Boom Chicago Academy: Level 4 Short Form

Session 1: Scenic games

Coach: Katie Nixon

Students: Daan, Joshua, Susan, Ken, Marijka, Pedro, Vaiva, Nicholas

Warmup

Space Walk (Ending In Pair Up)

The group spreads out around the space of the workshop, and begins in a very neutral way to walk around the room, just getting a feel for the space and getting comfortable. The coach instructs the players to greet each other as they pass in the space. After a beat the coach instructs the players to greet each other with a 'howdy!'. After another beat, the coach instructs the players to great each other with double finger-guns as they pass. This goes on for a beat and then the coach can instruct the players to pair up with the last person they greeted.

Partner Intro

The group separates into pairs. The coach instructs the players to have a genuine conversation with their partner, that it will be three minutes and that they should use the time to glean information from their partner because once the conversation is done they are going to introduce their partner to the rest of the group. No surprises here, the exercise plays out exactly as explained: after the conversation, the group stands in a circle with each person next to their partner; each person in turn introduces their partner to the rest of the group.

Monster Circle

The group stands in a circle and one person steps into the middle. They are given a suggestion, and based on that suggestion they adopt the physicality and vocalization of a monster. They should be encouraged to make it strong and monstrous. The rest of the group mirrors the leader from their place in the circle. When it feels like the right time, another player should tag in and initiate a new movement (no suggestions any more). The rest of the group now starts mirroring this new movement. Continue tagging in until everyone has been the leader. This can be quite a heavy work out. As always, players should be encouraged to tag in sooner rather than later.

Pair Death

The group huddles up in a circle where they stand shoulder to shoulder. Everyone looks to the ground and is instructed to bring to mind someone else in the circle. On the count of three the players are to look directly at the person in their mind. Everyone counts up in unison, "one, two, THREE", and on three looks at the person they had in mind. If two people are looking at each other they are both "dead" and must act out dying. Dead players leave the circle, which huddles back up and plays another round. This continues until there are only 2 people left (for groups with an even number of players), or 1 person left (for groups with an odd number of players). This person is declared the winner!

Mind Meld

This is like the mind meld we have seen before, except that instead of calling out "one" and "two" for players to nominate themselves, they step into the middle of the circle.

The Games

Comedy Cube

Conventional comedy cube (a.k.a. shift left). When recounting the suggestions here we allow the downstage left performer to be the only one to talk, with the words being, "[partner] and I will be in a scene inspired by [the suggestion]".

Notes for performing the game:

• try to make sure there is variety between the scenes. For example, if the other scenes have been low key, then go for something high energy and vice-versa.
• as a general rule the person stepping forward into the scene initiates. It's not totally necessary but it shows support for your partner.
• when reentering a scene label any shifts in state right at the top of the new vignette. for example, if a character has bought a car in the interrim have them express an opinion/emotion about their new car straight away.
• personally I find that this game can be a little too gamey* [[it leaves the audience asking, "okay, but why are you doing this?"]] unless the players can discover a unifying theme that emerges to link all the scenes. With that unifying theme the scenes each become different perspectives on the same idea, forming a sort of exploration.

Scene Tag

Six players take the stage and form three pairs, one pair stage left, one pair stage right, and one pair center stage. Each pair has a bell at their respective upstage position (if you don't have bells you can just have the players clap and yell "tag!"). The game is explained to the audience by saying that each of these pairs of players will perform a scene, and that the pairs will tag in at any time by ringing the bell, BUT the next line of their scene must be the last line from the previous scene. Get a suggestion for each scene; it's probably too much to get a first line for the first pair. The center stage pair begins, and as each team tags in they step forward to center stage and the previous pair steps back upstage. For a more chaotic energy this game can be played such that there are only two bells, stage left and stage right, with the tagging in scene running to center stage to begin their vignette, but this can result in collisions

Notes for performing the game:

• don't wait for the perfect line, but jump in when the time is right. similarly, don't jump to tag in when the previous scene hasn't been given enough time to do what it needs to.
• a big part of this game is that it is about justification. You are going to have lines that don't obviously fit into your scene and you have to make them work (preferably completely).
• some coaches will encourage players to accellerate the pace of tags as the game progresses, using this as a way of building energy.
• don't forget to watch your scene from the outside and move it along; you have to divide your attention between watching your scene, paying attention to the progression of other scenes, and justifying lines from other scenes within your own, tagging in at the right time.

New Choice

Two players play out a scene while another player takes the stage somewhere as a conductor. Whenever the conductor calls out "new choice", the last player to speak must come up with a different line to replace the last line they spoke. So it might go something like:

PLAYER 1: What lovely weather we're having!
CONDUCTOR: New choice!  
PLAYER 1: What horrible weather we're having!  

The conductor can, and often will, call for a new choice several times in a row. As the game progresses the conductor can get more specific with their requests, asking for a new way of performing a physical act that the player(s) just made or a new variant of the specific that was just named:

PLAYER 1: This albatross is heavy.
CONDUCTOR: New type of bird.
PLAYER 1: This wren is heavy.  

Notes for performing the game:

• the conductor plays a crucial role. They must call out new choice without hesitation as soon as the player does something. Otherwise it can be confusing as to what the conductor is referring.
• the conventional pattern is to ask for two new choices in a row, so that we operate in a rule-of-three. The conductor asks for a new choice, to which the player responds with something similar to the original choice, but then the conductor immediately asks for another new choice, to which the player responds with something completely different:

PLAYER 1: It's a red bike!
CONDUCTOR: New choice.
PLAYER 1: It's a blue bike!
CONDUCTOR: New choice.
PLAYER 1: It's an elephant!  

• players should keep responding to every new choice as it comes. If a scene partner stands there waiting for the new choices to come to an end, the game can become clunky. Similarly, if a choosing player is not committed to the new choice the game can be clunky.
• in the scene, players can help the conductor (and thereby the game) by making more definitive statements like, "you came in last night steaming drunk", rather than vague statements (usually with hanging pronouns) like, "that was quite a thing last night".

Dance Party

Music blares from the speakers, and the whole cast starts dancing all over the room. All over the room, mind, not just the stage. Dance down the aisles, dance on the balconies, dance over chairs and tables, dance across the stage sure, dance on the audience. Then as in a game of statues when the music stops freeze dead still. Maybe someone calls it out explicitly. "FREEZE!" Two players are named (by whom) and they begin a scene from the positions they are in. Justify the positions, justify the spatial relationship, continue the scene. Call "UNFREEZE!", start the music, and keep partying!

Notes for performing the game:

• Think about justifying your own position every time you freeze. Even if you aren't called on it's a useful way to keep the muscle warm.
• This game is often used late in the show when a pop of energy is needed.
• Other players in the space can be used as scenery, props, or just ignored.
• Ideally you'd hit the two chosen players with spotlights.

Notes

• Eye contact with scene partners is super important; it really helps keep some order in what can become very chaotic. Favor eyecontact over cheating out.
• It can be a challenge to highten and raise the energy without going to yelling, which can get very tiresome and uninteresting. Remember that there are other means.
• Committing to the physicality is one way of heightening.
• Committing to the acting is enough to raise the intensity.
• Could it be that when a scene goes towards yelling it is often a symptom of not committing to the acting?
• Watch the scenes from the outside while you are performing them from the inside. That isn't a shortform specific thing, but seems to be more difficult in short form since there's a lot going on with the games and the scenes and it's easy to forget the scenes and just do the games.
• Emotional grounding is hard in short form since everything is accellerated and heightened, but it is super important to avoid the games feeling gamey!