Hi improv friends! Welcome to another newsletter about creating characters in improv scenes and sets. We’ll get a bit more details about some of the techniques you can use to create a character on the spot.

Table of Contents

• Practicing Character Creation

  • Are really regular people characters? Am I one?

  • Work with yourself, or someone else

  • Exaggerating characteristics to heighten a charact …

  • How much to exaggerate

• Next time on Improv Update

• Discuss this topic with improvisers

• Online Improv Jams

• Improv & Comedy Livestreams

• Fact or Word of the Week

• Enjoy some improv, improvise with me some day?

Practicing Character Creation

The previous newsletter had an exercise for creating and practising characters on your own.

Some excellent and thought provoking questions came in on the last newsletter (see them here - thanks Lisa!). Let’s expand upon some of the thoughts that came up in the comment thread.

Are really regular people characters? Am I one?

Is the “world’s most regular person” you meet at a bookstore a character? Your accountant? How about that person who created the cat circus at your rural community hall? How ‘bout you?

In my opinion, yup. All of the above in equal measure, and “as is”. All humans are great sources of inspiration for your next scene - no matter how regular we are, or aren’t.

So we are all characters, no matter how you define regular or “normal”. My normal isn’t yours, and as such - we are all characters, and make life interesting (and difficult, and lovely, and…). And we are all pretty interesting to an audience. Those characters, as is, completely regular, can all get laughs.

For example, the logical, typical reaction to a wild character will get the laughs. That role is essential to many types of scene. And there are so many ways to approach that kind of role that let us be creative and bring a diverse voice to a cast of improvisers.

You can also start to think about how each character adjusts to specific contexts. For example, an accountant might be different at work than they are at home, and this is different from how they act at their Thursday evening amateur radio meetup because they have an ongoing beef with VA1ACC.

There are dozens to infinite ways to approach an accountant, “mom”, and more. You will express this person physically, vocally, and with point of view while considering context and their lived experience. And the way you interpret things can surprise and delight… and ultimately make that person into a memorable character.

Reality is wild enough to make all of us - and the people we really meet - interesting, expressive characters. Inspiration surrounds us! And you can get it anywhere, from that bookstore to the news on YouTube to your own real deep-down self.

Though I can fairly comfortably say that my deep-down self has never qualified as “really regular” 🙂 

Work with yourself, or someone else

Only you can answer what works works for how you develop characters:

• Base the character off of people you know, like friends or family.

• Base the character off of people you observe but don’t know well.

• Base the character off of aspects of yourself.

• Blend of the above.

Many people are inspired by people they meet or know. Family or friends. People they see in a store or meeting. This is easiest for them. But it doesn’t work for me.

For example, impressions or even just thinking about what my aunt’s vocal mannerisms are usually get me in my head, especially if I know the person well (despite being very or even most comfortable doing “peas in pod” in real time).

But I have no problem visualizing someone fictitious “but could be real” and stepping into their skinsuit. Perhaps that fictitious person is a blend of several people I know. I work way better at visualizing and “feeling” that fictional persons character.

And I don’t have an issue basing a character on some version of myself. Most often I go with this “character from the inside out” kind of approach.

So the key is to try and see what way works best for you.

If you decide to work from a version of yourself, you can always ask things like:

1. What if I… and fill in the gap to heighten that viewpoint or characteristic.

2. If this is true about myself, what else might I do/think/feel.

3. Heighten an insecurity (more on this in the next section!)

Generating characters will be what works best for you in the moment, and it’s hard to know until you try each of the options out for awhile. Getting reps helps you figure out what feels the most natural, fun, and efficient.

Exaggerating characteristics to heighten a character

You can play a character close to yourself (or your inspiration), as-is, or you can exaggerate something about someone you know or observed. Or you can blend those things together.

We all have a bunch of “parts” of ourselves - you can pick one or a few things to adjust for a character based on yourself or someone else. Think about parts such as:

1. Physical characteristics - body language and/or verbal

2. Emotional characteristics - physical or vocal

3. Point of view (flawed logic, sound logic, something based on your lived experience, motivation, etc - dig deep, self reflect, what’s in there!)

Then you can choose to heighten one or more of those to adjust your character.

Yes! Think about what stands out. Think really high level, use gut reactions - what’s the first thought here? What makes you raise your eyebrows? This might be what you go with.

What stands out to you might not stand out to others. It doesn’t matter. But of course, always punch up … always. Doing this well takes practice and quality communication with your teams and coaches: a willingness to listen and learn, have an open mind, and communicate in good faith on all sides.

So get those reps in.

How much to exaggerate

Consider how and where you are delivering. Improv can be delivered on stage, in audio (podcast), video. We have different audiences, different forms, styles, regions. In some cases you might want to go big, in others you won’t need to heighten much. Audiences are smart! Get feedback if you can, adjust, and sort out

There’s no right (or wrong) answer for what approach to take or where to draw inspiration from. We all approach improv in unique ways and the only “right” is what works for you to communicate who that character is clearly with your audience and scene partners.

Most things seem to come down to quality communication in the end.

The neurodivergent take on this subject (“what’s regular?”)

So what is usual? What’s unusual? What’s really regular or normal? Especially when you’re the “atypical” one outside of the scene.

Great question, you!

I specifically discuss some of these topics through the lens of a neurodivergent improviser in this (PWYC) PDF Resource Guide linked below. It might help illustrate these concepts if you’re approaching characters as someone with a non-socially-dominant cognitive wiring.

Next time on Improv Update

This question deserves a bit more thought and attention, so I’ll cover some thoughts about it in the next newsletter.

Discuss this topic with improvisers

I love the questions (thanks again) and anyone please feel add your own thoughts/tips below in the comments, or add any other questions that pop up!

I’m just delivering new articles to newsletter now, so here’s the discord to chat about these topics improv.

This link will take you directly to the forum for this newsletter on the Improv Update Discord. The discord also contains a bunch of channels for improv nerds. Nice.

Online Improv Jams

Check out these great online improv jams from the community! These jams are organized by their respective hosts, so please contact them with any questions. Click the links provided to find out more information about each jam and sign up!

• February 7th 11am PT - Improv Jam with Keri [Register]

• February 7th 5pm PT - Improv Jam with Jenice [Register]

  Contact Jenice here on Whatsapp

• Audio Online Improv Jams: Mondays 4-6pm PT and Saturdays 2pm-4pm PT on oozebear.com . Open to all!

Improv & Comedy Livestreams

Comedy Livestreams that I think look pretty cool that happen to be coming up soon or available right now (no affiliation):

• Feb 4th: The George Lucas Talk Show After Dark [Livestream Link]

• Feb 9th: Fuck This Month [Livestream Link]

• Feb 10th: Wrong Answers Only [Livestream Link]

Do you have a stage show that’s livestreamed and want it added? Or a FREE jam or workshop I should add? Reach out or comment on the website for the next newsletter (every two weeks).

Fact or Word of the Week

As per usual, here's yet another fact or word of the week…. this week we have a word. Heck yeah, WORDS RULE!

Do you have a cool fact or word I should add to this section? I know you do. Let us know in the comments for this post! (Click the button above or below)

Enjoy some improv, improvise with me some day?

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Focus of StereoForest original shows is on alt comedy and improv.

Warmest regards and polite salutations from my place in the woods somewhere up north in Canada,

*snacks on products of canada whilst wearing a toque*

Jen

StereoForest.com