Baltimore Improv Festival

Workshops

REGISTRATION IS OPEN! All workshops are at the Creative Alliance, 3134 Eastern Avenue. Please arrive 15 minutes before your workshop begins, and wear clothes that are easy to move around in and closed-toe shoes.

SATURDAY August 14, 2010

10:00am - 1:00pm

You Too Can Improvise!: Introductory Level Improv Workshop | $30

Six pack abs in 3 minutes a day without crunches? Make $40,000 a week by eating raw cookie dough? Create a perpetual motion machine? Can you do these things? Hell no!

But you can improvise! Whether you are a complete novice, or just haven't played in years, step up and jump on in. You'll learn the foundations of improvisation, meet some great people, and have a ball doing it. Laugh. Play. Make a killing in real estate with no money down.

Instructor Bio: Michael Harris is the Artistic Director of BIG, and has been a member of the group since 2006. He teaches for BIG and at the National Conservatory of Dramatic Arts (NCDA) in DC. He trained at NCDA, and has performed professionally throughout the area at, amongst other places, Studio Theater and Signature Theater. Michael began improvising as a member of Lighted Fools at Haverford College.

Catharine Robertson is the Executive Director of BIG, director of BIG troupe Lekker, and has been a member of the group since 2006. She is a veteran of the Stoop Storytelling Series live radio shows, and she has studied improv at Second City and taken classes and workshops at festivals all over the place. Catharine has produced the Baltimore Improv Festival since its inception in 2007. You can see her interview--and her belly button--in the August 2010 issue of Baltimore Magazine.

10:00am - 1:00pm

Directing Improv | $30

How do you make your improv troupe one of those troupes that becomes greater than the sum of its parts? Is there a trick to developing chemistry between players? This workshop is intended for current or future improv directors who want to explore skills specific to the art of making your troupe better as a whole. We'll be practicing effective side coaching, whole troupe listening, and creating skill specific improv games. Taught by Prescott Gaylord - former director of Gus and former Artistic Director of BIG.

2:00pm - 5:00pm

iMusical - Intro to Musical Improvisation | $45

This workshop will instruct participants on the basics of improvising songs. Emphasis will be on recognizing and initiating songs in different structures, including verse/chorus and tagline songs, singing in character, and communicating with the accompanist. Prior singing and/or musical theater experience is a plus, but participants only need to be comfortable singing in front of others."

Instructor bio: Travis Ploeger (Director, Accompanist) moved to the DC area in 2006, after an eight-year career as the musical director for Chicago City Limits, the longest-running comedy revue in New York City. He was also the co-creator of I Eat Pandas, the two-woman musical improv group starring Eliza Skinner and Glennis McMurray. A graduate of the Hartt School of Music (University of Hartford), he also teaches workshops and classes in song improvisation, and has helped to create and perform over 1,500 improvised musicals in front of live audiences all across the country. His "legitimate" theater credits include stints at The Great American Melodrama and Vaudeville (CA) and the Forestburgh Playhouse (NY), where he once music directed Loretta "Hot Lips Houlihan" Switt in The Apple Tree. He has also written several musicals for their children's theater series. He is an avid fan of the Washington Nationals, as well as a season ticket owner for the Minnesota Vikings. He lives in Silver Spring with his dreamgirl wife, Melissa, and their bouncing baby boy Benjamin.

2:00pm - 5:00pm

Gonzo, Balls-Out Improv in 3 Easy Steps | $30

No long-winded explanations, no being nice, no rules; this workshop is about you doing as much scene-work as possible, getting individualized notes about what you need to work on, and covering the simple steps to build an enjoyable improv scene that you'll have fun doing. We'll get you playing with strength, confidence, and purpose. You'll learn what kind of performer you are. You'll be able to create without over-thinking, self-judging, or worrying. I'll show you how improv can be easy, automatic, and fun.

Instructor bio: In m@&, Matt Holmes performs a full improv comedy set with a complete stranger from the audience. Matt has been improvising since 1998. At Cabrini College, he ran On the Spot, a weekly short-form show that appeared at Skidmore College's National College Comedy Festival. He co-founded Philly's Rare Bird Show in 2003 and has been involved with many other improv projects, including teaching workshops at improv festivals, improvising an all-audio improv show in the dark, coaching improv groups, teaching classes through Philly Improv Theater, and performing an mp3-infused improv project that was crowned grand champion of season 2 of Troika, Philly's improv competition.

2:00pm - 5:00pm

Become Your Own Mask | $30

This workshop takes a completely physical approach to discovering characters by combining elements from Keith Johnstone's work with masks and Jerzy Grotowski's "poor theatre". Players will use their own faces and bodies to create physical "masks" from which new characters will be discovered and explored. The resulting characters tend to be very strong, incredibly easy to play, and completely unlike anything the players have done before.

Instructor bio: S. Michael Smith has been performing and directing improv for 18 years. He has led improv classes and workshops in New York and Tennessee and at various improv and theatre festivals over the years, including Spontaneous Combustion in Kansas City and Big Stinkin' in Austin, TX. He is currently the artistic director of Unleashed Improv in Rochester, NY (www.unleashedimprov.com).

SUNDAY August 15, 2010

10:00am - 1:00pm

You Too Can Improvise!: Introductory Level Improv Workshop | $30

Six pack abs in 3 minutes a day without crunches? Make $40,000 a week by eating raw cookie dough? Create a perpetual motion machine? Can you do these things? Hell no!

10:00am - 1:00pm

Acting, Schmacting: Emotionally Grounded Improv | $30

Let's talk about our feelings! The best improv comes from allowing yourself to be vulnerable when all eyes are on you, so stop protecting yourself with that contrived "schmacting"! In this workshop we will explore playing scenes with committed and realistic emotion. Learn how to launch yourself headfirst into an experience, physically and emotionally, allowing the experience to affect you. Open yourself up to take emotional risks, allow how you feel to create your point of view, and watch your improv reach new heights. No acting necessary.

Instructor bio: Kristen Schier is the Artistic Director of The Philly N Crowd, which performs weekly shows at The Actor's Center. Before coming to PHIT she taught improv for Delaware Theater Company, Drexel University, and The Actor's Center. Kristen has a B.F.A. in Theater Arts from the University of the Arts and has been working in Philly as a professional actor, improviser and teacher for several years. She has worked with Commonwealth Classic Theater Company, Ego Po, and Vagabond Acting Troupe. She has appeared in many productions including the originally created Art of War, which received a Barrymore Nomination for Outstanding Ensemble. Kristen has studied clowning intensively with Giovanni Fusetti. She has also studied improv at The Second City and at the Annoyance in Chicago. She has taken workshops and classes with such improv notables as Michael Gelman, Jill Bernard, Asaf Ronen, Mick Napier, Susan Messing and Mark Sutton as well as members of the UCB Theater in New York City.

10:00am - 1:00pm

Duo Workout: The Keys to Two-Person Improv | $30

In an improv duo? Want to be? In this workshop, we'll focus on the skills and techniques necessary to do long form improv with only two people. With an emphasis on connectivity and playfulness, we'll explore various methods to two-person work, two-person editing, and learn how to create your own form that plays to a duo's strengths and abilities. Sign up as an individual or with a partner for the full duo experience!

Instructor bio: Rick Andrews has been improvising for over 11 years, beginning with Improv Boston in lovely Cambridge, MA. He continued in Saint Louis and New York, and has been teaching/coachingimprov for the past 3 years. He has studied/workshopped with a breadth of theaters and individuals, including the Magnet Theater (Peter McNerny, Alex Marino, Christian Capozzoli, Armando Diaz) UCB (Amy Pohler, Ian Roberts, Greg Tuscelescu, Ben Rodgers), IO Chicago (Greg Hess, Jacob Schneider, Brian Jack), Annoyance theater (Mark Sutton, Joe Bill), and others from around the country (Jill Bernard, Asaf Ronan, Zach Ward, and Will Luera). He is a producer of Duofest 2010 in Philadelphia, PA, a festival focusing on improv duos, and can be seen performing at the Magnet Theater and at festivals across the country with his duo, "The Cascade."

2:00pm - 5:00pm

Everything You Do is Important: Finding Meaning and Awesomeness in Your Scenework | $30

This workshop is all about taking your scenework to the next level by building strong relationships, holding on to your characters, and finding meaning in your choices. In the 1st half, you'll learn techniques for starting scenes on the right foot and keeping them there--through bold choices and strong commitment to the reality you've created. In the 2nd half, you'll learn how to find meaning in your relationships and choices on stage to make your scenework easier and more satisfying (without arguing or being clever).

Instructor bio: Bob Carter got started in improv with the amazing Baltimore Improv Group in 2007, where he served as the executive director and taught classes until he moved to Chicago in 2009, where he studied at the Second City, iO, and Annoyance theaters. He now performs in Chicago with Candidate, as well as several shows a year with the Mister Licorice gang. He feels your pain and wants to make improv easier for you, and yes, he feels very weird about writing his bio in the third person.

2:00pm - 5:00pm

Theatrical Clowning for the Improviser | $30

Have you ever wondered "How do people see me?" Ever wanted to dabble in clown? This is the workshop for you! In this workshop you will open the door to your inner clown. Using a variety of approaches drawn from improv, theater, and commedia dell'arte, you will refine your understanding of how you are perceived by the audience and use this joyful, sometimes painful, experience for comedy... and tragedy. You will expose yourself to the moment and experience the joy of discovering your flaws - if you dare.

2:00pm - 5:00pm

Radioland | $30

Students will learn a variety of games and techniques focused on vocal improvisation. This workshop will culminate in an improvised radio "drama," complete with sound effects, musical transitions, and maybe even the occasional commercial interruption.

Instructor bio: Alex Dodge has been teaching and performing improv for the last ten years. In addition to his performances in venues like the Chicago Improv Festival, The Dirty South (now the North Carolina Comedy Arts Festival), and, as of this year, the Baltimore Improv Festival, Alex has taught improv classes and workshops across the Midwest. His teaching experience ranges from festival workshops to corporate seminars to serial classes. Most recently, he designed and taught an improvisational performance course for Indiana University (those poor college students had no idea what they were getting into when the registered). Alex is excited to be teaching his first workshop for the Baltimore Improv festival.