The Benefits Of The End Of Class Show
What's the point of putting a bunch of students on stage after they have been learning improv for a series of weeks? How much does it add to their learning and how do we set these shows up for success. Hear from Lloydie's students after their most recent end of term show, and from improv teachers with advice on making a student show a success.
This episode features:
Rick Andrews - Magnet Theater NYC
Chelsea Clarke - UCB Theatre NYC
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The Benefits Of End Of Class Shows - Transcript
Chelsea: There's stuff that you just. You have to see to believe. And at the reading the room and feeding off of the audience, kind of going where the audience is also enjoying things really useful, it takes you a little bit out of your head and into the moment.
Lloydie: This is the improv Chronicle. I'm Lloydie. Conventionally, at the end of most improv classes, there's a graduation or end of term show. I've got one of those just over here right now.
Alastair: Prepare yourself, because you've never seen anything like this in your life.
Jules: Okay.
Alastair: Wow. There you go. Have you ever seen anything like that. In your life before?
Lloydie: These sharings of what people have learned have become commonplace at, most improv theaters and with most improv schools. So what are the benefits of putting sometimes very new people to improv on the stage in front of an audience?
Rick Andrews: Graduate show is a huge confidence builder for students
Alastair: I'm Rick Andrews. I'm a teacher and performer at the Magna Theatre in New York City.
Lloydie: I take it as a teacher, you have stewarded a number of end of course shows. what do you think is the value of a grad show for students?
Alastair: It's really fun. It is successful if you set it up in the right way. I think, and I think it's a huge confidence builder. I remember always seeing students I had in level one, seeing their level two or level three class show, and being kind of mystified at how good they had already gotten. And I think for a while, I just assumed something was happening in level two where people just. But then I taught level two for the first time, and I had a bunch of students who started to my level two right after their class show from level one. And it was very interesting. It's like three days later, it's that first week, and they're like 30% better than they were last week. And all that's happened is they just had this performance. I think that being able to have a class, things are fun. It feels like it's clicking, but then you actually succeed up on stage. It's just a real confidence boost. And I think it helps the process of eliminating a lot of the fear, a lot of the nervousness. That is what leads to kind of worse improv and being able to get it up on its feet and feel good about it. starts a kind of virtuous cycle.
Lloydie: Interesting that you say. If you set it up in the right way, what would you say is a good way to set up a, ah, graduation show?
Alastair: I think there's one, like a correct form or, structure. I, think there are a number of things that you can do to make sure that the show is going to go well. I, think one is picking a form or structure that allows students to succeed. So that means whatever the length of your class, they have enough time to kind of work on the form and structure. We do armandos in our level one class show, the monologue, deconstruction, and we do some two person scenes. So the show consists of just some two person scenes with suggestions, and then, like, an Armando long form. But we don't worry about second beats. We're not doing callbacks. They're doing their own edits, but sweep edits, just really simple. so it's a manageable amount for the eight weeks that we have for our class. it's not like throwing them into the deep end in terms of, like, all right, now you've had four weeks of class, and you're doing a, ah, deconstruction where it's unlikely to succeed. I think the flip side of that is not kind of, not having too many training mills. I think people are capable of really good scenework, with really good instruction and allowing them to get up on their feet in class a lot. Get up on stage frequently. this is where having, like, mixers and jams at theater is also very helpful. I think that all helps contribute to a successful kind of class performance. I think the other enormous thing to me is, just making people, like, making there be an audience at the show. I teach a lot of level one, which is usually not that hard to get the level one folks out. It's our very first show. But, there's just a big difference between a show with. In a 70 seat theater, there's 70 people in the seats. I mean, that is a no fail situation. Right. And only ten people showed up. that is a tough one. And even if you do great, no one's going to walk away feeling great about it. I think so. I think, yeah, having it at a time when people can go, if it's like Wednesday at 04:00 p.m. That's not going to be a successful experience. having it in a space that works, keeping, it cheap, like not trying to make money off of the class show, I think, I don't know, depending on people's theater setups, but not charging $30 for a performance that essentially allows people to bring as many people as possible. Right. and I think as a teacher, making it a really big deal. It's something I learned over the course of my first couple of years teaching, level one was to just become more and more of a kind of. I have a kind of pretend, bullying act that I do about inviting people to the show. Like, oh, you got to invite people to the show. That's like week five. And then I'm like, have you invited anyone? And then week six, I'm like, okay, who'd you. And I, like, go around. I make people tell me who's coming to the show. And I do it in a tongue in cheek way, I think. but I really do. I want people to feel like they really got to bring people.
Chelsea: Hi, I'm Chelsea clark. I've been a teacher, an improviser at the upright citizens brigade in New York city for, the past over ten years. I don't want to do the math, so I've done many, many class shows, probably over 200 student shows, various levels.
Lloydie: So in this podcast, we're going to hear from some of the students who just did a show at the end of a course I taught. But of course, I did a show at the end of a course you taught 15 years ago.
Chelsea: Oh, yes. And I remember it.
Alastair: No, you don't.
Lloydie: You don't remember anything from at all? I'm not sure I do, actually. but, I do want to talk about how important they are and if they are important. I mean, what do you think their benefit is?
Chelsea: I definitely think they're important. I think there's a lot you learn in the classroom, obviously, and there's such a learning curve, especially for young improvisers or new improvisers. So it's great to have the safety of the classroom, and then it's also great to kind of push out of the nest and do a show because, as you know, there's all kinds of information we get from the audience that we should be listening to that helps us make, our scenes funnier, to slow down and really appreciate and see all of the interesting and unusual stuff that's popping up. The audience sometimes notices it even better than our teachers and our classmates do. And being able to listen to that audience is such an important, skill to have as an improviser. So getting that into your bones early is really important. So having a class show at the end of every multi week class, for sure, very important.
Lloydie: It's real world feedback, isn't it?
Chelsea: Absolutely. And, yeah, again, when you're in your practice groups, it's really hard to get that from a small amount of people sitting in your classroom. And I think, it's really a fun moment, whether it throws them or whether people, it really turns on their, they start to get it. It falls into place when they hear the audience laughter and feedback at that first class show of theirs.
Lloydie: Yeah, I think it is for some people. It's a light bulb moment, isn't it? It's like, oh, this thing that I've practiced, that I've trained for, this is how it works. This is a real life application all of a sudden.
Chelsea: Yes, I definitely think that because there's stuff that you have to see to believe and reading the room and feeding off of the audience, kind of going where the audience is also enjoying things really useful. It takes you a little bit out of your head and into the moment.
Lloydie: So it's all very well hearing from the teachers, but what do people who are performing shows like this actually feel?
Rick Andrews: Having a performance element at the end of class helps elevate improv
I spoke to some of the people who'd been taking my class after their grad show.
Lloydie: So firstly, how did the show go?
Jules: Already enjoyed it. It's fabulous. It was just a load of fun.
Lloydie: Do you think, it adds something to the course, having a performance element that happens at the very end?
Jules: Yes, I do. Because it gives you something to work towards and, ah, as a team, you build on in the workshops, you build on all the things you've learned and you have something to work towards.
Lloydie: And do you think that helps elevate the improv?
Jules: Yes, I do. Because, you always have in mind the fact that you're going to do a sharing or a performance at the end, and that kind of makes you want to keep improving.
Lloydie: How do you feel before the performance?
Jules: I usually feel quite nervous, but, when you're actually out in front of the audience, the nerves go and you just focus on the people you're with.
Lloydie: And you do it again.
Jules: Definitely. I do it again, yes.
Lloydie: Back to Rick Andrews.
Alastair: Maybe it's just the way we're setting up. I have never had a bad level one class show, like, ever. I've had, like 400 of them. I've had bad level three or level four class shows. But it's almost always okay. There's only six people here and then the sets are a mess. Right. The level one, the way we run it, the forum isn't too big of an ask. There's not a lot of ways you're doing a new scene. So if every scene is not like a huge winner, that's okay. We're not doing second beats. So it's like, all right, that scene wasn't great, but it's 30 seconds a minute. It gets edited, and we do a new scene and we kind of move on. Right. It's a lot tougher in other long forms, I think, where if you have a really rough first speed scene, it's like the whole show is now trapped in this world of these characters. Right. I do think there's an energy deli, people's first show that I think, is hard to feel. Now, your second show or third show or fourth show, I think people are just nervous and they need practice. I think it's only a plus, though, to put them up in front of people. I mean, you're, not throwing them out there in a 2000 seat Broadway theater. Right. But it's like, I think, how are they supposed to get better? I'm of the belief that people do bad improv, not because they don't know how to do good improv. improv classes would be really short if that's why you could just give them the information in, like, 20 minutes, and then they would be amazing. At improv. They do bad improv because it's really terrifying improv. And the only thing that makes it less terrifying is more practice. And I think there's nothing better than getting up in front of people and getting more practice. And by the time people have gone through the magnet program, when we had level four, it was class show after level one, class after level two, class show after level three, three class shows after level four. you have four class shows for level five and eight class shows for the level six. So, I got lost in my math there. But that's like, I don't know, 2024 performances, right? At a minimum. But I know people where they don't have any class shows. There are no class performances. And so their students go through the program. They've been on stage maybe once or twice, and then they're, like, auditioning for teams. I think that's such a much, tougher situation. I'd rather get them those nerves out early on in a class performance where the whole thing is pitched as, hey, this is our level two class show. versus, like, here's our house team of people who are brand new. I think that just sets them up for more failure later. I think part of it, too, is just keeping it light, like, making it feel fun, how you're hosting it, just the energy in the room, not making it feel like, I don't know, like a super big deal. That's the nice thing about improv. It should feel like we're all kind of hanging out, but we're focused, we're present. It's not sloppy. I think if you can strike that energy, they're easy to have fun with. I think with the right conditions. When people talk about them, sometimes it sounds like it's like, oh, it's kind of a coin flip, whether it's like a disaster or a nightmare. And to me, that's more about a lack of setting it up with the right, framework than it is about the actual student performances, because I think if you set them up in the right way, you're almost guaranteed every time to have a great experience.
Chelsea: Frequently, students are kind of, nervous or have some trepidation about the class shows at the beginning. So something you'll hear maybe in your first couple of weeks is, well, I'm not sure if I want to invite my friends to this show. I'm not sure if I want to go to this show. I'm going to see how it goes. Usually by the end of the course, they're pretty excited. And you should, as, a teacher, kind of ramp people up for that excitement, get people to invite their friends. It's such a cool thing to let your loved ones share with you, like, one of your first improv performances. And a packed house always makes for a better show as well. For the reasons we kind of mentioned before, some of the things I prepare them for is to get there early so that we can have plenty of time to warm up and kind of walk around the stage, kind of imagine yourself on stage, get a little bit of the lay of the land, warm up with your classmates. the other thing is you really want to prepare people to not try to avoid kind of getting the liquid courage in before their class shows. I always just mention, like, we'll go out for a drink after. but, doing it before, not at the beginning. Not at the beginning.
Lloydie: I think the body can usually produce enough good adrenaline that, you don't need beer, wine, or spirits in order to aid your improv performance.
Chelsea: definitely. And then the other little silly, practical thing in class for preparing students, for the class show is to just make sure they're wearing something, we want to look our best, obviously, sometimes in these class shows, but wearing something that you won't mind being as active and moving around as much as you did in class, so that you won't be afraid to say, get down on the ground, or whatever you need to do.
Lloydie: Every now and again, there is a student who, for whatever reason, does not want to perform. And I always want to acknowledge people's realities. Sometimes you are not in a place where you want to get up on stage and do a thing. And I'm always very cool with people saying, this is not the space I'm in right now. Equally, for those who maybe have a few nerves, but aren't in a place where it would be not good for them to perform, what kind of words of encouragement do you give?
Chelsea: Yeah, so, focusing on having each other's backs backstage can really help, to understand that there's like a little bit of a. What are all the old sayings?
Being hyper, uh, aware and hyper listening to your teammates can help nerves
Jump in the net will appear. if you're out there, you might feel your most nerves right before you go on stage. and then, like, listening and paying attention and focusing more on being there to support your teammates can sometimes take the pressure off of it. Being all eyes on you and give you something to focus that energy on. Being hyper, aware and hyper listening to your teammates sometimes does the trick for many nervous folks. If you're a teacher running a class show, probably you already do this, but just make sure that at the end, the families and friends know where to meet up with everybody afterwards so that your class can take their class picture on the stage without everyone stealing, them away. remember that stage lights are bright, you may have an article of clothing that becomes see through on stage. These are things you might not have noticed in the classroom and just support your students with, a great blackout, for their show so that they end on a really high, awesome note.
For me, it is all about the performance element of the course
Lloydie: I'm going to leave the final word to some of my students who performed last week.
Lloydie: So Adam and Alastair are just off stage. Firstly, how was this evening?
Speaker G: It was fantastic. It was, such a great experience to be able to kind of, practice what we've actually been doing for the past ten weeks, really in front of an audience. So I always find that thrilling.
Alastair: Really?
Lloydie: Yeah.
Alastair: There's nothing like knowing that you're going to do a show, in week ten or week eleven to really motivate you, to make you concentrate, to make you think. Here's a real opportunity to not only do something interesting and interesting that audiences will like, but to entertain yourself and to have fun. And if you don't have fun, you probably won't be a good show. But if you do have fun and you see the people around you having fun, everyone seems to have fun. So it's a real kind of humor being infectious. You really get a sense of that doing this.
Lloydie: I can hear some of the things that I told you before the show coming out here. That's great. what do you think the course would be like without a performance element at the end?
Speaker G: Well, it wouldn't really have any. For me, it is all about the performance element. It's actually getting out there and in front of an audience. I think if you didn't have that at the end, it would like, well, what would be the point? Because that's essentially what we are training to do, putting into practice in front of an audience, because that's your lifeblood. Your lifeblood is the reaction of the audience, but also, the words that you're actually given, your motivation for your scenes.
Alastair: And I think that one of the most important skills you try to learn when you're improvising is how to listen. Listen to your scene partner, listen to other people's scenes, how you can use those ideas. And then listening tonight to the audience, to what they respond to, what they find funny, what they don't find funny, inevitably affects what you do and the scene that you produce. So that's such a good stimulus and it's such a good confidence builder. When somebody laughs at something, you say and it drives you on. And again, it makes the show better because everybody becomes more confident in what they're doing.
Do you think having an audience changed how you performed your Christmas show
Lloydie: You've been learning a form over the past few weeks. Do you think having an audience there changed how you performed it?
Alastair: Yes, I think you ratchet up your performance when you see an audience in front of you. again, one of the most important things you learn, I've learned this term is about playing the emotion. It's not about developing a plot, necessarily. It's about developing emotion and playing people's different emotions off against each other. So you're feeling emotional, and that might sound very simple way of saying it, but because you are responding to people in that way, then the audience are responding to how you're feeling. And again, there is a kind of backwards and forwards that I don't think you necessarily get when you're doing a scripted play, because the format is there and to an extent, you're rigid within that framework. But when you don't know what you're going to be doing, five minutes, ten minutes from when you start, you could literally be anywhere, doing anything, talking to anyone. The audience has a big part to play in, where you go. And I'm sure that if we'd had a different audience tonight, we'd have had a different show.
Speaker G: You were actually a very, very emotional Christmas tree.
Alastair: I thought it was like to think so.
Speaker G: your Christmas tree was amazing.
Alastair: I think my bells would have rung differently had I been in front of a different audience. I'd like to think so.
Speaker G: Anyway, your bells definitely did ring differently.
Alastair: Well, someone pressed my buttons, didn't they?
Speaker G: I don't like to brag, you included.
Lloydie: I have to say, you can get.
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