story
Improvise an entire play/movie from just one suggestion!
Online course.
Improvise exciting and captivating long-form multi-scene adventures with heroes, heroines, villains, exciting action, cliff hanging moments of suspense, love scenes, improvised special effects, musical underscoring and most of all lots of fun!
We’ll be looking at narrative structure, cause & effect, what happens next, the circle of expectation, character archetypes, character objectives, making it matter, love and hope, relationships, heroes and villains, story spine, hero’s journey, characters we care about going through emotional change, fun edits, exploring different genres and more!
Character, relationships, scenes, game and emotions are all important in improv, and it’s when these skills are all put together in harmony with STORY that improv really goes to another dimension.
By the end you’ll be able to improvise an entire play/movie as part of a team from just one suggestion!
dates, time, location
Dates:
Every Tuesday for 5 weeks from Tuesday 22nd September 2020, 7pm – 9pm. BOOK
Every Saturday for 5 weeks from Saturday 12th September 2020, 4:15pm – 6:15pm. SOLD OUT
Teacher: Steve Roe
Price: £140. Reduced to £120 if your income has been reduced by lockdown.
Venue: Online using zoom. All details for login for zoom will be emailed to participants on the day of the first workshop.
Ages: 18+
Only suitable for people with previous improv experience. If you haven’t got previous experience it’s best to start with our earlier level beginners improv course first.
The above course is online:
1. Book your preferred date on this page.
2. On the day of the first workshop we will email you a log-in for the zoom chat.
3. You then click on the link in the email to join the zoom chat and enter password.
4. You will just need a laptop with camera and internet connection, everything else will be in the link.
5. Don’t worry if you haven’t used Zoom before, we start the first session with an overview of how to use it.
Covid-19 Safety & Flexibility
We have followed government guidance to make sure all of our classes and shows are covid-secure, while also working hard to make sure socially-distanced improv is still fun, friendly and playful!
We also offer full flexibility on bookings to give you peace of mind when planning ahead.
teacher Steve Roe
Steve Roe is the Director and Co-founder of Hoopla and has been teaching improv for over 14 years.
Steve creates a friendly, fun & supportive atmosphere in workshops where people are free to play and be themselves.
Steve has experience of teaching beginners, experienced improvisers, stand ups, drama school students and professional actors.
He has also taught improv at East 15 Drama School, Imperial College London and Oxford University, and to various corporate clients including Comedy Central, Apple, BBC and ITV.
In 2010 Steve founded the UK’s first ever improvised comedy club at The Miller in London Bridge, helping to create a vibrant community of performers and audience.
Hoopla’s Improv Comedy Club was recently recommended by Time Out, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, The Guardian, The Evening Standard and The Londonist.
Steve has studied improv with Keith Johnstone, Charna Halpern from IO, Patti Styles from Improv Melbourne, Shawn Kinley from Loose Moose, The Annoyance, The Upright Citizens Brigade, Fooling with Jonathan Kay and Clown with Mick Barnfather.
Steve regularly hosts Hoopla’s nights at The Miller, as well as performing, producing and directing various groups across the London improv scene. Steve also produces and directs Hoopla’s house team programme.
He continues to support countless other shows that have popped up from Hoopla workshops and is influential in growing the UK’s improv scene.
course content
Each workshop consists of some fun back to basics warm ups, then some awesome exercises on narrative, scene work and character skills, followed by putting it together into epic improvised movies/plays each week.
Topics over the course include:
- The circle of expectation and being obvious.
- Building a captivating world of location, characters and relationships.
- Creating a protagonist we care about.
- The inciting incident.
- What happens next.
- Cause & effect and the power of the word “because”.
- Reincorporating and justifying story elements.
- Narrative structures including Story Spine, Fairytale and Hero’s Journey.
- Big themes. Love! Hope! Death! Rebirth! Good vs Evil!
- Character archetypes including heroes, mentors, heralds, friends and villains.
- Objectives and making it matter.
- Characters and relationships we care about going through emotional change.
- Physical improv including chase scenes, fight scenes and lots of action.
- Musical underscoring to inspire emotion.
- Focus and staging.
- Editing multiple scenes together.
- Different genres to inspire great stories.
Most of all having loads of fun improvising exciting plays/movies from scratch!
faqs
We have followed government guidance to make sure all of our classes are covid-secure, while also working hard to make sure socially-distanced improv is still fun, friendly and playful! We also offer full flexibility on bookings to give you peace of mind when planning ahead.
For additional FAQs please see list below:
What comes after this course?
We have a variety of other advanced improv courses that would be suitable.
Who is this suitable for?
People with previous improv experience who want to learn and experiment with improvised narrative and longer stories. You don't need previous narrative experience, we'll cover that in the course.
How much improv or acting should I have done before doing this course?
While running online all we ask is that you have done at least our Beginners Improv Course or a similar amount somewhere else. This course is not suitable for people new to improv.
What if I can’t make every week?
As we’re forming a team over the course it’s best not to miss more than one session over the course. If you think you’ll miss more than one session over the course please wait until another time to do the course.
What if I’m running late?
We’ll be starting each session at 7pm, but if you’re held up at work or whatnot please come along anyway, we’d rather you turned up late than miss a session. You’ll get more out of the workshop if you’re there at 7pm though, as that’s when we discuss the theme for the evening and also do all of our warm ups.
What’s the class size?
The group size is going to be limited to 12 people while online - small enough that you get lots and lots of practice and stage time, but big enough that there’s still a lively atmosphere in the workshop. It’ll be fun as we get to know each other and build a team together.
What tech do I need to take part?
Laptop with camera and an internet connection. Laptops work better than phones or ipads, but phones and ipads also work.
When do you email the Zoom link to take part?
On the day of the first workshop.
Can I transfer to this from my booking for a real-life course that has been postponed?
Yes. We don't have the tech on our website for you to do this automatically, but email classes@hooplaimpro.com if you would like to do this and we will move your booking and payment over and refund you any difference.
Will this course keep going online if lock-down stops earlier than expected?
Yes, it will finish online to make sure everyone can make it including those from outside London.