This is from Keith Johnstone when he taught a couple of us a few years ago. You can also invent your own scenarios and scenes for this.
How the exercise works
First role play the following scenario:
Two people are coming back from a date to one of their houses.
They open the door.
They step into the living room.
The person who lives there asks the other if they would like a drink.
The other says they would and that they would like a wine.
They get the drink.
They sit on the sofa.
The clink glasses and say cheers.
Exercise stops.
Now the exercise is repeated and the scene continues past them saying cheers. But before they start the teacher whispers something for one of the actors to say after the cheers moment. For instance “I’m an alien.”
They then carry on the scene reacting how you would if that was really said in that situation. For instance they may at first be in disbelief or think they are joking until their date takes off their head to reveal their true alien form.
Variations
You can have various different lines to deliver after the cheers moment:
- “I’m an alien.”
- “This isn’t real, you’re in a dream.”
- “I have 30 seconds to live.”
- “Let’s get married.”
- And invent your own too.
And you can also invent new set up scenarios.
Teaching purpose
- Tilts.
- The unusual thing.
- Reacting realistically to what happens in the scene.
Origin
Keith Johnstone.