Does improv AMAZE you?

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I find shows like "Who's line is it anyway?" fascinating. It's like, how do these guys do it? I tried improv in a few theatre classes but I always get embarrassed and feel stupid and awkward. Anyway, I'm amazed how people can come up with stuff just like that.

I like the rap battles where at least some of the content is freestyled. Like when someone 'flips' an insult that their opponent said only a few moments ago back at them + wordplay + relevant specifically to a person/place etc + multi-syllable rhyme patterns + flow + its a really funny joke, delivered perfectly.

When most of those elements come together, its jaw-dropping

yes very much so.

these guys don't specifically do improv all time but what they do is just overall amazing:
http://www.youtube.com/user/ImprovEverywhere

No doubt. All improv is conceptually amazing to me but freestyle battles and freestyle raps in general are the wildest of all.

Have you seen the video of Tom Green on his show freestyling with Xzibit? A friend of mine showed me this recently and it is ridiculous, Tom Green can actually flow real well. I questioned at first whether he actually did it off the cuff, but you can see how he starts off super slow and awkward and then gets into a groove and just rips it after that. I am not a fan of Tom Green in the least but it really is pretty funny.

I'd post the video on here but it's NSFW/WP terms/etc., but if you're curious, google "tom green freestyle" and it'll pop right up.

I love watching improv. I like how someone can give the actors a topic, and they can make a 10 minute act out of it. I was watching 'Who's Line is it, Anyways' back in 2002, and a couple guys did a whole silent skit about the Olympics. It was funny to watch.

Yeah, it's pretty impressive to be able to think 'on your feet' like that. I'll admit, it makes me jealous.

I suspect all aspies would find improv comedy difficult.
A large part of social interacton is improvisation after all.

I do find those guys (and girls) on Whose Line Is It Anyway pretty impressive.

I imagine some of them every so often try to squeeze in jokes they've already used elsewhere.
I've certainly seen a few comedians rehash jokes and routines for "unscripted" talk shows.
Even so, it's still pretty impressive how they do it.

Freestyle rap on the other hand is usually - IMHO, if you listen to the words - codswallop.
If you don't listen to the words, it can be kind of impressive. I prefer scat singing though.

Yeah, im catching up on the battle scene atm and there seems to be a trend away from freestyling. Maybe its just me seeing a movement through the net and being UK biased, but when i started watching jumpoff/scribble etc years ago frees=good/writtens=less so then slowly the stigma seems to have subsided, now the grindtime battles are almost totally written - its cool not having to sit through filler & thers amazing quality content but i miss the spontanaeity sparring element sometimes. And the same thing seems to be taking the current british (dont flop) league. I dont know what the austrailians are up to, but thatd be the place to look IMO.



thanks, i enjoyed that he starts to look and sound a bit like Eyedea towards the end.

I love watching it as well.

But when it isn't, it's awesome! How do they DO that? It's just beyond me! I like scat too though.

AMazed no,
but i do enjoy them

I also love ImprovEverywhere. The dancing in the subway and the frozen grand central are the coolest.

As for any other improv, I find it interesting but it makes me feel bad about myself, because there's no way I could possibly do anything like that. There used to be a show called "Train" here in Canada. It was fully improv, and very entertaining to watch. Basically, it was about a certain group of people who all know each other getting on the train and talking about their lives. It was very realistic, with no one-dimensional stereotypes nor cheesy scripted lines. Too bad they stopped airing it because it didn't turn out to be as popular as expected...

Hello,

I am a PhD student at the Tizard Centre in the University of Kent. My project is about exploring the benefits and impact for autistic people using improv comedy training on anxiety and their lives.

I have been recommended to get in touch with people on this forum (this thread). Maybe you have experience of improv, or know of others that have and would be willing to participate in this study. I am trying to reach relevant people about my upcoming studies. In this email, I wish to mention the first one.

This study aims to explore anxiety and lived experiences between autistic and non-autistic people with improv comedy training and/or involvement. Participants will be asked about:
• their life experiences before and after participating in improv comedy;
• what makes an improviser easy to improvise with;
• fitting into the world;
• and their thoughts about the benefits of improv (if any).

This does mean improv theatre and comedy (alike what has been spoken about), and not theatre that may use some improvisation. I hope this will help as a distinction in who I am seeking. I have attached a full information sheet and consent form as a pdf.

Many thanks,

Nathan Keates

My mind is too slow for me to be any good at improv. It's like my mind is a moped bike in a drag race with new powerful sports cars. By the time I get to the destination everyone is long gone. By the time I think of anything good/smart to say in a situation, it's days later & it would be pointless to bring the topic back up.

Who's Line is pretty impressive & funny & so are the Impractical Jokers.

I have experience with doing improv and I find it a lot of fun. A lot of it is learning what the basic structure is and playing upon the situation. Being open to suggestion, regardless of how ridiculous. The "yes, and" rule. Yes being accepting the hypothetical situation, then the and part is where you add something to it. However, you can subvert this at times, the yes and structure is just a basic general rule. Thinking on my feet and being creative is one of the only areas I excel in. I actually prefer taking part in improvised acting over following a script, I even went somewhat off-script in a short film I made even though I wrote the script because I decided the new dialogue was a better fit in that moment when we were filming.

A skilled improvisational actor/comedian is like a stage magician to me -- I truly envy the confidence and ease with which they display their crafts, when I have to struggle with public speaking even with a prepared speech.