Improvisational comedy

Improvisational comedy (also called improv or impro) is comedy that is performed with a little to no predetermination of subject matter and structure. The performers discover their lines and actions spontaneously, typically following a general theme and format, often in response to audience suggestions. Improvisational comedy is a form of improvisational theater.

Theatrical improvisation

Improvisational comedy as a stand-alone, theatrical artform falls generally into two categories: shortform and longform.

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Shortform

Shortform improvisation consists of short, unrelated scenes almost always driven by a predetermined game, (e.g., party quirks, world's worst). In shortform games, which take from two to ten minutes, the performers attempt to create a comprehensible scene while conforming to the specified and possibly restrictive rules of the game. Wit and speed are favored. Many shortform games first created by Spolin are still performed to this day. Whose Line Is It Anyway? includes a number of common shortform games.

Related Topics:
Shortform improvisation - Whose Line Is It Anyway?

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Longform

In longform improvisation, the timeframe is considerably broadened and predetermined games are ruled out. The performers attempt to create a wholly improvised play, anywhere from 25 minutes to two hours at the extreme, which evolves organically from first scene to last. Some longforms are narrative while others focus on character development, exploration of relationships, or the extrapolation of themes and ideas. Some common longforms include:

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• the Harold (first championed by Del Close)
• the monoscene
• the montage
• the deconstruction
• the movie
• the Armando (named for Armando Diaz, a noted improv teacher and director)
• the narrative
• the horror
• the Bat (occasionally referred to as a Blind Harold)
• Close Quarters
• La Ronde
• six degrees
• spontaneous Broadway
• triptych
• Evente'
• Sybilization (one person Long Form/Harold)
• The Sleep Over
• The Soundtrack (a form utilizing audience-provided music. developed by Mother in NYC)

There have been hundreds of improvisational games and forms developed for use in the theatre, with more being developed all the time. Many games invented for recreation have been adapted for performance or training. Specific games are often designed to develop or showcase particular skills, such as physical expressiveness, creation of characters, responsiveness, openness to suggestion, trust, or comic wit. Longforms are often developed to explore specific subject matter, such as political commentary, or styles, as in the emulation of cinematographic techniques in the Movie longform.

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No soap radio jokes are commonly improvised.

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