Workshops
Improv Festival Oklahoma is proud to offer a variety of great improv workshops throughout the festival. Please see payment and workshop information below. If you purchase a Four or Five Class Red Pass you’ll gain the following benefits:
- The option to participate in Maestro or Improv in the Dark
- A pass to all IFO5 shows
To purchase your improv workshops, purchase using the button below and send this registration form to improvfestivaloklahoma@gmail.com.
IFO5 Workshop Schedule
All workshops will take place in or near the Sooner Theatre.
Friday, July 12
2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
There Will Be Hugs: Actually Getting Your Partner’s Back (Eric Heiberg)
Eric Heiberg of the Hideout Theater in Austin will teach a class using actual short form games to help illustrate and cement the ideas of losing and having fun with not being in control. This class is recommended (but not required) if you are performing in Maestro. Even if you aren’t in Maestro, this is great if you like short form improv!Truth & Beauty (Jill Bernard)
In this workshop, Jill Bernard will take you through a series of exercises that inject your work with a little bit of truth and beauty. Having the ability to create improv that is honest and vulnerable adds another layer to your work, a little bit of cake underneath your frosting to take your work from light entertainment to something with resonance. Please wear closed toe shoes to this workshop.
Saturday, July 13
10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Thou Art Hilarious (Shakespeare Improv class) (Karen Wight)
A class which will introduce students to the joys of improvising Shakespeare. As a classically trained actress with a background in both performing and studying Shakespeare, Karen will break down the Bard for use on the improv stage. Relevant history regarding Elizabethan society and the Bard's plays/language will be shared. Techniques for creating characters and situations that are "Shakespearean" shall be learned. Fear not, wanton rogues, thou shall spend the majority of thine time on thine feet immersed in improv work, and not putting pen to paper in earnest note-taking!If It Makes You Happy (Jill Bernard)
Too often improv feels like a chore, filled with right decisions and good and bad choices. In this session with Jill Bernard, participants will learn the joy and success that follows doing exactly what tickles them. Please wear closed toe shoes to this workshop.
2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
The Physics of Improv: How To Change That Scene That’s Uncomfortable, Unenjoyable or Potentially Dangerous for the Better (Asaf Ronen)
We’ve all been in THAT scene. The one with the uh-oh moments that pulls us out of the scene, makes us worry, feels out of our control. Well, it doesn’t have to. Learn how to reset your default responses to those moments in a way that helps you regain the fun of the scene.Solo Improv (Jill Bernard)
There are no "schools" of improv - we are each our own school, which means your solo piece is the ultimate expression of that school. Work with Jill to practice the skills that are universal to most solo pieces - character snapping, stage pictures, and aggressive choices - and also tease out what will make your solo piece unique. This class is limited to 8 participants.
Sunday, July 14
10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Reaching for the Fun Script (Asaf Ronen)
As improvisors, you are the writer, director and actor of your scene. Then why are you reaching for the crappy script? That is the one with the obligations, the worries, the uninspiring. You should instead reach for the fun script that has the characters that you would really like to play, the situations you would really like to explore, the lines that would be fun for you to express. Learn to be selfish enough to create higher level improv and connected enough to your scene partners to invite them into the fun.The Fireball Theory (Jill Bernard)
This workshop presents Jill Bernard's Fireball Theory and offers exercises to help you improvise faster and harder than you can judge yourself. You will learn to metaphorically hit the scene running and outrun the explosion of self-loathing and doubt like an action movie hero outruns a fireball thus defying the laws of physics. Please wear closed toe shoes to this workshop.
2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Move it! Yes, I mean you. Physical Improv Class (Karen Wight)
This class incorporates elements of clowning, mime, and environmental work and applies them to improv scene work. By freeing up the body, the student will discover new characters, different approaches to creating a relationship onstage, and tools to add variety to their scene work. During the class, the student will be given the opportunity to do both solo and duo work as well as participate in side coaching using some of the learned techniques. The class will begin with a group stretch, followed by exercises, and solo/scene work-- please wear comfortable clothes and shoes and be prepared to move!The Other Conflicts (Jill Bernard)
We spend too much time on Man vs. Man. What other conflicts are there? Man vs. Nature, Man vs.Society, Man vs. Himself, etc. In this workshop we'll explore what we can do besides bicker with each other. Please wear closed toe shoes to this workshop.