How to Start an Improv Group

[SamuraiElvis]

Rookie Card is fast approaching it's one year anniversary and to commemorate it I'm going to write an essay on how to start an Improv group from scratch (with very little experience). I may or may not use this in a big project I have planned but it'll be a fun exercise in any case. Maybe it'll even inspire someone to start a new group someday.

While I'm going to draw most of the material from my own experience with the Card, additional input from people who have gone through the same thing can only help. Specific topics I plan to cover are below. If you have opinions about these or stories about going through them I welcome your input. Really anything you have to say about your first group would be helpful.



*Finding Members (How/Where to Recruit, Friends vs. Strangers, Devotion vs. Funniness, How selective to be)

*Leadership (Democracy vs. Single Leader, Coaches and Directors)

*Practice (Frequency? What to do)

*Group Dynamics (Hanging Out Outside of Practice, Inter-group Drama, Asking someone to leave, when someone wants to leave)

*Picking a Name (When? How?)

*Performing (When to start, Finding a venue, Advertising)



It doesn't seem long ago I came the these boards for the first time asking for advice about the group that would become Rookie Card. I still may not be able to find my ass on stage with two hands and an improvised map but one of the biggest joys of 2009 for me has been performing with and participating in the evolution of Rookie Card. I hope this essay might encourage others to experience the same thing.

Thank you in advance for your help.

 

[Marbach]

Finding Members
Take classes and find people you like playing with. Or attend things like Incubator for the same purpose. And see shows! Not only does it support the scene and friends, but you can meet people you want to play with. Friends/Strangers, Devotion/Funniness all don't matter if you enjoy the people you're playing with. Strangers will become friends and all will become devoted and funnier because of it.

Leadership
Get a coach. It's stupid to not have an outside eye at least once in a while.

Practice
As often as schedules (and wallets if you have a coach) allow.

Group Dynamics
If you enjoy the people you're playing with you'll naturally want to do things other than improv. All that outside improv experience only helps on stage. I'm not sure about inter-group drama. I don't think me and other teams have ever had issues. Unless you meant intra-group drama, in which case I've never really had that either. A lot of intra-group drama can be avoided by having a coach/director. When you don't and you have someone on the "line-level" also trying to lead it can cause issues. I've never had to or wanted to ask someone to leave a group. Though I have had to leave a couple groups in the past for different reasons, but always on good terms. I would perform with those people whenever I get the chance as they became some of my best friends.

Picking a name
Least important thing. In my experience the name usually just happens no matter how much thought you put into it. A couple of my groups were named out of bits we all found hilarious in practices.

Performing
Find a place with a stage that will allow you to fuck around as often as you want as soon as you can. Stage time is the best practice. Be on it early and often.

 

[Holmes]

*Finding Members (How/Where to Recruit, Friends vs. Strangers, Devotion vs. Funniness, How selective to be)

If you're in a situation where you know of other people who know what improv is, selectively find the funniest/most talented among them or those with the most potential.
If you're not, find anyone you can that is also interested. When you first meet, if they seem weird, realize that (like bears) they're probably more weirded out by you than you are of them.

If they're cool and funny but not dedicated to meeting or working or returning calls, etc., then be prepared to deal with that.

*Leadership (Democracy vs. Single Leader, Coaches and Directors)

The absolute best situation to be in is one where everyone equally is interested and invested and active. That is Rare. If someone's cool with doing stuff like booking and scheduling and emailing and publicity, let them do it and thank them for it. If someone's cool with taking the lead and trying to accomplish something (and everyone else is okay with it), let them do it and thank them for it.

If you're making this little project, decide whether you should be in it and/or be in charge of it for the good of the project.

*Practice (Frequency? What to do)

Try to meet every week. Try to find a situation where that can happen for free with only occasionally getting kicked out and having to improvise in a windy portico.

*Group Dynamics (Hanging Out Outside of Practice, Inter-group Drama, Asking someone to leave, when someone wants to leave)

Avoid drama, have fun.

*Picking a Name (When? How?)

Say things until you're all like "Yes! That's it!"

*Performing (When to start, Finding a venue, Advertising)

Give it several months of you feeling each other out before you do your first show. Give it several months before you do another show. Find a nice venue, put on a pro show, advertise it like a real important thing, thank the audience for coming, make it worth their trouble for going, and leave them impressed and hungry for more and wanting to spread the word and bring people with them next time.

 

[Holmes]

I'm really curious to hear other people's experiences with starting an improv group.

 

[mirra]

Here's my two cents:

Finding Members:

I've never been in an improv group that wasn't composed of friends, which is probably a reflection of what I'm looking to get out of improv. I suspect it's harder to recruit a group in Philly than in New York, where the prospect pool is so much larger and it's much easier to find people who like the same kind of improv as you. If I were recruting in Philly, I would look for people with good instincts who shared my reasons for wanting to do improv in the first place. I think a sense of timing and an interest in improv for its own sake are much more valuable than nonstop hilarity or showmanship.

Leadership:

Get a coach. It's really hard to grow as a group without one. Preferably someone with a lot of improv experience and whose coaching style your group enjoys. But a coach's informed outside perspective, and his/her ability to give constructive criticism, is huge.

Practice

Depends on how seriously the group is taking its work. I'd say once a week. If you have a coach, the coach leads the practice. Practice is time to work on stuff, not just do rote sets.

I'd also add that your group should see as much improv as possible. Preferably great improv. Go up to NYC and see UCB and Magnet teams. My eyes really opened about what improv could be when I saw my first UCB Harold team.

Group Dynamics

Again, I've only been in a group with friends. I think group mind is important, and that comes from knowing people both in and outside of a group context. Unless a group has a unifying improv education (like UCB teams) so there's a similar background understanding of improv, I think friendship between group members is pretty important. Drama, naturally, should be avoided if possible. It's hard not to take improv seriously or personally because, unlike sports, one's performance is more of a reflection of one's self and identity ("your jump shot sucks" is easier to hear than "you deny scene partners' ideas"). But it should be fun for everyone involved - if it isn't, something's wrong.

Picking a Name

I don't think the trappings of a group: name, photo, website, etc. are that important. I'd rather be in an informal group doing great work, than a polished and glossy group doing crappy work. Don't mistake the plate for the food. My favorite group names seem to come organically out of the group's improv or relationship.

Performing

As much as possible. Try to get a friendly crowd once and a while, and a strange crowd once and a while. You learn a lot from both.

Hope that's helpful.