• Level 3: Scenes

level 3 improv course: scenes

This is our ULTIMATE scenes course!

You’ve done our beginners course and level 2, and now is the time to become AWESOME at improvising longer improv scenes!

We’ve taken over a decade’s experience from running the UK’s first improv theatre and distilled it into this course to give you the absolute best training in improvised scene work in the UK.

Each week you’ll be up performing scenes, scenes and more scenes, receiving some helpful feedback and exercises, and then perform even more scenes. You’ll become awesome at improvising character and relationship driven scenes in a fun, playful and spontaneous Hoopla style! We aim to help you unleash emotions on stage and find your true playful spontaneous self.

At Hoopla great scene work is about removing the blocks between you and your scene partner to release a natural flowing spontaneity. We encourage you to open your heart and mind on stage.

We’ll be playing with lots of fun skills like character, emotion, relationships, truth, honesty, game of the scene, patterns, themes, status, escalating the fun, spontaneity and more!

Most of all; it works! This isn’t improv from a text book. It’s improv on the stage, for an audience, from the people who have been running an improv theatre and performing long-form improv for over 14 years!

Plus you get to perform in a show at the end!

what's the difference between this and the level 2 course?

  • Longer scenes.
  • More feedback.
  • Greater depth of character.
  • Greater depth of relationships.
  • Greater depth of emotions.
  • More open scenes than structured games.
  • More about playful scene structure including game of the scene.
  • Still LOADS of FUN!

ongoing performance opportunities at the UK's first improv theatre

Hoopla provide more performance opportunities to our students than any other UK company.

After doing this course you will be eligible to audition for our house teams who perform at our venue every single week, giving you a huge amount of experience on stage. You can also come to our twice-weekly jams to build up stage experience. We even have a full-time producer employed just to provide you with ongoing performance opportunities and to help you with forming your own groups.

next available dates

Next Available Dates in London Liverpool Street:

Every Thursday for 8 weeks from Thursday 13th June 2024 with Charlie Vero-Martin, plus show on Thursday 8th August 2024. BOOK

  • 7pm – 9pm.
  • London Liverpool Street.
  • £230
  • As above
£230. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £130 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Bank/Liverpool Street/Fenchurch Street:

Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 12th June 2024 with James Irving, plus show on Monday 5th August 2024. BOOK


Every Saturday morning for 8 weeks from Saturday 6th April 2024 with Chris Mead, plus show on Saturday 1st June 2024. SOLD OUT


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 9th April 2024 with Liam Brennan, plus show on Tuesday 4th June 2024. SOLD OUT

  • 7pm – 9pm weekdays, 11am – 1pm / 2pm – 4pm weekends
  • Bank, Liverpool Street, Fenchurch Street, Aldgate.
  • £230
  • As above
£230. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £130 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in Warren Street / Euston:

Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 11th September 2024 with Greg Birks, 8pm – 10pm, plus show on Wednesday 6th November 2024. BOOK


Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 27th March 2024 with Conor Jatter, 6pm – 8pm, plus show on Thursday 16th May 2024. SOLD OUT

  • 6pm – 8pm/8pm – 10pm.
  • Warren Street or Euston.
  • £230.
  • As above.
£230. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £130 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in King’s Cross:

Every Thursday for 8 weeks from Thursday 19th September 2024 with Nick Oram, plus show on Thursday 14th November 2024. BOOK


Every Wednesday for 8 weeks from Wednesday 20th March 2024 with Mandeep Singh, plus show on Thursday 9th May 2024. SOLD OUT

  • 7pm – 9pm
  • King’s Cross.
  • £230
  • As above
£230. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £130 once the course starts.
Next Available Dates in London Bridge/Borough:
London Bridge venues, see booking links below for addresses.

Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 21st May 2024 with James Irving, plus show on Wednesday 10th July 2024. SOLD OUT


Every Monday for 8 weeks from Monday 3rd June 2024 with Maeve Ryan, plus show on Monday 29th July 2024. SOLD OUT


Every Tuesday for 8 weeks from Tuesday 19th March 2024 with Sophie Pumphrey, plus show on Wednesday 8th May 2024. SOLD OUT


Every Thursday for 8 weeks from Thursday 21st March 2024 with Claudia Novati, plus show on Monday 13th May 2024. SOLD OUT

  • 7pm – 9pm weekdays, 2pm – 4pm weekends.
  • London Bridge/Borough.
  • £230
  • As above
£230. Either payable all at once or with an initial payment of £100 followed by the remaining £130 once the course starts.

the UK's most experienced teachers

All of our teachers are professional improvisers, actors and teachers who perform every week at our club as well as with shows like The Maydays, Showstoppers, The Comedy Store Players, The Playground, The RH Experience, Project2, Dreamweaver and more.

They teach you the skills you actually need on stage, based on real life experience at the highest levels of improv performance. We only employ teachers that are actually up there performing themselves.

The teaching style in this course is warm, supportive and encouraging while still giving you the helpful constructive individual feedback you need to be an awesome improviser. At Hoopla we can cover big themes while still keeping it playful and fun.

welcoming improv community

At Hoopla you are part of a large friendly improv community with jams every week, discounted tickets to our shows for you plus a friend for the entire duration of the course, socials, networking events, festivals, parties and online resources. We help connect you to a network of improvisers and friends for life. Even years after the course we’re there for you.

what's included

Core Improv Skills

  • Teamwork.
  • Support.
  • Group mind.
  • Agreement.
  • Listening.
  • Yes And.
  • Going line by line, offering and accepting.
  • Being obvious and real.
  • Commitment.
  • Spontaneity.

 

Who What Where / Platforms

  • Fun physical ways to establish location in a scene.
  • Creating and naming characters spontaneously.
  • Identifying the relationship through emotional connection.
  • Creating believable objects and environments using mime.
  • Actions, Entrances, Shared Activities.

 

Truth in Comedy

  • Being honest, truthful and real.
  • Being obvious instead of trying too hard to be funny.
  • Behaving realistically in imaginary situations
  • Using your own life experiences in improv.

Relationships

  • Talking to each other about each other.
  • Being emotionally honest in the present moment.
  • Finding agreement and relationship instead of conflict.
  • Playing with full emotional intelligence.
  • Cutting to the chase and escalating emotions.
  • Saying how you feel.

 

Character

  • Finding character through emotional and physical changes.
  • Reactions to power scenes from the start.
  • Status and status transactions.
  • Playing character objectives to make scenes matter.
  • Living truthfully under imaginary circumstances.
  • Base emotions, happy, sad, fearful, angry.

Scene Structure

  • Building a fun believable world at the start of the scene.
  • Game of the scene.
  • Spotting something fun and patterns and themes in the scene.
  • Defining what the scene is about.
  • Escalating fun things, patterns, themes and behaviours in the scene.
  • Making action happen in the now.
  • Justifying and incorporating mistakes.
  • Reincorporating and ending scenes.

 

Options (adapted to the needs of each of group)

  • Further Truth in Comedy.
  • Further Relationships and Emotions.
  • Further Scene Structure.
  • Further Game of the Scene.
  • Further Character.
  • Yes And, accepting and building on offers.
  • Positivity and removing conflict.
  • Spontaneity.
  • Meisner Technique.

 

Show Formats

  • Scenes from suggestion and how to use audience suggestions.
  • Scenes from written suggestions.
  • Open scenes.
  • 2-3 people scenes.
  • Group scenes.
  • Variety of scene styles and tempo over a show.

 

In the next course (long-form level 4):

  • Jumping through space and time.
  • Edits and tags to connect scenes together.
  • Exploring themes, patterns, games and relationships by linking scenes together.
  • Multiple scene long-form shows with reoccurring characters and scenes!

 

In later courses (level 5):

  • Exploring the full diverse range of professional improv show formats including Narrative Long-Form, Improvised Theatre, Improvised Musicals, Harolds, The Deconstruction, Commedia dell’Arte and more!

our teachers

Maria Peters

Maria produces and performs in Breaking & Entering and The Playground, one of Hoopla’s most popular shows. She has studied with Charna Halpern, the founder of iO Chicago and author of Truth in Comedy, who originally developed The Harold with Del Close. She has also studied with Keith Johnstone, New York’s Upright Citizens Brigade and Chicago’s Second City. Maria is also a professional educator and has spent over 15 years in learning & development.

James Whittaker

James Irving

James performs in Dreamer Quartet the improvised musical, one of Hoopla’s most possible improv shows. He also tours nationwide with The Impromptu Shakespeare Company and Bumper Blyton the improvised Enid Blyton adventure, as well as performing with The Concept, Classic Andy and James & I. He trained at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and is a principal Baritone for Grim’s Dyke Opera.

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Monica Gaga

Monica hosts Hoopla’s main weekend shows and performs in Do The Right Scene, Derek’s Mojo, The Playground and The Hell Yeahs. She also regularly performs with The Yes Queens on London’s West End and at festivals nationwide. Monica has also recently appeared in sketches for BBC 3 Comedy. She trained in Community Theatre at East 15 Drama School.

Conor Jatter

Conor Jatter

Conor has performed improv for over 10 years with The RH Experience including multiple runs at The Edinburgh Fringe.  The RH Experience were awarded Google’s YouTube NextUp prize for their online comedy. He also produces RH & Friends, one of Hoopla’s most popular improv nights. Conor also hosts the daily show on AAJA Radio and heads up design at The Soho Theatre. He has trained with Philippe Gaulier.

Chris Mead, improv teacher

Chris Mead

Chris has studied improv at iO Chicago, The Annoyance Theatre in Chicago and The Hideout in Austin, Texas. He studied theatre at Royal Holloway College and University of London. Chris improvises with the award winning Maydays, sci-fi group Project2 and has recently co-founded Sonder, a company dedicated to improv as a theatrical art form. He has performed at various improv festivals internationally including Austin Texas, Norway, Edinburgh, Barcelona and Dublin.

Katy Schutte, improv teacher

Katy Schutte

Katy performs in award winning improv troupe The Maydays, sci-fi troupe Project2, and produces Geekeasy the comedy night for nerds. She has trained at iO Chicago, The Annoyance, UCB and Second City Chicago. She has toured with Fluxx and Baby Wants Candy, performed multiple solo shows at The Edinburgh Fringe and appeared in The London and Liverpool Improvathons. She is the author of improv book The Improviser’s Way.

faqs

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