• Level 1: Beginners Improv Course

beginners improv course

8 week beginners improv courses to learn the core skills of improvised comedy.

Hoopla offer the most fun and friendly environment to learn improvisation in the UK.

Complete beginners are welcome. You don’t need any drama, acting, comedy or impro experience whatsoever. You don’t have to be clever, fast or funny either!

Hoopla create a friendly, fun, playful and supportive atmosphere in our improv courses where people are free to play and be themselves.

Improv is not the same as stand-up; you’re not alone on stage and it’s not about telling jokes. It’s about working together as a team with other improvisers to spontaneously create group stories, scenes & sketches.

Over an 8 week course of weekly workshops you’ll get to know your fellow students & teacher and progress as a team while learning core improvisation skills.

Topics include Spontaneity, Confidence, Creativity, Commitment, Listening, Yes And, Collaboration, Character, Support, Teamwork, Scenes, Games, Story and most of all playing and having fun with improvisation!

We also have regular socials and a friendly community of fellow improvisers for you to join.

Our classes have recently been recommended by The Guardian, The Independent, Time Out, The Evening Standard, BBC Radio 4, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, Metro, The Londonist and more!

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next available dates

Next Available Dates in London Bridge:
London Bridge venues, see booking links below for addresses.

Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 14th January 2025 with Maeve Ryan. BOOK


Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 15th January 2025 with Mandeep Singh. BOOK


Every Thursday for 8 weeks from Thursday 16th January 2025 with Claudia Novati. BOOK


Every Monday for 8 weeks from Monday 27th January 2025 with Chris Mead. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 28th January 2025 with Claudia Novati. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 11th February 2025 with Sabrina Luisi. BOOK


Every Monday for 8 weeks from Monday 13th January 2025 with Sophie Pumphrey. SOLD OUT

  • Weekdays: 7pm – 9pm. Weekends: 11am-1pm / 2pm-4pm.
  • London Bridge.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Bank:

Every Saturday afternoon for 8 weeks from Saturday 11th January 2025 with Jenny Rowe. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 21st January 2025 with Phoebe Kozinets. BOOK


Every Saturday morning for 8 weeks from Saturday 25th January 2025 with Isabelle Glinn. BOOK


Every Thursday for 8 weeks from Thursday 30th January 2025 with Octavia Gilmore. BOOK


Every Monday for 8 weeks from Monday 10th February 2025 with Isabelle Glinn. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 11th February 2025 with Greg Birks. BOOK


Every Saturday morning for 6 weeks from Saturday 2nd November 2024 with Chris Mead. SOLD OUT


Every Saturday afternoon for 6 weeks from Saturday 9th November 2024 with Liam Brennan. SOLD OUT


Every Wednesday for 6 weeks from Wednesday 13th November 2024 with Maeve Ryan. SOLD OUT

  • Weekdays: 7pm – 9pm. Weekends: 11am-1pm / 2pm-4pm.
  • Bank.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Warren Street / Euston:

Every Thursday for 8 weeks from Thursday 9th January 2025 with Katy Schutte, 6pm – 8pm. BOOK


Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 5th February 2025 with James Irving, 6pm – 8pm. BOOK


Every Wednesday for 6 weeks from Wednesday 6th November 2024 with Melissa Parker, 6pm – 8pm. SOLD OUT


Every Tuesday for 6 weeks from Tuesday 5th November 2024 with Conor Jatter, 6pm – 8pm. SOLD OUT

  • As above.
  • Warren Street or Euston.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Shaftesbury Avenue / Tottenham Court Road:

Every Saturday afternoon for 8 weeks from Saturday 25th January 2025 with Liam Brennan. BOOK

  • 2pm-4pm.
  • Tottenham Court Road.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in London Liverpool Street:

Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 4th February 2025 with Nick Oram. BOOK

  • 7pm – 9pm.
  • London Liverpool Street.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Angel, Islington:

Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 4th February 2025 with Isabelle Glinn. BOOK

  • 7pm – 9pm.
  • Angel.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Holborn:

Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 5th February 2025 with Jenny Rowe. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 11th February 2025 with Stephen Davidson. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 6 weeks from Tuesday 5th November 2024 with Greg Birks. SOLD OUT

  • 7:15pm – 9:15pm.
  • Holborn.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in King’s Cross:

Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 5th February 2025 with Lisa Lynn. BOOK

  • 7pm – 9pm.
  • King’s Cross.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Marylebone/Paddington:

Every Monday for 8 weeks from Monday 17th February 2025 with Melissa Parker. BOOK


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 18th February 2025 with Charlie Vero-Martin. BOOK

  • 7pm – 9pm.
  • Marylebone, Paddington, Marble Arch.
  • £220.
  • As above.
£220. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £120 once the course starts.

teachers

Liam Brennan, improv teacher

Liam Brennan

Liam performs with The Science of Living Things, Fright Night and The Improvised Crystal Maze and directs many of our new shows. He has trained at UCB and iO.

Monica Gaga

Monica Gaga

Monica hosts Hoopla's main weekend shows and performs improv in Do The Right Scene and Derek's Mojo. She trained in Community Theatre at East 15 Drama School.

Maeve Ryan

Maeve Ryan

Maeve performs in and produces Ladyprov, Hoopla's regular show celebrating women in improv. She trained in Acting at The Arts Educational School.

Britt Pay sq

Britt Pay

Britt performs with Hoopla house teams Michelle AND The Descendants. She also performs with The Playground, Classic Andy and Unbridled.

Susan Harrison

Susan Harrison

Sue performs in the Olivier award winning Showstoppers the Improvised Musical, Beings, and BAFTA winning sketch show Class Dismissed.

Mandeep-Sq

Mandeep Singh

Mandeep performs in and produces Gamez, one of Hoopla's biggest house teams, and also regularly performs in The Inflatables, Improv Anything, Tightrope and more.

what's included

Each session consists of some fun and friendly warm ups, then some exercises on some of the core skills of improvisation, followed by having some fun with improvising games, scenes and stories as part of a team.

You’ll be rehearsing with the same people regularly every week, so you progress each week, getting to know each other and building up a team with your fellow improvisers and the director.

Most of all we make improv fun!

 

Recommended by:

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Teamwork

  • Making the other person look good.
  • Supporting each other on stage.
  • Trust.

Listening

  • Active listening and awareness.
  • Being in the moment.
  • Presence.

Yes And

  • Creative Collaboration.
  • Accepting and building on offers instead of blocking.
  • Agreement instead of conflict.

Being Obvious

  • Being obvious instead of trying too hard to be funny.
  • Making creativity simple by being obvious.
  • Being honest in the moment.
  • Improvising realistic scenes.

Spontaneity

  • Going for it. Improvising carefree.
  • Playing and having fun with mistakes.
  • Playing without fear.
  • Commitment.
  • Confidence on stage.

Character

  • Physical characters.
  • Emotions, reactions, being altered.
  • Playing with status, voice and movement.

Scenes

  • Fun simple scene structures.
  • Scenes based in agreement and relationship instead of conflict.

Games

  • Lots of fun short-form games.
  • Confidence with being in front of an audience.
  • Having fun with improvising as part of a team.

faqs