Download or read book The Improv Comedy Musician written by Laura Hall and published by . This book was released on 2016-07-08 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Learn musical improv from Laura Hall of "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" Are you a musician who performs with an improv comedy group? If so, this book is for you! You'll also greatly benefit if you are a music director, improv team leader, improv teacher or coach, improv actor or singer, or just a hardcore Whose Line fan. From the Foreword by Colin Mochrie: "On Whose Line, Laura supplies note-perfect music styles for Wayne Brady, Brad Sherwood, Chip Esten, Jeff Davis, et al, to shine on. But Laura's true genius is that she can make caterwaulers like me sound good and, more important, makes caterwaulers like me feel safe enough to try. "Laura Hall is a damn fine musician, period. There is no musical style she isn't well versed in. With Laura you get experience, knowledge, and a teacher you can trust. What more could you ask for? So get reading, start playing, and have more fun than you're ready for." "I'm a Laura Hall-ic!" -Chip Esten, Nashville, Whose Line Is It Anyway? "I know and highly respect both Laura and Bob. I can't think of a better pair to teach you the fundamentals of musical improv." -Bill Chott, actor and founder of the Improv Trick Laura Hall is an accomplished musician best known as the pianist on Whose Line Is It Anyway? She also stays busy recording film scores, writing musicals, leading improv workshops with her husband Rick, and performing with her Americana music trio, The Sweet Potatoes. Bob Baker is a prolific author, musician, artist and actor, as well as an improv teacher and performer. Through his books and workshops Bob teaches creative people of all kinds how to get exposure, connect with fans, and increase their incomes.

Download or read book Musical Direction for Improv and Sketch Comedy written by Michael Pollock and published by Masteryear Publishing. This book was released on 2004 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Masteryear Publishing is proud to present this unique guide to a musical skill long considered mysterious and practically un-teachable. Step by step, author Michael Pollock explains the thinking process behind comedy accompaniment and musical direction in clear, simple language. Each concept is illustrated by audio examples, featuring actors from The Second City Los Angeles and Michael at the keys. The best comedy troupes in the world have live keyboard accompaniment, and musicians who can provide this kind of clever, spontaneous underscore are relatively rare. This book and CD leads the way to rapid progress for anyone who would like to learn.

Download or read book Musical Improv Comedy written by Michael Pollock and published by Masteryear Publishing. This book was released on 2003 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Clear, everyday language explains each element of an improvised song. Simple building blocks are combined with performance tips to raise a performer's musical improvisation to its highest level. The included CD, featuring cast members from ImprovOlympic West's hilarious Opening Night, The Improvised Musical, provides- examples- exercises- practice accompaniments

Download or read book Time Steps written by Donna McKechnie and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2006 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A personal memoir by the Tony Award-winning dancer and choreographer describes her struggles with depression and rheumatoid arthritis, and her experiences with such figures as Bob Fosse, Stephen Sondheim, and Fred Astaire.

Download or read book Truth in Comedy written by Charna Halpern and published by Meriwether Publishing. This book was released on 1994 with total page 164 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The 'Harold', an innovative improvisational tool, helped many actors on the road to TV and film stardom, including George Wendt (Norm on Cheers). Now it is described fully in this new book for would-be actors and comics. The 'Harold' is a form of competitive improv involving 6 or 7 players. They take a theme suggestion from the audience and 'free associate' on the theme into a series of rapid-fire one-liners that build into totally unpredictable skits with hilarious results. The 'Harold' is a fun way to 'loosen up' and learn to think quickly, build continuity, develop characterisations and sharpen humour.

Download or read book The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy and Improvisation in the Arts written by Alessandro Bertinetto and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-07-22 with total page 1133 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Over the last few decades, the notion of improvisation has enriched and dynamized research on traditional philosophies of music, theatre, dance, poetry, and even visual art. This Handbook offers readers an authoritative collection of accessible articles on the philosophy of improvisation, synthesizing and explaining various subjects and issues from the growing wave of journal articles and monographs in the field. Its 48 chapters, written specifically for this volume by an international team of scholars, are accessible for students and researchers alike. The volume is organized into four main sections: I Art and Improvisation: Theoretical Perspectives II Art and Improvisation: Aesthetical, Ethical, and Political Perspectives III Improvisation in Musical Practices IV Improvisation in the Visual, Narrative, Dramatic, and Interactive Arts Key Features: Treats improvisation not only as a stylistic feature, but also as an aesthetic property of artworks and performances as well as a core element of artistic creativity. Spells out multiple aspects of the concept of improvisation, emphasizing its relevance in understanding the nature of art. Covers improvisation in a wide spectrum of artistic domains, including unexpected ones such as literature, visual arts, games, and cooking. Addresses key questions, such as: - How can improvisation be defined and what is its role in different art forms? - Can improvisation be perceived as such, and how can it be aesthetically evaluated? - What is the relationship between improvisation and notions such as action, composition, expressivity, and authenticity? - What is the ethical and political significance of improvisation?

Download or read book The Improv Handbook written by Tom Salinsky and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-10-19 with total page 520 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Improv Handbook is the most comprehensive, smart, helpful and inspiring guide to improv available today. Applicable to comedians, actors, public speakers and anyone who needs to think on their toes, it features a range of games, interviews, descriptions and exercises that illuminate and illustrate the exciting world of improvised performance. First published in 2008, this second edition features a new foreword by comedian Mike McShane, as well as new exercises on endings, managing blind offers and master-servant games, plus new and expanded interviews with Keith Johnstone, Neil Mullarkey, Jeffrey Sweet and Paul Rogan. The Improv Handbook is a one-stop guide to the exciting world of improvisation. Whether you're a beginner, an expert, or would just love to try it if you weren't too scared, The Improv Handbook will guide you every step of the way.

Download or read book 101 More Improv Games for Children and Adults written by Bob Bedore and published by Turner Publishing Company. This book was released on 2013-03-15 with total page 184 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 101 More Improv Games for Children and Adults: A Smart Fun Book for Ages 5 and Up is the follow-up to Bob Bedore’s popular 101 Improv Games for Children and Adults. This sequel takes us even deeper into the craft of improv — the magical art of creating something out of nothing — with all new games! Author Bob Bedore emphasizes how you can use improvisation, creativity, and teamwork any time, any place, to get your imagination flowing, win over a crowd, or be a wittier conversationalist. Actors and improv students will appreciate the author's fun, down-to-earth approach to developing theater craft. And improv isn't only for serious thespians. Used as a classroom activity, it teaches kids how to have fun, relax, and work together without seeming like an educational tool at all. Great on its own or as a companion to Bedore’s first book, 101 More Improv Games for Children and Adults is centered around entertaining an audience and creating memorable scenes. This sequel includes information on how to produce your own improv show. 101 More Improv Games for Children and Adults is full of wacky and brilliant activities for kids, teachers, actors, comedians, improv groups, or anyone else.

Download or read book Improvisation for the Spirit written by Katie Goodman and published by Sourcebooks, Inc.. This book was released on 2008-08-01 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A practical, fascinating, and funny guidebook. I've already begun applying hints from Improvisation for the Spirit, and I'm hoping that from now on, when people point and laugh at me, it will be for more appropriate reasons. A delightful read, filled with wonderful strategies." - Martha Beck, Life Coach Columnist for O, The Oprah Magazine, and author of Steering by Starlight Wish you could gag your Inner Critic? Feeling blocked creatively? Want to make a big change, but fear taking the leap? Comedy improv requires quick thinking, collaboration, getting out of your own way, and being in the moment without being a perfectionist. Katie Goodman, an internationally touring improv comedian and comedy writer, uses her witty and encouraging style to show you how to acquire the skills of improv comedy and apply them to every aspect of daily life. Along the way Goodman shares hilarious and insightful stories from her experiences onstage, as well as step-by-step exercises from her popular self-discovery workshops and retreats. Packed with creative, original, and, most importantly, fun exercises, Improvisation for the Spirit offers a truly transformational guide for anyone wanting to get more out of life. "Bottom line: Katie is funny. She teaches you to live your life like an improv scene - no fear and fully committed." - Wayne Brady, improv comedian, Whose Line Is It Anyway? and Don't Forget the Lyrics "Katie Goodman's writing fl ows and then jumps with anecdotes and prescriptions for finding courage. Fun to read, hard to put down." - Lesley Stahl, 60 Minutes "If you feel that something is holding you back, that the life you are meant to live is out there somewhere if only you could fi nd it, then this book should go straight to the top of your reading list." - Carl Honore, author of In Praise of Slowness and Under Pressure

Download or read book Improv Your Life written by Pippa Evans and published by . This book was released on 2021-02-18 with total page 304 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An improviser's guide to embracing whatever life throws at you!PIPPA EVANS is an expert in saying Yes - and No. She's a master of thinking on her feet, but has also had to learn how to go with the flow. In this book she's passing on everything she's learnt from her award winning improv career, as both a performer and teacher, so YOU can take centre stage in your own life.In telling her story, delving into the craft of improvisation, and sharing fun exercises and practice you can do at home, Pippa will help you become fully yourself - realising your potential and ability to adapt to the ever changing world around you. It's dangerous, being yourself, but let's just take it one step at a time. Open the book, take a breath and get ready to say YES. (If it's a NO from you then perhaps consider buying for a friend, family member or enemy who you think needs some improv-ment)

Download or read book Free Play written by Stephen Nachmanovitch and published by Penguin. This book was released on 1991-05-01 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Free Play is about the inner sources of spontaneous creation. It is about why we create and what we learn when we do. It is about the flow of unhindered creative energy: the joy of making art in all its varied forms. An international bestseller and beloved classic, Free Play is an inspiring and provocative book, directed toward people in any field who want to contact, honor, and strengthen their own creative powers. It reveals how inspiration arises within us, how that inspiration may be blocked, derailed or obscured, and how finally it can be liberated—how we can be liberated—to speak or sing, write or paint, dance or play, with our own authentic voice. Stephen Nachmanovitch, a pioneer in free improvisation, integrates material from a wide variety of sources among the arts, sciences, and spiritual traditions of humanity, drawing on unusual quotes, amusing and illuminating anecdotes, and original metaphors. The whole enterprise of improvisation in life and art, of recovering free play and awakening creativity, is about being true to ourselves and our visions. Free Play brings us into direct, active contact with boundless creative energies that we may not even know we had.

Download or read book I Want to Be Ready written by Danielle Goldman and published by University of Michigan Press. This book was released on 2010-05-04 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A conceptual framework for understanding the development of improvised dance in late 20th-century America

Download or read book Drawn on the Way written by Sarah Nisbett and published by Quarry Books. This book was released on 2021-12-21 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Learn to observe the world more deeply—with curiosity, empathy, and joy—as you sketch the stories unfolding all around you. In Drawn on the Way, Sarah Nisbett shares her techniques for creating captivating line drawings that capture the moments and moods that you encounter on the train, in a café, outdoors, anywhere: a young woman lost in thought, a pair of hands clasped on a lap, a peppy beagle, a pair of jeans-clad crossed legs. Sarah invites you to see the people, animals, places, and objects you draw with compassionate curiosity—as more than a stranger or inanimate object, but as someone or something with a story worth knowing or imagining. Even if you are inexperienced at drawing or don’t consider yourself an artist, you can learn how to create sketches from start to finish employing techniques such as contour drawing, using line work to add texture, and adding spot color—and discover how each sketch tells a story. You’ll begin to focus on important details that reveal something about the subject you’re drawing: the graceful drape of a hand over a purse, the shy way someone tucks their feet underneath them. As you unplug, set aside perfectionism, and explore the world through drawing, you’ll learn: How to translate what you see into a compelling drawing How to silence your inner critic and find joy in drawing what captures your interest Techniques for drawing figures and creating quick portraits How to find the emotion in objects by asking questions How to draw scenes and backgrounds without becoming overwhelmed How to quickly and expressively render the natural world, including plants and animals How key details can take a sketch from plain to captivating Ways to find the extraordinary in the everyday How to transform mistakes into likeable elements Tips for becoming a visual storyteller Life lessons learned from years of live drawing We spend most of our lives on the way, rushing and running from place to place, task to task. When we have a spare minute, we usually reach for our phones and shut everything else out. The techniques, projects, and ideas in Drawn on the Way are designed to help you be more mindful about drawing, to capture the people, places, and things you encounter each day. By doing that, you’ll connect with humanity in a deeper, more meaningful way—and discover a lot about yourself.

Download or read book Gutenberg the Musical written by Anthony King and published by Samuel French, Inc.. This book was released on 2008 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Full Length, Musical Comedy Characters: 2 male In this two-man musical spoof, a pair of aspiring playwrights perform a backers' audition for their new project - a big, splashy musical about printing press inventor Johann Gutenberg. With an unending supply of enthusiasm, Bud and Doug sing all the songs and play all the parts in their crass historical epic, with the hope that one of the producers in attendance will give them a Broadway contract - fulfilling their ill-advised dr

Download or read book Improv and the Actor s Imagination Limited Edition written by Robert Z. Grant and published by . This book was released on 2021-05-10 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written for actors, IMPROV AND THE ACTOR'S IMAGINATION brings to life the skills of improvisation through practical exercises, games, and scenes, and applies those skills to the craft of acting and beyond. Author Robert Z Grant shares his own improvised approach to both scripted and unscripted work, developed over decades as a professional actor and improviser. Actors and everyone looking to expand their possibilities are encouraged to learn to give themselves permission to follow their own instincts, and to release the awesome power of their imaginations. Get yourself into trouble and see what happens!

Download or read book Improv Beyond Rules written by Adam Meggido and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A hands-on guide to narrative improvisation by the co-creator and director of the Olivier Award-winning improv show Showstopper! The Improvised Musical, this book draws on the author's extensive experience teaching and performing around the world. Starting with fundamental principles that work for all forms of improvised performance, and the common traps improvisers fall into, the book explores the elements of narrative improvisation, where performers create a story without any predetermined structure. It covers: The Moment: how to be authentically in the moment by listening and responding to fellow performers, accepting their suggestions (not necessarily by always saying yes) and committing to whatever happens next; The Scene: how to connect moments to build a compelling scene and keep it moving forward; why there's no such thing as a mistake; and understanding and working with audiences; and The Story: how to link scenes to build story and plot; what kids can teach us about storytelling; utilising dramatic structure; developing and playing different types of characters; and key principles of staging. Packed with dozens of games and exercises, the book provides the tools to build confidence, empower performance, and unlock creativity. Written for improvisers with any level of experience, this book is also the perfect starting point for directors, teachers, actors or anyone eager to learn how improvisation can benefit both rehearsal and performance.

Download or read book IMPROV on ZOOM written by Walt Frasier and published by . This book was released on 2020-09-07 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are you ready to laugh? Are you ready to make the world laugh?HEY KIDS!Use this book to create laughs with friends. Put on a show, start a club at school or simply get together with friends online. Dozens of games and variations will keep you playing for years. Like Eggo waffles, no two shows will ever be the same!PARENTS! Give the gift of laughter. Get the whole family playing together. recommended for ages 8 & up. Great for all adult fun too!THEATER PROS! Don't let these crazy times stifle your fun and creativity. Get online and play! Start a class. Put on a show. TEACHERS! Use this book as a blue print for adding a fun section to their Language or Theater Arts classes, creating a unique elective, or building new after school programs. Bring the gift of laughter into your classroom. Studies at John Hopkins and other universities show humor in the classroom raises test scores. The laughter alone increases cardio-pulmonary activity, bringing more oxygen to the brain. Laughter reduces stress while building confidence in self and trust in others. Students become more focused and engaged.Comedy classes should be offered to every student in the world. Simply playing improv comedy teaches creative writing, critical thinking, public speaking, listening, focus, self confidence and even empathy. Walt Frasier uses the same games to teach corporate groups team building, leadership/management, sales and customer service. His mission is to set-up kids & teens for success in life by introducing these programs. He works with thousands every year in schools, camps, community centers and his own Times Square NYC Comedy School. Get the arts back into schools better than ever with Improv. Compared to traditional theater arts programming, students are performing on day one. There is nothing to memorize. There is no overhead for script royalties, props, sets or costumes. Every one is featured.. No one is relegated to secondary characters, ensemble or tech. Improv can be performed easily online and with social distancing. It's even more without the current restrictions. IMPROV on ZOOM is the culmination of Walt Frasier and the cast of EIGHT IS NEVER ENOUGH (AKA LMAO Off Broadway, Improv 4 Kids) performing over 100 shows on ZOOM while logging 1000s of hours teaching kids, teens and adults in just the past six months. New York based since 1997, Walt Frasier has appeared on TV (Billions, Blue Bloods, Royal Pains, Lilyhammer, Friends of the People, Letterman, WE, NICK, MTV2), commercials (Dr. Oz's Fat Pants was also featured as bits on Letterman, Kimmel and Pierce Morgan), Indy films and seen internationally performing live comedy, theater, and singing. Since 2002, Walt has served Artistic Director of EIGHT IS NEVER ENOUGH (AKA LMAO Off Broadway and Improv 4 Kids). If you have called or emailed to book private events, Walt provided the answers, contracts, and invoices. In addition to work with organizations such as the Comedy Hall of Fame (Former Director of Instruct, creating the first iteration of their Laugh It Off program) and Arts Horizon, Walt is as a NYC DOE vendor (fieldtrips, school assemblies, residencies, after school programming), Government contractor (Workshops for military children) and working with numerous summer camps, libraries and community centers. Walt hosted college campus shows (Princeton, Williams, Georgetown, High Point, NYU, Hofstra, Columbia, etc.), managed corporate entertainment (Morgan Stanley, Master Card, Home Depot, Edy's Grande, GM, Kraft, etc.), coordinated marketing stunts (HBO, Ben & Jerry's, Mentos, Master Card, AMEX, McDonald's, etc) and led team building programs (JP Morgan Stanley, BING, Ernst & Young, Twitter, HSBC, Coach, Louis Vuitton, Johnson & Johnson, etc.)