I Get to Fail Tonight

I have a show tonight which means my brain is currently trying to plan for an improv show. It won't be successful. I get to thinking about the pattern game open to maybe the first beat I'll be a part of and then realize that I

Premise

Some stray thoughts on premise. In the UCB manual, premise is defined as: [T]he term used to describe a fully-formed comedic idea found in an opening that strongly suggests a Game. — Besser, Roberts, and Walsh, The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual, p. 94 I don't

If, Then - Part 1

I am having ongoing technical woes this month, all unrelated to each other. Currently I've been without home internet for 14 hours, which makes pulling together a post challenging. I've been rewatching this set from The Smokes. I love how the game develops during the second

Heightening - Part 1

Using the excuse of my laptop being blown up and off at a repair site to continue my series on the building blocks of improv. I have been fortunate to be able to take some classes online and in person with Will Hines. During my first class, I asked a

What Improv Is Teaching Me About Writing

A Brief History of Writing I've been open about who I am on the internet, so I might as well say that this is me. This is the closest I've come to doing what I wanted to do for a living. In 2006, somehow TWENTY YEARS

Scene and Games

I had a thought that this scene in HBO's Chernobyl gets at something primal with improv. That, for how challenging it is, we're really just balancing two things as performers: Game and Scene. Something that's really clicked for me recently is Jim Wood—I&

Croissant Craft

I think craft is important. I think the audience is important. I think how I feel about my performance is important. I know some improvisers who don't care about the craft, and at least in some cases, winging it seems to work for them. I also know some

Online WGIS Class Reviews

I'm sure I've mentioned it, but I take a lot of classes online. I think now is the Golden Age of online improv classes. I can take classes with master-level teachers from the comfort of home. What a time to be alive! A Note on

Fast

A few weeks ago, in a practice group, a performer I admire got upset with herself for not being a "fast improviser." A main theatre teacher I had, Danny Hughes, talked about this, so I wanted to explore it in a build-my-own-lightsaber sort of way

Listening

Active Listeninglet yourself be changedImprov NonsenseWill Hines A few weeks ago, I emailed Will Hines. He emailed me back and asked if he could use it in a Substack (link above). Since I asked this question, I feel like it's fair to repost my words here, but also,

Kevin McDonald

I've had the opportunity to meet and talk to some pretty cool people in my life. I don't ask for pictures because of some combination of not wanting to bother them and also wanting to keep a professional relationship (as unlikely as whatever that might be)

DCM (22) '26

Preface: Feel free to skip this if you're just looking for a review. My very personal two-word review of the 22nd Del Close Marathon is: Still sober. Which can mean many things, but at the very least, I think they are all positive. When I am having

Endings and Beginnings

This is a song about a couple of adult people who have spent Oh, quite a long time together 'Til one day, one of 'em gets restless and decides to leave Whether it's the man or woman who left is unimportant It's a breakup

Happiness Is a Practice

I had a hard, tiring week for a variety of reasons, so this week is going to be short and I am not, despite the title of this blog, going to beat myself up about it. The way I write, I tend to put little ideas into my drafts folder

Gratitude for Gifts

The night of my first jam, when I was just starting out—I think I was still in core classes, partway through 501 —I met this kid, Logan, who came in off the street: never improvised, never seen a show, totally fresh. He'd heard about improv and wanted

How to Get Reps When You Can't Be Reppin'

It's to the chagrin of many students that ultimately reps are what stand between you and mastery of a skill, but the reps you need may be all around you. Near the end of my core curriculum days, I was out with a teacher, and we got to

The Hangover

A few months ago, I was walking with another performer to Brass Tap, a bar/restaurant in Baltimore, after the shows. As a quick aside, I do frequently go to bars or other places that serve alcohol. If the existence of bars could, in and of themselves, make me drink,

Justification - Part 1

As I write this, I just got back from a 201 showcase, which is where the game is introduced in my theatre, and it was so much fun. It was off-the-wall bananas. One of the scenes was basically two rappers treating the Little Mermaid as a documentary, so

Framing - Part 1

And whatever they say on your page three mention Focus on the parts that make you feel good Be grateful for the attention —The Mountain Goats, "For Charles Bronson" I am such a good storyteller that I can convince myself that no one in my life likes me.

Game - Part 1

As I write this, I am recovering from a weekend of workshops given by Elana Fishbein in DC and Baltimore, so while I had a bunch of other thoughts about Game when I originally put this into drafts, I think a lot of those thoughts are still marinating in Fishbein.

Unusual Things - Part 1

If improv is a fire, the base reality is the fuel: The tinder, kindling, sticks, branches, and logs. The game is oxygen. The first unusual thing is the spark, the source of ignition. One interesting exercise is that unusual things can be found by yes, anding within the base reality.

On Base Reality - Part 1

Ambitious to call this Part 1, but I'm pretty sure I'll have other things to say about base reality eventually. I recently heard, at least in Alberta, that some people call "Base Reality" "Platform," which I think is such a great way

Your Note Is My Trauma

Before I dig into the topic, I want to make absolutely clear that I am not calling anyone out. If you have coached me or taught me, I have agency. I also want to make clear that I want the note! I want to get better. I signed up for

On Coaching and Asking Will Hines Questions

I've been fortunate in my short improv career to have taken—some would say too many—improv classes with Will Hines, both in person and via Zoom. I have emailed Will Hines. Will is free with email and actually responds, even if it's just with a