally, all the tropes of musical theatre performance should also apply to this undertaking. A common adage shared in the performance lab is that characters in musicals sing because spoken language no longer can adequately express the intensity of their emotions and needs. So, if your scene never approaches this level of heat, it’s less likely that a song will organically and helpfully emerge. Want something (big). Feel something (deeply). Pursue something (significant). While it can be amusing to create a little ditty inspired by a rather mundane scenario, you’re more likely to craft a stirring opus if the scene plumbs the greater depths of human desire and passion. Generally speaking, a song probably won’t amount to much if it emerges out of an obligation to sing (and thereby meet the requirement of the game) rather than a powerfully felt need to sing on the part of one or more of the characters.

In performance

If you enjoy musical improv (as I surely do!) this is a simple but elegant structure that promotes both strong scene work and musicality.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: James Berkley
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Scene Collage”

Get ready to move for this fast-paced game that’s three scenes in one.

The Basics

You’ll need an attentive technical improviser and three distinct pools of light to make this game work. A team (of ideally two or three improvisers) obtains three different scenic prompts, and each one is assigned to a specific area of the stage (left, center, or right) that corresponds to your particular lighting abilities. For the duration of the action, the technical improviser randomly shuffles between the three zones, causing the team members to leap from space to space and scene to scene.

Example

Players A, B, and C acquire the suggestions of coal mine, travel guide, and embarrassment for the stage left, center, and right areas, respectively. The host facilitates a countdown, and the lighting improviser offers up the stage left area to begin, causing Players A and B to rush into the light while Player C waits offstage to see if they’re needed.

Player A: (crawling on their stomach) “And you’re sure this is where you heard the sound?”

Player B: (wiping the sweat from their eyes) “Yes. Just a little further up ahead. It was the unmistakable sound of the wind. “

Player A: “Then that means…”

Player B: (excited and shuffling forward) “I know. We might have finally found our way out of here..”

The lights move swiftly to the stage right area, prompting Player C to step into focus while Player A drops their prior character and rushes over to join them. Player B retreats into the darkness.

Player C: (apologetically) “I’m so sorry, Clark. I should have knocked.”

Player A: (covering himself with an imaginary towel) “You really should have. I was just getting ready to go swimming…”

Player C: (avoiding eye contact) “There is a lock on the guest bathroom…”

Player A: (awkwardly) “I thought you’d gone shopping…”

The lighting improviser shifts focus to the center region of the stage, causing B and C to dash into the light…

Player B: (with a dramatic gesture) “…And this painting is of King Louis the fourteenth’s prized blood hound…”

Player C looks suitably impressed…

The Focus

Agility, reactivity, and leaping head first into each scene as it grows and morphs.

Traps and Tips

1.) Leap. If you’re playing this as a traditional short-form game, you’re not going to get a great deal of time in any one scenario, so it’s important that each premise hits the ground running with clear and brave specifics. I particularly like playing the game with three actors as this configuration allows each improviser to field and then take initial responsibility for one premise and area. (Using just two players ups the challenge of the game even further, but there’s also something aesthetically pleasing about the different combinations enabled by three bodies.) If you take too long looking for the “deal” of the scene, the lighting improviser might have already edited you, so make bold choices.

2.) Leap. There is undeniably a torture dynamic at the core of the exercise, and the lighting improviser should be empowered to challenge and surprise the players. If one storyline is proving itself to be especially entertaining, by all means, return to it a disproportionate number of times! And vary the length of each episode to further add to the fun. (Scenes needn’t pick up exactly where they left off but can rather move forward through time at whim.) Throughout, the team should avoid needlessly slowing down the frequent transitions and should literally leap from one scene to the next (bodies permitting). Lethargically moseying from one vignette to the next does little for the performance.

3.) Leap. Also, pay heed to the “collage” designation in the title. Strive to craft wildly different scenes with clearly different moods and energies. (Eliciting markedly disparate initial offers from the audience can go a long way to assist in this regard.) Give each scene sufficient time (albeit condensed sufficient time due to the fast-paced structure) to find its own deal and footing so that the greater game benefits from variety. (I enjoy throwing in one style-based scene into the mix to keep the stories from quickly feeling too same-y.) Then, when the machinery of the game is up and running, look for possible connections and threads that might further enrich the current tapestry.  The further apart the vignettes begin, the more satisfying any later ties will become.

In performance

More recently, I’ve explored adding a “last line, first line” overlay where each new scene must begin with the repeated tag line of its predecessor, breathing new context into the line of dialogue. This adds an avowedly Pan Left, Pan Right vibe to the whole affair. (You can access that game in the library here.) This isn’t necessarily a good or bad adjustment, although it does tend to overshadow the more subtle connections that, for me at least, tend to feel like the signature element of Scene Collage.

We’re off to the races with new and reviewed “S” improv games and exercises. As always, you can search prior posts here.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Scott Cook
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Roll Call”

We’ve just started playing this decider at Sak Comedy Lab in the last year or two, but the game has already itself to be a nice introduction and icebreaker.

The Basics

Players form a line at the edge of the stage as the audience is given instructions as to their role in the game. One at a time, players step forward and offer up a random name for consideration. If any audience member shares that name, they should raise their hand (or cheer or similar), thereby allowing the current improviser to remain “in.” However, if no one shares the player’s offered name – thereby providing an unsuccessful roll call – the offending improviser is “out,” and they strike to the sides of the stage. The process continues until only one player (or team) remains.

Example

Player A: “I’m looking for a John in the audience…”

Two audience members raise their hand, and Player A celebrates their good fortune while Player B now steps forward.

Player B: “Is there an Amanda in the house tonight?”

After a few seconds, it becomes clear there is not, and the host announces the loss, sending B into the wings.

Player C: “OK, I know there has to be a Catherine…”

The Focus

The mechanics of this game are rather simple, so players need to consider energy and charm if the decider is to have any performance value and payoff. To this end, my tips concentrate on how to raise the stakes of the whole affair.

Traps and Tips

1.) Build the expectation. I’ll admit I’m still polishing my own approach to this, but a lot can be gained or lost in terms of how the decider is set up. Without any contextualizing frame, the game will often feel rather perfunctory and anticlimactic. It should at least appear as if this is some feat of skill. Of late, I’ve been setting it up with the boastful notion that the cast are not only improvisers but also clairvoyant or mind readers and subsequently know all the names in the auditorium that evening. That particular lens might not appeal to your sensibilities, but it’s helpful to pitch something at least slightly more theatrical than “we’re just going to say a bunch of random names…”

2.) Build the heat. Depending on your venue and the diversity of your audience and company, the game might inadvertently favor more mainstream or vanilla names, and so it’s nice to seek some inclusive variety in your roll call. That being said, it can start the game off with a fumbly energy if the first few names are extremely unlikely to be in attendance (though this provides a fun level of risk if the decider is painfully limping on and on). On the other end of the spectrum, avoid “cheats” such as saying the names of friends or attendees that you know and can see in the house. Tactics of this ilk reduce the risk to zero (and likely cool everyone’s interest and engagement to zero as well).

3.) Build the suspense. This decider is now used with some frequency in Sak’s King of the Hill format, where it whittles down five competitors to the first two “kings” for the performance. With such a small bench, it can feel jarring if you don’t even successfully make it through one round of guesses as one elimination quickly follows another. To address this concern, we’ve introduced “a second life” to the process so that each player must chalk up two fails before being removed from the lineup. When played with energy and attack, I like this addition to the rules as it increases the momentum and volume of the game. I’d just caution that if players aren’t using the time to create rapport and playfulness, that such a move will only result in prolonging dullness rather than adding fuel to your improv fire.

In performance

If you play short-form shows a lot, you can quickly burn through the relatively short list of viable deciders (and all play warm-ups, too, for that matter). Hopefully, Roll Call can provide some variety if it wasn’t already featured in your repertoire.

And if you didn’t already know, you can keyword search other exercises and games by type, skillset, or name with the Game Library search engine located here.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Kalani Senior
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Rock, Paper, Scissors, Infinity”

This is a fun and somewhat silly variation of the classic childhood game that serves as a quick and energetic decider.

The Basics

Players face off against each other in pairs (typically from opposing teams). The host or facilitator provides a countdown from three, after which the featured players must adopt and hold random frozen poses. Each player is then invited to name what they are (justifying their positions in the process). The host then prompts the audience to vote for which “thing” wins (in a loosely “scissors beats paper” kind of way). The victorious player gains one point for their team, and the process is repeated if needed to determine the overall winner of the decider.

Example

Two players stand toe to toe as the host begins the countdown. Both competitors snap into poses.

Host: “Alright, Player A, what do you have?”

Player A: (who is standing with their body contorted into a knot, and after a moment of thought) “The world’s largest pretzel. “

Host: (to the second posed player) “And what do you have?”

Player B: (with the palm of their hand outstretched and empty) “An ant playing a tiny piano…”

Host: (to the audience with sweeping gestures) “So, with your applause, which one wins? Is it the pretzel… or the ant pianist?”

The Focus

Don’t overthink it. And give no heed to the votes at all as it’s all rather delightfully random.

Traps and Tips

I generally avoid offering shortcuts, but there are competing styles of play that tend to coexist within this structure that are worth outlining.

1.) Embrace the risk. In theory, especially if you’re an improv purist, this is the way you should always play the game. When the countdown sounds, challenge yourself to empty your mind and strike a bold pose. Then, figure out what that pose might be when the host throws the spotlight to you in a very traditional Freeze Tag kind of way. The audience will revel in your struggle, and the results will be wildly uneven and unpredictable. And there’s a good chance you will lose! Especially if your opponent applies one of the following approaches…

2.) Embrace the moment. Again, noting my distaste for offering “solutions” to knotty improv riddles, it’s not uncommon for players to tackle the decider from an “answers first” method. Here, a topical celebrity, reference, or meme might inspire their pose, thereby setting up a more surefire quip or punchline. This certainly minimizes the risk of the game but, frankly, can elevate the overall payoff when done with charm and commitment. There’s a good chance your wittier construction will win over the audience on the vote, but the game may lose much of its danger if every offer is preloaded in this fashion.

3.) Embrace the obvious. And sometimes it’s fun just to throw rock, paper, or scissors into the mix as an homage to the original. I wouldn’t advocate this becoming your stock choice, especially if you play the game often, and my skin crawls a little even mentioning this technique, but it can add a nice flavor to the mix when combined with the two techniques above.

In performance

Approach number one will certainly serve you best in the training hall (unless you’re workshopping puns or punchlines), and my preference would be for this to serve as the norm in performance. Still, those who have played the game a while will likely confess to peppering in the other two methods (at least occasionally or perhaps even subconsciously). If you only play in the latter styles, however, you might be avoiding the inherent risk and silly beauty of the decider, and that might be something worth considering.

New to ImprovDr.com or the Game Library? You can find the ever-expanding collection of games, exercises, and warm-ups here.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Kalani Senior
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I

Game Library: “Rhyming Couplets”

If you have a penchant for speaking verse or constructing lyrics both bold and terse, then saunter closer and now stand in view, for I just might have the right game for you…

The Basics

Players construct a scene in which they create (and share) rhyming couplets.

Example

A teacher and parent (Players A and B respectively) sit awkwardly in two undersized desks and chairs as their conference begins.

Player A: “Thank you for honoring my recent request…”

Player B: (nervously bouncing their leg) “You’d like to talk about my son’s last test?
He said that it was an anomaly…”

Player A: “He’s said something rather similar to me.”

Player B: “By your tone it seems you don’t believe him…”

Player A: (examining their gradebook) “Tom’s future in my class is looking grim.
I just don’t think that he’s doing the work…”

Player B: (standing) “I’m starting to see why he thinks you’re a jerk…”

The Focus

Language games can tend to place players in their heads, so keep your body engaged and seek physical actions to help ground the story.

Traps and Tips

1.) Embrace the pace. While you shouldn’t be afraid of earned silences and pauses, the poetic nature of the game benefits from a reasonably predictable rhythm, especially once a couplet has been started. Arguably, this requires you as a speaker to often leap into dialogue without a strong sense of where your line might go. This heightened level of risk and abandon is largely the gift of the game! Yes, some well-placed target rhymes (especially when they’re pitched to your teammates) certainly have a place, but you don’t want every verbal choice to become painfully measured and rehearsed in your brain before hitting the stage.

2.) Share lines and rhymes. It’s okay for a player to construct their own couplets, providing both the setup and its corresponding rhyme, and often this is a helpful way to start the scene just so that everyone can find their grove. However, if every couplet is constructed in this way, characters tend to become language islands, offering and playing largely their own individual games. When couplets (and even lines) become shared between the characters, the dialogue tends to become more dynamic, evolving, and dangerous, especially as a third or fourth character enters the fray. You’ll want to make sure that focus shifts are clear and directed to enable this level of attack so that lines aren’t left dangling without an obvious (and prepared) next speaker.

3.) There’s strength in lengths. I’ve loosely modeled iambic pentameter couplets in my example, and while this particular poetic structure isn’t required or necessary, it is important that you don’t throw out wildly erratic lines of varying meters and lengths as these will seldom hit the audience’s ear as a “couplet” which is part of the game’s title. If “I just don’t think he’s doing the work,” is completed with “Jerk!”, or “Look, I don’t think this is an appropriate style of teaching, and you’re starting to develop a reputation for being something of a jerk…” it will become difficult for those watching (or playing) to sense where you are in the poetic exchange. Setting more syllables (or poetic “feet”) as your standard norm can help establish a viable cadence as well. Too few, as in my first response here, will start to make your scene sound like a Dr. Seuss book. Too many, as in my second response here, will make it difficult to make each setup with its rhyme.

4.) Break the patterns. And sometimes the most memorable fun occurs when you break the patterns. If you’re playing fearlessly, you will hit the end of a line occasionally without arriving at a strong rhyme, or any rhyme at all, or may find yourself inventing a word, or just repeating the setup word. Some of this is part of the built-in joy. Similarly, a one-off “Jerk!” response is likely to land beautifully, especially if everyone knows this is a deliberate and powerful breach of the preestablished norms. (The key then becomes getting back on the rhythm horse as soon as you’re able.) On a more micro level, it’s also advisable to break rhyming patterns. If you keep circling back around the same word or sound, then it can prove challenging to find new territory and material. Whenever possible, it’s nice to consider a pair of rhymes “burnt” when they’ve been used in the scene (unless, of course, the game becomes weaving back to the same target sound again and again…).

In performance

I like to use this game and technique as a primer in many of my musical workshops and classes as it’s clearly a great way to introduce lyrical structure and organization. If you add it to your genre or Shakespeare scenes, you’ll find that you unlock whole new elements and energies as well.

New to ImprovDr.com or the Game Library? You can find the ever-expanding collection of games, exercises, and warm-ups here.

Cheers, David Charles.
www.improvdr.com
Join my Facebook group here.
Photo Credit: Tony Firriolo
© 2025 David Charles/ImprovDr

Game Library Expansion Pack I