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This fun day of workshops is designed to tune up your improvisation. Play (spontaneity) is built into the heart of each individual session. These are appropriate for those who have some experience in improvisation and are looking for an intensive hit of improv to enhance their creativity.
Improv tune up will give you the skills and confidence to transfer your learning and development into your improvised work.
Improv tune up will give you the skills and confidence to transfer your learning and development into your improvised work.
Details and Key information:
There are 15 places available
When: Saturday 12th of October - 10am-5pm
Where: Liverpool Arts Bar Studio 2
Cost: £66 + booking charge
Ticket booking via link below
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/intensive-improv-tune-up-tickets-913766719857?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl
All monies made from the course will be reinvested back into the annual Liverpool Improvisation Festival. This will include a small fund for the development of new improvised work at LiF.
There are 15 places available
When: Saturday 12th of October - 10am-5pm
Where: Liverpool Arts Bar Studio 2
Cost: £66 + booking charge
Ticket booking via link below
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/intensive-improv-tune-up-tickets-913766719857?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl
All monies made from the course will be reinvested back into the annual Liverpool Improvisation Festival. This will include a small fund for the development of new improvised work at LiF.
Who is this for:
1) Improvisers: Who are looking to develop their improv skills
2) Actors: Looking to sharpen up their acting / performance skills (working in the moment) – TV casting (adverts)
3) Companies: For those who are interested in developing their own improvised performance or those who are looking to devise
4) Writers: Who apply improvisation in developing new plays (devising)
5) Directors: Who apply improvisation in developing new plays (devising)
6) Teachers: Who are looking to develop their experience in facilitating improvisation
7) Others: The adventurous who are up for playing and exploring something new
1) Improvisers: Who are looking to develop their improv skills
2) Actors: Looking to sharpen up their acting / performance skills (working in the moment) – TV casting (adverts)
3) Companies: For those who are interested in developing their own improvised performance or those who are looking to devise
4) Writers: Who apply improvisation in developing new plays (devising)
5) Directors: Who apply improvisation in developing new plays (devising)
6) Teachers: Who are looking to develop their experience in facilitating improvisation
7) Others: The adventurous who are up for playing and exploring something new
Workshop one: Creating image and sound - (listening with your eyes and ears)
You will explore how group image / stage picture / shape (literal and abstract) and the voice (non-text) can enhance transitions (edits) and offers within scenes.
Each of these elements when paired with spoken text or song create an exciting additional layer and can be applied in both short and long form improv. This workshop is appropriate to those who are new to improv or those who want to explore a different approach to how their work looks and sounds on stage.
Workshop two: Character Risk Takes – YOU
In plays, novels, and films, characters have a clear story arc. We know who they are and how they develop throughout the narrative. Improv is different as we are making discoveries as we go along. Our instinct might be to immediately tell everyone who our character is by what they say. But there are powerful ways to show character through the body even before speaking.
This workshop will focus on using your body to create a character. By making clear choices about your character's physical and emotional traits, you give your fellow performers cues on how to interact with you. You will learn how to play against your own shape, internalised rhythm and discover new ways of playing which will unlock new and interesting characters for you, your fellow player/s, and the audience.
Workshop three: How Story Structure can elevate your improvisation
Improvisation can be nerve-wracking! It's natural to fall back on familiar territory for a few reasons: time pressure, comfort, or fear of making a mistake. This pattern of behaviours very often equates to creating the same scene again and again but finding new ways to portray them through different characters, settings, or conflicts is the key to this workshop.
Very often we spend so long in the exposition element of the story that we never get to the drama (inciting incident) the thing that changes the world of these characters. Stories are often built on conflict or contrasting forces – this ‘push’ and ‘pull’ dynamic is integral to developing your work. It can be a great way to create tension in improvised scenes and can be applied in any genre of improvisation.
SCENES, SCENES, SCENES:
Let's put your learning into action. Today's closing activity will focus on applying the concepts we have covered.
You will explore how group image / stage picture / shape (literal and abstract) and the voice (non-text) can enhance transitions (edits) and offers within scenes.
Each of these elements when paired with spoken text or song create an exciting additional layer and can be applied in both short and long form improv. This workshop is appropriate to those who are new to improv or those who want to explore a different approach to how their work looks and sounds on stage.
Workshop two: Character Risk Takes – YOU
In plays, novels, and films, characters have a clear story arc. We know who they are and how they develop throughout the narrative. Improv is different as we are making discoveries as we go along. Our instinct might be to immediately tell everyone who our character is by what they say. But there are powerful ways to show character through the body even before speaking.
This workshop will focus on using your body to create a character. By making clear choices about your character's physical and emotional traits, you give your fellow performers cues on how to interact with you. You will learn how to play against your own shape, internalised rhythm and discover new ways of playing which will unlock new and interesting characters for you, your fellow player/s, and the audience.
Workshop three: How Story Structure can elevate your improvisation
Improvisation can be nerve-wracking! It's natural to fall back on familiar territory for a few reasons: time pressure, comfort, or fear of making a mistake. This pattern of behaviours very often equates to creating the same scene again and again but finding new ways to portray them through different characters, settings, or conflicts is the key to this workshop.
Very often we spend so long in the exposition element of the story that we never get to the drama (inciting incident) the thing that changes the world of these characters. Stories are often built on conflict or contrasting forces – this ‘push’ and ‘pull’ dynamic is integral to developing your work. It can be a great way to create tension in improvised scenes and can be applied in any genre of improvisation.
SCENES, SCENES, SCENES:
Let's put your learning into action. Today's closing activity will focus on applying the concepts we have covered.
Mark is an award winning director and improv facilitator (see about page) with over 30 years of experience. He has toured nationally and internationally - 2004-2014 in Hoof! a long form improv show developed with Todd Stashwick and John Thies.
Since then he has continued to develop his practice, teaching and creating numerous improvised shows. These included Improvised Rubbish Shakespeare - The Incomplete Works, Talk to the Hand (puppet improv) the The Fly, A Wake in association with The Insiders and The Story Forge Make your own Myth. He also curates and runs Liverpool Improvisation Festival.
Quotes on work:
'The Incomplete Works of Shakespeare is a brilliant, bold, and a very funny evening’s entertainment. It may be aimed at a family audience – but trust me, you don’t need a child to enjoy this!'★★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
‘Like Horrible Histories with a dash of the Young Ones anarchy’ ★★★★★ - At The Theatre
‘The work reminded me of Jim Cartwrights ‘Two’ and Caroline Aherne ‘The Royle Family’ – a slice of life made real amongst the buffet. ★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
'Talk to the Hand is playful puppetry with an improv twist and this marriage of artforms works brilliantly.'★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
Participant testimonials:
"I found Mark's course an incredible experience. He holds a wonderful balance between structure, information and play, which is seamless. As I was developing skills I was also developing confidence and facing performance fears gave me the ability to take risks outside of the sessions. If you're thinking about doing it but feel a bit unsure, just go for it!" (Su Jackson - 2023)
"I had so much fun with Wing It Impro. Even though everyone attending had different levels of experience with improvisation, it was a really great environment for learning and experimenting. Mark is very knowledgeable on all things impro and his passion for it is quite infectious. I would definitely recommend this course for anyone with an interest in improvisation and building their confidence through performance." (Kate Mulvihill - 2021)
"Mark is great at explaining things, he works you out and what makes you tick" (Sonia Sidje – 2019)
Since then he has continued to develop his practice, teaching and creating numerous improvised shows. These included Improvised Rubbish Shakespeare - The Incomplete Works, Talk to the Hand (puppet improv) the The Fly, A Wake in association with The Insiders and The Story Forge Make your own Myth. He also curates and runs Liverpool Improvisation Festival.
Quotes on work:
'The Incomplete Works of Shakespeare is a brilliant, bold, and a very funny evening’s entertainment. It may be aimed at a family audience – but trust me, you don’t need a child to enjoy this!'★★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
‘Like Horrible Histories with a dash of the Young Ones anarchy’ ★★★★★ - At The Theatre
‘The work reminded me of Jim Cartwrights ‘Two’ and Caroline Aherne ‘The Royle Family’ – a slice of life made real amongst the buffet. ★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
'Talk to the Hand is playful puppetry with an improv twist and this marriage of artforms works brilliantly.'★★★★ - The Reviews Hub
Participant testimonials:
"I found Mark's course an incredible experience. He holds a wonderful balance between structure, information and play, which is seamless. As I was developing skills I was also developing confidence and facing performance fears gave me the ability to take risks outside of the sessions. If you're thinking about doing it but feel a bit unsure, just go for it!" (Su Jackson - 2023)
"I had so much fun with Wing It Impro. Even though everyone attending had different levels of experience with improvisation, it was a really great environment for learning and experimenting. Mark is very knowledgeable on all things impro and his passion for it is quite infectious. I would definitely recommend this course for anyone with an interest in improvisation and building their confidence through performance." (Kate Mulvihill - 2021)
"Mark is great at explaining things, he works you out and what makes you tick" (Sonia Sidje – 2019)