The improv talent converging in London in the last weekend of May is out of this world! Our headline guests along with London’s top improv coaches are excited to share their love of improv in a series of workshops.
All of the festival workshops are open to improvisers with any level of experience. They are not suitable for people doing their very first class. But! Blanche Improv runs a free class every Sunday, so you can take a couple of those before the festival and you’ll be ready to learn from these legends.
workshops
10am - 1pm friday 22nd may
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Get out of your head with Suzi Barrett
This workshop will expand your improv arsenal with lots of simple, easy-to-implement tools that you can use in any scene. You'll be amazed at how quickly we can shake away your tired, habitual go-to's and start initiating and responding from fresh and surprising places. We’ll do a lot of short, two person scenes that play around with different narrow focuses. Keep the techniques that work for you and add them to your improv toolbox! You’ll find them invaluable when you’re looking to get out of your head and into the meat of a good scene.
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Yes your way to character with Sebastian Conelli
In this class we will use the power of yes to find out who our character is in the scene. All the answers about your character are in yes-ing and reading into the last line of dialogue said by your scene partner.
2 - 5pm friday 22nd may
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Radical Agreement: Connecting with Your Scene Partner
The best improvisers are attentive listeners who effortlessly make their scene partners look good. This workshop will tackle active listening, confident agreement, and enthusiastic acceptance of your scene partner's ideas so that your scenes are funny right away... instead of not at all.
10am - 1pm saturday 23rd may
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Playing with emotion with Suzi Barrett
In this workshop, you’ll turn up the dials on your acting skills—bringing this necessary piece of the improv puzzle to the forefront. Practice making specific emotional choices that are grounded in reality, and experiment with unexpected emotional responses that will create instant character dynamics and make your scenes interesting and engaging from the top.
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I improv, therefore I am with Stephen Lee
Bring your authentic self and lived experience to the stage.
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Narrative Form with Jess Rogers
Learn London’s most favourite form: Narrative.
1.30 - 4.30pm saturday 23rd may
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Start With Fun! Initiating With A Premise with Achilles Stamatelaky
This workshop focuses on initiating fun, clear, playable premises from an opening. Improvisers will learn how to start scenes actively with a strong idea, agree and support confidently, and heighten and explore The Game together. Improvisers will learn best practices for communicating effectively and ensuring scenes are filled with both structure and discovery. Start with fun, keep it fun!
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Choose to Lose with Sebastian Conelli
It's fun for our characters to lose in a scene! In this workshop we will learn how to successfully handle conflict and lose in order to drive your scenes forward. Perfect workshop for people who get stuck in conflict!
10am - 1pm sunday 24th may
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Creative Group Games
Everybody get in here—it’s time to talk about your group games. If you’re looking to level up your Harolds, there’s no better way to do it than to get wild and weird with your group games. In this workshop, you’ll play with some general templates for non-scenic group games, and then you’ll start creating your own! Group games are the only place in the Harold where absurd, silly, and ungrounded ideas have a home. Why not use this part of the show to go on a surprising creative journey that blows our audiences’ minds?
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Big Reaction, Bigger Laughs
It's really fun to react BIG. In this workshop we will practice making bigger reactions in your scenes to get those loud, belly laughs from your audiences.
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Voice of Reason Workshop
This workshop will teach you how to play yourself and react honestly while still keeping the scene alive with fun, top of your intelligence moves. Perfect for improvisers who get stuck in argument, players who constantly find themselves playing weird unjustified characters, and everyone in between.
The London Improv Festival is presented by Blanche Improv, you can contact the festival team by emailing programming@blancheimprov.com