Regular Scene Games

Cut and Paste

Cut and Paste is a scene game that is usually played by 3 players. The audience provides a suggestion before the game and, based on that suggestion, the players make a scene. During the scene, the ref may blow their whistle and yell, "Cut" and then a player’s name. That player has to leave the scene, but the other players have to act like they are still there. For example, if Hannah and Lauren were in a scene together and pretending to wrestle, the ref could call "Cut Hannah!" Hannah would then leave the scene, but Lauren would have to continue wrestling with an invisible player. If she picks the invisible player in the air, and the ref calls "Paste Hannah!", then Hannah would rejoin the scene, and Lauren would have to pick her up into the air.

Sit, Stand, Lie

The scene game Sit, Stand, Lie is played by 3 players. Based on a suggestion from the audience, they create a regular scene. However, at all times during the scene, one player must be standing up or walking, one player must be sitting (on a chair or on the ground), and one player must be lying down on the ground. The original positions of the players are not permanent, though, as at any point in the game, a player may change positions. If two players are standing and one player is sitting, then one of the two players who are standing must lie down as quickly as possible. It is important for the players to justify the position that they are in.

Meanwhile

Played with at least 2 players. To begin, the ref gets a suggestion from the audience for the 2 players to begin with. They will then perform a very short, 15-30-second-long scene. During the scene, the rest of the players will be watching and listening for a way to change the location of the scene. Using references from the dialogue, a player watching the scene may call, "Meanwhile, ..." and then the setting where they want the next scene to take place. For example, if Lauren and Hannah are performing a scene about picking up litter from the highway and Lauren says, "I just found a half-eaten sandwich," then Evan, who is watching, may say, "Meanwhile, at Subway..." Evan and one other player who was watching, like Natalie, would go up on the stage. Lauren and Hannah would sit down and watch again as Evan and Natalie perform a scene about Subway.

New Choice

New Choice is a scene game which is played by 3 or 4 people. The players create a regular scene based on an audience suggestion. After any player speaks, however, the ref is able to call "New Choice!" Whichever player just spoke must then come up with a completely new line. For example, if Hannah says, "I won the lottery last night," and the ref calls "New Choice", then Hannah might say something like, "I read about a sale on shoes at the mall." The ref is also able to call "New Choice" on an action or entrance that a player makes. For instance, if Lauren marches onto a scene and the ref calls "New Choice" on the action, then Lauren might leave the scene and roll back on. The ref can call this multiple times in a row until the player says something they like more. Players continue the scene as normal, only being interrupted when “New Choice!” is called.

Forward-Reverse

The game Forward-Reverse is usually played with 3 or 4 players. To set the scene up, the ref asks the audience for a topic. Then, the players improvise a scene based on the suggestion. At any point in the game, the ref may blow his/her whistle and call, "Reverse!" The players then have to repeat the events of their scene in reverse order. All actions are done backward, and all dialogue is reversed. The players do not have to speak backward, but they must reverse the order of their lines. For instance, if one player waves and says, "Good Morning" another player replies "Hello" and the ref calls "Reverse!", then the second player would say "Hello" and the first would wave and say "Good Morning." While the scene is in reverse, the ref may call, "Forward!", which would correct the direction of the scene. At the end of the game, the ref may tell the players to "Reverse back to the beginning!" or simply call, "Scene!".