Improv As Theater: Stagecraft and Improv

Taught by Kevin Sciretta

Improv As Theater: 

Long before the days of live comedy being used as a way to get a job on television or views on social media, improvisation was a way to entertain people gathered in a room on a very specific evening, for a very specific (if slightly malleable) amount of time. In general, it could resemble theater, because it was, without all those pesky lines cluttering up our ability to think of things like pop culture references and peculiar voices. The classes outline below are aimed specifically to train improvisers to present engaging and interesting pieces of live theater, recognizable as such to a paying audience.

Focus On Stagecraft - We’re all good at saying clever things. We’re very funny and we know a lot, about a lot. Be a shame if when we said those things, we were facing a wall instead of the audience. Or blocked by another actor. Or blocking another actor. Or backstage. You get it. In our opening week we tackle all things stagecraft as related to what you the performer control, that of course being, you. We’ll talk stage directions, parts of the stage, basic vocabulary, and audience awareness. 

Note: You WILL improvise during this. It WILL be enjoyable. There WILL just be an emphasis on making sure YOU the actor, take care of YOU, performance-wise, and by extension, everyone else.

Beginners: This will be a great way to introduce yourself to some basic live theatrical terminology. These will be the words and terms passed down from professional to professional since the time of the goat circles, all the way up to when you went to that one theater party in high school or college, and heard everyone saying things like “proscenium” in between screaming along to “Defying Gravity”.

Experienced: You’re already well aware of the terminology and how it’s applied, thank you very much. It’s written in your Tony acceptance speech. But have you applied them while improvising all your blocking and dialogue based off an audience’s suggestion? Aaaaaah GOTCHA. This will be not only a re-investment in fundamentals, but a practical application of their use whilst thinking on your feet, this time intentionally, not just because you went up on a line or missed your entrance. Ah the theatre.

Kevin Sciretta is a writer, performer and improviser living in Chicago, IL. Performance credits include The Second City Chicago Touring Company & Theatricals, Bullet Lounge at iO Chicago and King of Talking, a solo work at The Annoyance Theater. Writing credits include The Onion News Network, the web series Doomsdate with Carisa Barreca, and the musical Bigfoot with Amber Ruffin. Currently he can be seen onstage with The Improvised Shakespeare Company, heard on the podcast Hello from the Magic Tavern, and it's spin-off series Masters of Mayhem. His writing can be seen and heard in Season 13 of Mystery Science Theater 3000 (Gizmoplex), and his Substack, thesecretward.substack.com. 

Bughouse Theater is a non-profit arts organization and we greatly appreciate your support.  

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