Reddit Reddit reviews Improvise: Scene from the Inside Out

We found 7 Reddit comments about Improvise: Scene from the Inside Out. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.

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Improvise: Scene from the Inside Out
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7 Reddit comments about Improvise: Scene from the Inside Out:

u/Big_Jamming_Burst · 13 pointsr/improv

Aerodynamics of Yes by Christian Capozzoli

Improvise (Scenes from the inside out) by Mick Napier

Directing Improv by Asaf Ronen

u/richardcornish · 6 pointsr/improv
  • Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual is usually the first one that people speak highly of. Half of it is theory, and the other half is exercises. I find it the most solid gathering of tactics, but maybe a comparison to other schools would help me understand why their “game” makes them so different.
  • Improvise: Scene from the Inside Out by Mick Napier is probably the next best one on my list. It personally resonated with me because the idea of “take care of your partner by taking care of yourself” identified one of the less-spoken of but more critical parts of improv. I’ve been in many scenes where the who/what/where slips through the cracks because we were too polite to not make a bold choice and each of us were scared to decide what the scene should be about. If each of us collectively decides individually and “yes, and,” we’re on a really good trajectory.
  • Improvisation at the Speed of Life: The TJ and Dave Book is my long-form inspiration. You get a lot of mindset here, not as tactical as the others.

    Interestingly, this one blog post “How to Be a Better Improviser” is actually a brilliant distillation of the most important concepts.

    It goes without saying that without practice reading alone will have limited utility.
u/zwolfmanz · 4 pointsr/improv

Improvising Now Rob Norman’s Book, coupled with the podcast the backline is a great resource. I have taken workshops from Rob and Adam and they know their stuff. They are masters of the craft.

How to be the greatest improviser on earth by Will Hines, coupled with his blog “improv nonsense” is also great. Will Hines is one of the most clear articulate thinkers in the improv world. He has the ability to distill the most complex ideas into simple bite sized packets.

Improvise by Mick Napier is a classic. Great for an intermediate player because his ideas and concepts come up all the time.

Podcasts worth checking out: Beat by beat, the backline, improv nerd, and the ask the UCB episodes of I4H.

I’ve read a lot of improv books, but those are the ones I love. Their usefulness never ceases.

u/Kalranya · 1 pointr/rpg

Improv is a skill that can be studied, learned, and practiced, and I absolutely 100% promise you that whoever it is you idolize on CritRole has, in fact, studied and learned it, and practices regularly.

The best way is to take a class in it. Anywhere with a theater program should offer improv classes.

If you can't do that, books are a good fallback (and companion to classes), whether that's industry heavyweights or books targeted specifically at gamers. Of course, there's also the usual selection of websites, youtube videos and reddit that you can tap as resources too; google around a bit.

In the meantime, the thing that might help you the fastest is to stop focusing on scripting what the character can say, and instead put your attention to how the character thinks and what they feel. If you know how they're likely to react to situations, you'll find you can use that as a guide to steer your dialogue. There are innumerable methods for developing that; again, look around a bit and try a few out.

Lately I've been liking Fate Aspects as a rough guide for characters, even if I'm not playing Fate. It's a simple structure without a lot of rules to creating them, light and flexible, while still retaining enough meat to give me a general direction to guide my interactions during gameplay.

Take the following character as an example:

K.G.

  • High Concept: Incisive Scamp Journalist

  • K.G. is sharp-witted and analytical, good at reading people and situations to find story angles. She's also good at causing trouble for anyone who gets in her way, whether that's obstructive cops, corporate bureaucrats, or her editor. (More generally, a High Concept is a quick summary of the character. It's your one-line elevator pitch)

  • Trouble: Not Proud of my Past

  • K.G. was neck-deep in some shady things before she sold her first story, and she's tried to distance herself from that life as much as possible. She's deeply ashamed of some of the things she did and people she associated with, and her history rearing its ugly head is the fastest way to throw her off her game. (Generally, a Trouble is the thing that most often causes drama in the character's life)

  • Anything For the Story

  • The story is all that matters; no price--no matter who pays it--is too high. K.G. doesn't want to hurt people and tries not to, but, well, sometimes it happens. So long as the story gets out, it was worth it.

  • I Know a Guy for That

  • Just because she's not proud of her past doesn't mean K.G. isn't willing to tap it occasionally, and she's built an extensive web of contacts of a more legitimate sort while on the job. If she doesn't know or can't get it, she knows someone who does and can, guaranteed.

  • If the Press Pass Doesn't Get Me In, the Lockpicks Will

  • This loops back around to "anything for the story", but more specifically that she's perfectly willing and able to commit any number of misdemeanors and the occasional felony in pursuit of an angle. It's as much a statement of philosophy as of capability. It makes her dangerous and daring, and that's both good and bad.

    So, with just those five lines, I've got a fairly good snapshot of the character--enough to guide me in most circumstances. She's whip-smart and snappy, good at handling people, well-connected and worldly, a bit of a troublemaker, willing to chatter "aimlessly" to gather info but avoids personal topics. That's not a bad slice of character to start building from.
u/Alcoheroic · 1 pointr/improv

You'll make your lives a lot easier if you get a coach ASAP (even if it's just a temporary guest coach).

Player's attempting to direct each other (even for very experienced troupes) can lead to all sorts of drama down the line. I've been a part of teams where each week (or month) we rotated who was leading rehearsals. Some worked out great (the two where we all had at least a decade of performing/teaching experience and went into it with that plan) and others quickly became a dumpster fire.

My best advice while you're waiting for a coach is probably to pick up a book on improv theory or a book on on acting:

Mick Napier's - Improvise: Scene from the inside out, Bill Arnett's - The Complete Improviser, Viola Spolin's - Improvisation for the Theater, or something like Marina Caldarone's - Action: The Actor's Thesaurus are good places to start.

Then read it together outside of rehearsal and discuss the ideas in various chapters when you meet up - maybe try out a few exercises, but be wary of trying to direct each other: that's not your job, your job is to support each other on stage.

Heck, just reading a few acting books and really discussing them will put you guys leaps and bounds ahead of most improvisers.