IMPROV GAMES:

One word story

All players stand in a line and tell a story from a suggestion one word at a time.

First letter, last letter 

Each of two players must start their sentence with the letter of the last word spoken by their scene partner.

Word count 

Each player is assigned a number between 1 and 10 and must speak only in sentences with that number of words.

Variation: First players gets one word, next speaker uses two words, next speaker gets three up to ten then it resets to one word.

Questions only 

A scene with questions only.

Alphabet Game

Two players start a scene, and the first player’s line must begin with the letter A. The second player’s line must begin with the letter B, and so on, until the scene reaches the letter Z.

Freeze! 

Two players begin a scene. At any point, another player can yell “Freeze!” and tag out one of the actors to take their exact pose/place and start a new scene. This can also be done with a prop, whose pose or placement is commandeered by the new performer but with a totally different meaning.

Three headed expert 

Three arm-in-arm talking heads are introduced as an all-knowing oracle. They answer questions one word at a time solicited by moderator from the audience. After each question is answered, the three headed expert say in unison, “More questions!”

Story, die

The moderator kneels down front and points randomly to players in the lineup who must begin exactly where the last speaker left off. Story is controlled by the moderator’s pointing. If the reader hesitates, flubs or defies established story, the moderator/audience yell, “die,” and the player acts out a creative demise and steps back before the remaining players continue.

Dubbing

Players act out a scene with other players offstage providing the dialogue for the characters. 

Genre Switch 

Players act out a scene, but at various points, the scene switches to a different genre (e.g. from a romantic comedy to a horror movie). 

Sound effects

Two players provide the sound effects for two other players’ scene.

Props

Players are given a random object and have to come up with creative ways to use it in a scene. The prop can be anything but what it actually is. Can be modified as a “freeze” game, where the new player takes over the same prop but gives it a new meaning.

First line, last line

Players are given a first line and a last line of dialogue, and must improvise a scene that connects the two lines.

Super hero

Moderator solicits a ridiculous world predicament and a new super hero from audience. The super hero then fails, a new ridiculous superhero is solicited by moderator.

Sit, stand, kneel, lie down

A scene where only one player may stand, kneel, sit or lie down. If one player switches position, the others must as well, while justifying the move in the story playing out

“The boss is gonna freak!”

One player is isolated, oblivious to the “get.” An odd reason for office job tardiness is solicited then acted out by work colleagues behind boss’s back. Any of the cuing co-workers are fired if seen by boss.

World’s Worst 

Players take turns coming up with the “world’s worst” example of a given profession, activity, or object (e.g. “world’s worst dentist” or “world’s worst rollercoaster”).

Party quirks 

One player hosts a party and each guest is assigned a specific quirk or personality trait. The host has to guess each guest’s quirk based on their behavior.

Hot Spot 

One player is in the “hot spot” and must improvise a monologue based on a random topic (e.g. “things you shouldn’t say to your teacher”). As the monologue progresses, other players can “tag in” and take over the monologue, continuing the story.

New Choice

Two players start a scene, and at any point, the moderator or audience can shout “New choice!” The players must then redo their last line with a new choice and the scene continues.

Press Conference 

One player is a public figure who has done something newsworthy (real or imagined). The other players are journalists who ask the public figure questions about the event. The public figure must improvise answers on the spot, even if they have no idea what the journalists are talking about.

Blind Line 

Players act out a scene, but at various points, they must incorporate a random line of dialogue written on a slip of paper that they have not seen before.

Bar song

Limerick

Musical

Fairy Tale