Quarter 1

Jumping Off the Cliff: A History of Making Things Up

ORIGINS OF IMPROVISATION

Earliest records of improvisation-based performance in Atellan Farce of Africa (391 BCE)
Later in 16th – 18th centuries continued to develop in Italy in the form of Commedia dell’Arte
- Performed in the streets. Bawdy, raunchy. Commentary on contemporary times. Stock characters in episodic situations.
- Influenced Shakespeare's characters, structures, plots. Comedy of Errors.

Commedia character tree. National Theatre's The World of Commedia del'Arte

"Education is not preparation for life, education is life itself."

John Dewey

Late 19th century, improv used in actor training and rehearsal by Constantin Stanislavski, Jacques Copeau.
Dudley Riggs, first vaudevillian to use audience suggestions in create improvised sketches he called “instant theater”
- Founded Brave New Workshop Comedy Theatre in Minneapolis
John Dewey, 1916: progressive education movement made improvisation a staple of drama education
- Learn-by-doing
- Integrated curricula focused on theme
- Emphasis on problem solving and critical thinking
- Personalized learning
In silent film, actors like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton developed gags while filming and altered the plots to their movies to fit them in
Marx Brothers were notorious for deviating from the script until ad libs- Make 'em ups- became part of the standard routine of their films

Improvisation for the Theater, Viola Spolin

Viola Spolin published Improvisation for the Theater in 1963 after decades learning and teaching improvisation.
- With assistant Neva Boyd, founded the Recreational Training School @ The Hull House, Chicago. Spolin and Boyd specialized in working with immigrant children across languages and cultures, connecting with improv games Spolin developed. Funded by Works Progress Administration (WPA).
- Faculty @ Northwestern University as Sociologist, 1927 – 1941; Sociology & Theatre Professor at the University of Chicago, 1927
Her son was Paul Sills, 1st artistic director of Second City

'"Please don't do your best. Trying to do your best is trying to be better than you are."

Keith Johnstone

Viola Spolin with players from her Young Actors Company in Hollywood (Photos by Melanie Chapman/Tiphead Pictures)

“Everyone can act. Everyone can improvise. Anyone who wishes to can play in the theater and learn to become stageworthy.”

Viola Spolin

The Compass Players, 1950. TheDinnerParty.tv

"I got your back."

-Every improvisor everywhere

The Compass Players (University of Chicago, 1955)

The Compass Players were a group of colleagues attending the University of Chicago interested in creating performance from Improvisation. Paul Sills (and probably Spolin) taught and directed. Members included:

David Shepherd: Had a philosophical vision of a “people’s theatre”, hoped to bring political drama to the stockyards. Later, he developed competition-based improv which eventually lead to Whose Line is it Anyway?
Elaine May: central to the development of the premeses (possibly suggestion/storyline) for improvisations
Mike Nichols: Formed a popular comedy duo with Elaine May, relocated to NYC. Became film and theatre director, as well producer, actor and comedian. Directed The Graduate with Dustin Hoffman (ushering in New Hollywood and further legitimizing The Method).
Del Close: Joined The Compass Players in 1957. More on Close later.
Alan Arkin
Sheldon Patinkin: Considered the Grandfather of modern theatre in Chicago, Sheldon was my mentor and friend as Dean of Columbia College Chicago. Everyone knew Sheldon.
Ted Flicker

THE SECOND CITY (est. December 16, 1959)

- Paul Sills , 1st Artistic Director
- Viola Spolin training new actors through a series of classes and exercises which became cornerstone of Improv training
  - mid-1960s, Jo Forsberg (protégé) turned classes into one-year course
  - Del Close: Joined The Compass Players, 1957. Moved to NYC with May & Nichols. Returned to Second City in 1960 Del perform/direct @ Second City, fired due to substance abuse.
    - Latter 1960s in SF with The Committee
      - 1963, Founders alumni @ The Second City. Improv.
    - 1972 Second City, coached many comedians
    - 1980s – 1990s teaching improv w/Charna Halpern @ Yes Productions and IO (@ IO with David Shepherd)
- Saturday Night Live. Franchise produced many:
  - Dan Akroyd, Gilda Radner, Bill Murray, Steve Martin, Tina Fey, Chris Farley, John Candy, Catherine O'Hara, Eugene Levy, Adam Sandler, Stephen Colbert
  - Training the actor to be a marketable product. In addition to acting training, writing, musical comedy, etc. Primarily short-form. Mainstage, touring companies, cruise ships.

Second City Mainstage show is cabaret-style: includes food and drink service, the main show and an encore set.

iO THEATER (formerly IMPROV OLYMPIC)

- founded in 1980 by David Shepherd and Charna Halpern
  - iO started by presenting David Shepherd's and Howard Jerome's Improvisational Olympics, competition-based improv using Spolin's games
  - Halpern as Shepard's assistant, soon produced/managed the games.
- Charna wanted to change format, met Del Close. Later developed The Harold alongside Del Close (formerly of Second City and The Commitee). Long form, theatre games. Explained in Truth in Comedy and Art by Committee, both authored/co-authored by Halpern
- Notable alumni include Amy Poehler, Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Mike Myers, Seth Myers, Vanessa Bayer.

A deeper look @ iO and The Harold can be found here.

Improv Troupe called The Reckoning performs an one-hour, twenty-minute improvised play called a Harold. This one is called Surgery, directed by Charna Halpern. This is part 1; part 2 and 3 are blocked by TUSD. Part 4 is below, followed by part 5.

UPRIGHT CITIZENS BRIGADE

- Started in Chicago, moved to NYC. “Stoned comedy”
- Founded by Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, Matt Walsh
- Uses The Harold
- Alumni include Amy Poehler, Adam McKay, Horatio Sands, Donald Glover

THE GROUNDLINGS

- Gary Austin. Improviser @ The Committee with Del Close
- Stan Wells, “Clap-In” style of Longform. “The Empty Stage”
- Viola’s games. School, “Groundlings style”: characters and emotion, started from actors wanting to practice their craft.
- JJ Abrams, Will Farrell, Kristin Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Cheryl Hines, Cheri O'Teri, Chris Kattan, Will Forte, Kristin Wiig

KEITH JOHNSTONE (1970s Canada)

Keith Johnstone was a teacher in London's Royal Court Theatre where he developed the Impro System. Based on his aversion toward academia and indoctrination, "The Impro System is an approach to actor training and theatre practice that encourages spontaneous, collaborative creation using the intuitive, uncensored imaginative responses of the participants" (The Improfessor).

Johnstone developed a series of games independent of those developed by Spolin.

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