Just A Slice Of Life On Stage

When you think of improv comedy, what comes to mind? Whacky scenarios, outrageous characters, and fast-paced humour, perhaps? But there's another side to this art form, one that's subtler, more nuanced, and rooted in the so-called "slices of life" that we all experience. In the latest episode of Improv Chronicle, host Lloydie delves into this fascinating aspect of improv with New York-based improviser and teacher Louis Kornfeld and UK-based improviser Jenny Rowe.

Louis Kornfeld, with his 18-year tenure at the Magnet Theater, shares his love for the small things in life that make us laugh. He discusses the art of finding humour in the ordinary, the type of humour that doesn't try too hard to impress but rather confidently allows itself to be funny. This episode peels back the layers of what it takes to create scenes that resonate with audiences because they mirror the real-life experiences we all have but often overlook.

Jenny Rowe, an improviser for the Maydays and Impromptu Shakespeare, echoes this sentiment. She talks about the joy of sitting in the moment during a performance, allowing the scene to unfold at a natural pace, and finding humour in repetition and the mundane. She shares a memorable scene where two elderly characters making tea became an unforgettable moment of comedy, not through over-the-top antics but through the authentic portrayal of simple human interaction.

Lloydie and his guests discuss the fine line between reenacting real life on stage and creating engaging performances. They explore the concept of "microdrama" – those tiny, seemingly insignificant moments that, when magnified and explored, can be incredibly compelling. The episode highlights the subtleties of performance, the importance of character development, and the power of understated humour.

As you listen to tales of onstage teacups and “Dave Specials” at Wendy's, you’re reminded that the essence of good improv isn't always found in the grand gesture but often in the smallest details. This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in performance art, comedy, or simply the art of paying attention to the little things in life that often pass us by.

So, if you're curious about what makes a slice-of-life improv scene truly captivating, or if you're an improviser looking to refine your craft, tune into this episode of Improv Chronicle. You might just find that the key to great comedy lies in the everyday drama that unfolds around us all. Listen now and be reminded that sometimes, less really is more on the improv stage.

Host:

Lloydie James Lloyd - an improviser based in Nottingham, England

Podcast Theme:

Composed by Chris Stevens at Studio Dragonfly

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TRANSCRIPT OF EPISODE:

Just A Slice Of Life On Stage

Louis Kornfeld says he enjoys taking small slices of life and improvising them

Louis: You can't just get on stage and put up a slice of real life and expect it to play. It doesn't. There's a. There's an artistry to it where you have to kind of exaggerate it just enough to make it feel like real life.

Lloydie: This is the improv Chronicle. I'm Lloydie. There are many different ways to do an improv show, and a large amount mount of long form improv in the US, the UK and elsewhere is a series of sketches, sometimes put together with a format that gives perhaps the illusion of narrative. But every once in a while, there are shows that are put up that are a slice of life. And it was a conversation that I had with a New York based improviser just a couple of weeks ago that made me want to make this episode.

Louis: Hello there. I am Louis Kornfeld I am an improviser and an improv teacher, primarily in New York City and the USA. I've been teaching at the Magnet Theater for nigh on 18 years.

Lloydie: You said something a couple of weeks ago that really struck me. You were talking about how you enjoy taking the smallest slices of life and turning them into improv. I suppose. Firstly, I'd love to know why that appeals to you as a thing to.

Louis: Do, not to get well. Why it appeals to me. I don't know why it appeals to me. I tend to find very small things very funny. I, tend to appreciate things. I like it when things feel realistic, and funny. And I'm not 100% sure why I'm finding it so funny. I like it when, scenes don't have that quality of straining to them, of trying really hard to, sell people on the idea, or trying really hard to make something interesting happen. I like it when a scene is funny, but it has the confidence to just allow itself to be funny, and it doesn't feel like it's draining to get there. So, I don't know. It's probably just, like, more a temperamental thing than anything else that I like that style of comedy. There's a very common kind of wisdom about finding what's funny in a scene that oftentimes is about, zeroing in on an unusual behavior or an unusual, detail within a realistic situation and then heightening and exploring that detail, which is a great way to think about it. But I think it can also be a little bit limiting, too, because there are times where you're watching scenes that are so enjoyable and you're like, there's nothing really unusual about this at all. It feels very usual. It just feels very ordinary. But the scene has this kind of like, glow quality to it. There's just something about it that's like, bright. And I always think of that in terms of there's like an aliveness to a scene that's really hard to exactly pinpoint how to create it or why it's, so engaging to watch. But a lot of times when that feeling is there and it's sort of spot on, you can kind of feel the entire room kind of come to life and people are really gripped and engaged by it. So I'm always sort of chasing this idea of like, how do you invite a moment where you have that sort of aliveness, where a scene is completely compelling to watch, but you're doing the absolute barest minimum possible to, create that effect?

Lloydie: When Lewis uttered those words, I was taken immediately to a show that I did with fellow improviser, Jenny Rowe here in the UK. We did a show in Nottingham in 2018 where we did so, so little and yet somehow achieved so much so immediately. I got on WhatsApp to her and thankfully she was around so that we could have a chat.

Jenny: Hi, I'm Jenny Rowe and I do improv and writing and acting and all those kind of things. currently for the maydays and then also an, impromptu Shakespeare.

Lloydie: Now, we have, on occasion, taken to the stage together as a two person show. We were Two Seats Four Cheeks

I was wondering what you think the benefit of little slice of life scenes is

I was wondering what you think the benefit of little slice of life scenes is as opposed to kind of like these scenes that go massively cartoonish and get really overly blown.

Jenny: Well, I do like sitting in the moment. quite frankly, I'm a bit overwhelmed sometimes when scenes just take off and go off really quickly and there's lots of action and lots of things happening. my brain doesn't work that quickly. So, scenes where, we're just sitting in, one moment and just enjoying that and, what's the word? watching the landscape go by, I suppose, Ah, those are the fun for me because then, well, partly, maybe it's because I'm a bit lazy and I want to create new stuff, but, I think mainly it's just really digging down and noticing everything that's happening in that moment. And what's that feel and what is the feeling of that? And also, is it partly. I think it's partly because I like playing characters and I think once you've got a, solid character, then you don't need to do very much, really. If you've got a couple of solid characters, you know who you are, especially if you're sort of peas in the pod kind of characters. and I am thinking of, a, scene that, ah, we were just talking about that we did, with two elderly people making or drinking a cup of tea. And that's all really, that happened. because we knew who we were and we knew what our outlook and our point of view was. It meant that we could just sit there and enjoy that. And actually, repetition can be really funny. And I think that's something that I see a lot in clowning, which I love. Something like spy monkey, if anybody's ever seen Moby dick. There's a bit in that where, Stefan is just trying to get on stage. it's on YouTube, look it up. It's amazing. And he just tries to get on stage and slides off over and over and over and over again. And it's one tiny moment inflated to such huge proportions where it goes so wrong. and you think he's going to make it. He doesn't make it. You think he's going to make it, he doesn't make it. and it's like, honestly, I love that show. But that's the main thing that I remember from that show because it was so funny and so fun to watch. And I think that's what I like about sitting in the moment is you're just going. You're kind of inflating that moment. You're just sort of, sitting together and enjoying it.

Lloydie: So is it just a case of getting on stage and doing very little? Here's Lewis cornfield again.

Louis: You can't just get on stage and put up a slice of real life and expect it to play it. There's an artistry to it where you have to kind of exaggerate it just enough to make it feel like real life. But you have to be very selective about moments and you also have to be kind of keyed into what is dramatically compelling in a scene. I think if there's no drama in a scene, it's really hard to keep people engaged in it. but a lot of times when you think drama, you think, like, big drama. I'm going to the barista. Oh, my God. The barista is my ex. How awkward. Which could work. But the real substance of real life and not real life's like high points or low points, but the kind of like middle range where most of us who would be listening to this podcast are living most of our lives that mid range. It's mostly filled with mini dramas, micro dramas. and if you have a sense of how to get entangled in those microdramas, then really ostensibly dull scenes can be very engaging to watch. I was on a road trip with my partner and good friend Rick Andrews, and, we stopped at a Wendy's, which I don't normally do. and, I said to the, have a, I'll just have a double cheeseburger. And the counterperson said, would you like to make that a Dave special? And I said, what's a Dave special? And she said, well, it's like the same thing, but a little bit bigger. And I went and I thought about it for like 10 seconds, and then I was like it, yeah, let's do a Dave special. And what was going on in those tech. I don't know what I was thinking about exactly, because I didn't really. I don't go to Wendy's, so I don't have a frame of reference for either of those burgers. But I felt like caught by this woman working there. And I was like, I needed to have a good answer or whatever. And I was like, slightly embarrassed. And I was unprepared to have this level of interaction with someone to answer a stupid question. And it really threw me off guard. I would consider that a micro drama. you're confronted with like a dumb choice or something like that, or there's an awkwardness or whatever it is. You have to navigate this moment, and it's not a big important moment, it's actually a nothing moment. But, when you actually pay attention to the substance of daily life, it's so full of so many of those stupid moments that you immediately forget as soon as you're done with them. But then when you see someone recreate it for you with an eye to detail, it wakes you up and you're like, oh, my God. Yeah, that is exactly what that's like. And I think that there's something really about the precision of finding those moments where you're like, this shouldn't be funny. This is a really dull situation. But my God, that's exactly what it's like. it helps you remember something that you already know, you remember something you already feel that just kind of dissipates very quickly afterwards. I think there's a lot of value to that, and I think it can be really funny, partly because you feel less alone by it. It feels like your own private shortcomings as a person that I don't know how to answer a single question about a burger. But then when I see another character do it, I'm like, oh, this is the human experience to a very limited degree. The human experience in a well developed industrial mean. But, I don't know, it brings value back to, I think, what is frequently, devalued, which is the texture of just your regular everyday life.

Every person has a little bit of inner drama, Jenny Rowe says

Lloydie: Coming next, Jenny Rowe talks about how every person has a little bit of inner drama.

Jenny: When you look at the average person walking down the street, you don't, you know, you know that they might have some like big shit happening, big stuff happening to them. But, there's also those little moments that could build up as well, and little moments where I don't like answering the phone and so I will procrastinate, or, sorry, making a phone call. So I will procrastinate for ages about doing that. Obviously, it's usually fine when I do it. Nobody dies. but just the inner workings of my mind for the hour or so before I have to make that call, is just a dialogue in my head going, come on, just do it. So it's fine. again, I'm thinking about, that scene we did quite a few years ago now. I can't remember what the awkwardness was about that scene. All I remember is that we were trying to make or drink a cup of tea and it just went on to the point of crying into our mimed cups. Sorry, audience.

Lloydie: They were on board. They were, they were laughing more than us. Only just. They were. It was one of those moments, though, that it. And it did build as a scene because if I remember correctly, we were two old people. and I think one of us might have been visiting the other, or we were in some kind of residential care, setting. I can't remember. All I remember was it was one of those pleasantries, conversations, and, it was definitely one of those, oh, how about the weather? Kind of thing. And I think you said something about the weather, which then just finished me off. And, it was delightful because it was so simple. But it was just finding those, I suppose, those small details m those small things and allowing them to be funny because we kind of honed in on them.

Jenny: Yeah. For the audience, there's stuff to read in underneath. I guess sort of going back to clowning again a bit. There's stuff happening underneath. There's like a little look, or a shrug or whatever. And if it happens enough people start to go, oh, okay. This isn't necessarily what that's about. There's something else underneath, as well, which can be fun to play with.

So if we're going to play a slice of life on stage and play in this style

Lloydie: So if we're going to play a slice of life on stage and play in this style, what do we need to do? I asked Louis Kornfeld what he does before he goes on stage.

Louis: I try to come to my senses a lot. I have a tendency to overthink and withdraw and go deep inside. So a lot of it is like really basic things of just kind of like breathe. Where are we? What's around us? What do you see? What do you hear? Just kind of let it, the more you can kind of let it be real for yourself, the more it begins to kind of become real for the people around you. the more you're playing a character who is like a full person, you can kind of trust that I don't need to be constantly selling the one thing about this person over and over again. if I take it slow and I just use my common sense and I know why I'm here. I'm not just having a conversation. I know my purpose here. I know why my character is here and what they think they're doing here. but then you don't feel a rush to make anything happen. yeah, I don't know. It sounds so stupid when I try to explain it like that. don't panic is a major part of it. Don't, panic and trust that small things are funny. And micro, if you develop an ability to tune into those microdramas, it's really helpful. and also a major thing with microdrama, just to kind of back up with that for a second, is if you watch a lot of improv, it's shocking how frequently you watch scenes where people don't seem to give a shit about how the other person feels or don't care about hurting their feelings or whatever, that's a huge mistake. because the reality is in real life we care very much about other people's opinions of us. In real life, we generally don't like being jerks unless we kind of have to be, unless you're a jerk. And that's cool. Some people are better at being jerks, but for the most part it's like, oh, I have to give you a little criticism, but I also like you and I don't want to hurt your feelings. So I'm going to try to find a way to give this criticism in a way that isn't too stinging or whatever, that creates a limitation if I have to give you this criticism, but I also want to spare your feelings. There's a difficulty there, and that creates a microdrama. And that microdrama is the source of our behavior together in the scene. So if I play a scene where it's like, I don't give a shit about your feelings, I don't care, let's just heighten the game of this. And I treat you like you don't matter. I've missed an opportunity to actually explore a microdrama and to slow down and to find something funny in a very tiny moment. I have to go big now. I have to top the last thing, or else the comedy is going to kind of diminish. But if I actually just kind of respect the fact that, hey, my characters, much like me, want people to like them. And my characters, much like me, try to avoid conflict as much as possible. And, my characters, just like me, feel multiple things at the same time and try to hide that. Or my characters, just like me, are kind of dumb and don't know how they feel and are trying to choose the right words, all of those are opportunities for microdramas. And that's what allows you to keep it small and simple and lifelike and still have, that dramatically compelling quality that you want.

Lloydie: The Improv Chronicle is hosted by me, Lloydy James Lloyd. You can get the world of improv delivered to your inbox every week when you subscribe to the Improv Chronicle newsletter. Just go to improvchronicle.com for more. And if you like what this podcast does, consider following us on your podcast. Subscriber, just hit that follow or subscribe button, and leave a rating and review. Because when you do, those make a huge difference. You know how it works with the algorithm. M also, you can donate to support this podcast using the link in the show notes. And if you'd be keen to sponsor an episode along with the newsletter, we can have a conversation. Get in touch. Also, for previous episodes and for transcripts, check out the website improv chronicle.com.