4 week Class | November 11 & 12, 18 &19

Actors: did you know that four essential tenets of improv can transform your work? 

It goes without saying that improv also helps you deal with those on-stage moments when things go wrong. (Not if they go wrong: when!) but improv knowledge does much more. 

You may have seen someone build a performance with care: they  perfectly deliver the moves, cadence of lines, and character portrayal  the play and director require. Yet without an improviser’s frame of mind, they may end up with a performance that is good, but not great, correct, but not fully alive. Improv skill helps you bring your characters to full, vibrant life. 

Rather than chess pieces to be moved around a board or shallow hams who seek only their own glory, improvisation-informed actors are active collaborators who make a director’s job easier. They are more flexible, fun to work with, and creative, and become valued collaborators instead of terrified amateurs the director has to “handle.” 

Come prepared to have fun while you learn new skills that will make you the kind of actor people love to play with! 

Michael Burns has over 50 years experience in the theatre. He studied acting at SUNY Purchase, then worked with David Shepherd, (founder of The Compass, the first improv theatre in the US.)  Before founding The Mop & Bucket Company and the Mopco Improv Theatre, Michael acted, wrote, produced, and directed plays for a number of professional and community theaters in the Capital Region and New York City.